Monday, November 06, 2006
Do 3 out of 4 Australian parents smack their kids?
I was interested to hear in a 60 Minutes report on Sunday, 5th November that 3 out of 4 Australian parents use smacking as a discipline method. This doesn't ring true with other recent research and also anecdotal evidence.
From my experience Australian parents need little convincing that smacking is not a preffered method of managing children's behaviour. From time to time most parents certainly get frustrated and in the heat of the moment feel like smacking. But whether it is still seen as a legitimate discipline method of managing children's behaviour and is used as such I am not sure.
I am interested to hear your thoughts regarding this matter.
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2 comments:
Michael,
As a parent, teacher... and now school chaplain, I find it intriguing how the pendulum continues to swing. This time it ossiclates for the physical discipline debate.
And I also find it fascinating that the insinuation in your blog - "parents certainly get frustrated and in the heat of the moment feel like smacking" - sounds like smack is only negative.
I recall, and it is a few years now, as a parent, choosing to discipline my son with a smack, and knowing exactly the choice I was making. There was no heat of the moment, but a rational choice taken because it was an effective method of stating a boundary to my son.
The pendulum is certainly not in my direction at the moment, but now I work with hundreds of kids that scream boundaries in their lives. They have little respect for adults in their lives. I wonder why?
The 'smacking' choice is certainly worthy of debate, and I for one believe our society over this next generation is paying a very big price for physical discipline being promoted as a 'bad / heat of the moment' choice.
Let's keep talking about this as a society!
Bruce Wadd
Chaplain / ex-teacher / grey-haired parent of young adults
I tend to agree with you Michael. I work with children under 6 years and their parents. I find that most parents prefer alternatives to smacking and will ask for help in this area. some simply say, "smacking doesn't make any difference and I feel bad afterwards. What should I do instead?" I like this approach from parents, it shows they are observing what is happening and seeking to make improvements for themselves and their child. I do feel though that there is not enough on offer to parents in regard to effective alternatives, straight out common sense methods that really work. A lot of time is spent in pre natal classes and not enough on what to do afterwards!
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