You are relaxing at home, waiting for your child to get home. You hear the phone ring. You pick it up. It’s your child. Just not in the way you hoped. You have to go to the store because your child has been caught shoplifting. You manage to clear the mess but now you have to decide whether you should discipline your child and how you should.

Parents disciplining kids is not a new thing. It is a tool many parents use to keep their children in check and so they learn how the world works. Parents have all approached disciplining in different ways.  Some send their kids to have regular check-ups with the corner or their room, some have let their children experience how the primordial people have lived, some have gone about it by physical means, and others just let their kids figure it out themselves. Parents discipline their kids all the time. The question is how they should discipline them and how far they should take it.

I know I have seen multiple ways of being disciplined and a lot have also been used on me. After taking this into account, my question becomes, should parents resort to rough punishments like beating to help their child or not?

A parent's main goal in life is to help their child is making the right decisions in life so discipline becomes a necessary thing. But, is beating your child really the right answer? Research shows that “Children spanked frequently and/or severely are at higher risk for mental health problems, ranging from anxiety and depression to alcohol and drug abuse (Emily Cuddy, Richard V. Reeves).” Parents always try to help their child be their very best they can be. If beating only leads to anxiety and other problems, then it shouldn’t be implemented.
Spanking or a beating will stop the child from doing something bad or messing up for now but in the future, it will not always be the case. Children may, “Aggressive behavior attributed to children who were spanked differentially tends to correspond to interactions where violence is used to exert power over another person(Emily Cuddy, Richard V. Reeves).” Stopping a child in the moment may be good but if it teaches them that violence is the answer then the whole reason you beat them in the first place has all been lost and you guys are back at square one.

Parent’s are there to make sure their children are ready for the world by making sure the necessary skills and education are there. There is a conception that beating your child will ready them for the world more efficiently. However, a study from  MacKenzie et al. shows that “children of mothers who used little or no corporal punishment ‘gained cognitive ability faster than children who were spanked.’ (Emily Cuddy, Richard V. Reeves).” If not beating your children leads to higher comprehension abilities then beating should stop as it impedes their progress and upsets what your goal as a parent is all about. To help your child.

Parents are to take care of the well being of their children. Frequent spanking can, “Become more violent and harm a child (WebMD).” Even if you are trying to help your child, in no situation should harm befall a child to an extent where they could be scarred or damaged.

A family that is close is always more happy and enjoyable. But beating your children can lead to,” more distant parent-child relationships (Emily Cuddy, Richard V. Reeves).” There is only one person who will be like your child and that is your child, so use your time building meaningful relationships and not beating the love and affection you guys have for each other.

I understand that parents beat children due to the frustrating and seemingly impossible task of helping and guiding their child but beating your children won’t help in the long run. Don't get me wrong, disciplining is an important thing to do but it shouldn't involve hurting your child physically or mentally in a scarring way. You should spend time with your child to figure out what can be done and how you guys can be on the same page.