4 Responses (2 Discussion Threads) to “Is Corporal Punishment a Cause of Mental Illness?”

1. 

   Michele

   1

   18th July 2012

   I don’t have much of an opinion about whether spanking directly leads to mental illness in children. I do suppose that many children with mental illnesses are undiagnosed and as a result, their parents lack the patience to deal with them.

   (See Spanking & Mental Illness…The Chicken or the Egg?.)

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   • 

     Dr George Simon, PhD

     1.1

     18th July 2012

     Thanks for the comment, Michele. While the jury is still out with respect to the consequences of spanking per se, the evidence is mounting against the use of the more intense forms of corporal punishment.
2. 

   Julie Luton

   2

   20th July 2012

   I used spanking in a very limited fashion with my first child. I found that punishment only increased the intensity of emotions in the situation but did not change the child’s behavior much. Thus when my second child was born we did not spank.

   I know that both kids are pretty great and that was the right decision for them. But it was also the right decision for ME. My emotions are less intense when I do not get physical so i can interact in a more helpful manner. Therefore, through anecdotal evidence alone, I concur with your assertions wholeheartedly!

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   • 

     Dr George Simon, PhD

     2.1

     20th July 2012

     Thanks for sharing your experience, Julie. And it matches my own quite a bit.