RESEARCH AND INFORMED EXPERT OPINION
Leading researchers, educators and experts assess the effects and dangers of spanking and related maltreatment of children

  1. By Jordan Riak
    1. Plain Talk
    2. Booklet formatted PDF-- Not conveniently screen readable
    3. Read Letters from typical professional users

  2. Spare the Rod, Riane Eisler

  3. The Baumrind Fallacy

  4. Spanking Kids Increases Risk of Sexual Problems as Adults, New Research Shows, By Murray Straus, University of New Hampshire, February 28, 2008

  5. Spanking Kids Causes Sexual Problems, By MedHeadlines, February 29, 2008

  6. Spanking may lead to sexual deviancy in years of maturity, Front page / Science, SOURCE: http://english.pravda.ru/news/, February 28, 2008

  7. E-mail from Alice Miller to Jordan Riak, January 8, 2007

  8. VENEZUELA: Second Latin American country to ban corporal punishment, Children's Rights Information Network (CRIN), December 20, 2007

  9. Experts on Self-Injurious Kids Challenge Dr. Israel's Methods, By Jennifer Gonnerman, Mother Jones, August 20, 2007

  10. What Works for Troubled Teens?, By Maia Szalavitz, Mother Jones, August 2007

  11. Spanking creates new, worse problems, By Armin Brott, McClatchy-Tribune News Service, November 7, 2007

  12. A Doctor's Bad Medicine, By Patrick Briody, April 2007

  13. Hitting is never OK, By John E. B. Myers, The Costco Connection, May 2007, Vol. 22, No. 5

  14. The Lucifer Effect; Understanding How Good People Turn Evil By Philip Zimbardo; Random House; 551 Pages, Reviewed by Michael Roth, San Francisco Chronicle, April 28, 2007

  15. A little bit of violence is not acceptable, By Jaap E. Doek, Chairperson, United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, 2006

  16. Legal Adult Violence, Mike A. Males, from The Scapegoat Generation: America's War on Adolescents(1996)

  17. Lies, Damn Lies, and "Youth Risk" Surveys, By Mike Males, April 2001

  18. Banning corporal punishment -- What the arguments tell us about our character regarding the treatment of children, By Dr. Kerby Alvy, Exec. Dir. of the Center of the Improvement of Child Caring in California, February 22, 2007

  19. Spanking: When parents lift their hands -- It's better not to use corporal punishment, researchers agree. But, in fact, people do. Now we're learning the consequences, By Ben Harder, Special to the Los Angeles Times, February 19, 2007

  20. What to do instead of punishment

  21. Childhood origins of terrorism: Authors: Ali Salem, David Tell, Lloyd deMause, Alice Miller, Phyllis Chesler, Jamie Glazov, Riane Eisler, Salman Rushdie, Philip Caputo

  22. Corporal punishment and political missions, by Alice Miller, April 2007

  23. The Relevance of Cognitive Dissonance Theory to the Movement to Ban Corporal Punishment, By Mitch Hall, October 2007

  24. Why are Dutch children so happy? , By Kathryn Westcott, BBC News website, February 14, 2007

  25. Child Abuse May Alter Victims' Brain Chemistry, Study Shows, Chicago Tribune, November 1, 2006

  26. Idyllic childhoods of CEOs reconsidered, By Mitch Hall, October 10, 2006

  27. Scolding harms children - study, CNN.com, October 1, 2006

  28. Ex-Yorktown mom takes on N.C. schools over corporal punishment, By Brian J. Howard, The Journal News, September 14, 2006

  29. Corporal Punishment’s Hidden Costs, By Salim Muwakkil, In These Times, September 8, 2006

  30. Summit Conference II: National Leaders in the Child and Nonviolence, Speech Delivered By Madeleine Y. Gómez, Ph.D. April 7, 2006

  31. Too much anger in black youth today [Harvard Medical School Professor of psychiatry, Dr. Alvin Poussaint quoted.], By Clarence Page, News-Leader.com, August 17, 2006

  32. TOUGH LOVE QUACKERY: Maia Szalavitz's presentation to The Cato Foundation, April 20, 2006

  33. Punitive Damages, Chapter 4, UNCONDITIONAL PARENTING: Moving from Rewards and Punishment to Love and Reason, By Alfie Kohn, Artria Books, 2005

  34. Coercive Restraint Therapies: A Dangerous Alternative Mental Health Intervention, By Jean Mercer, PhD. SOURCE: www.medscape.com, August 9, 2005

  35. Mental Health Profession Condemns Attachment Therapy, SOURCE: Advocates for Children in Therapy, January 13, 2006

  36. SPANKING: A Shortcut to Nowhere, Penelope Leach, 1996

  37. Yes ... spare the rod; Early educator rejected corporal punishment, By Robert D. Ilisevich, The Meadville Tribune, April 12, 2005

  38. Correlation between high rates of corporal punishment in public schools and social pathologies, December 2002

  39. Spare the Rod, Embrace Our Humanity, By Professor Susan H. Bitensky, 1998

  40. Final straw: To spank or not to spank? By Susan H. Bitensky, Chicago Tribune, July 25, 1996

  41. Child Abuse in Sweden, By Joan E. Durrant, Ph.D., April 9, 2003

  42. Paddling: A Legacy of Violence, By Tom Johnson, April 2003

  43. But It Never Did Me Any Harm, By Jane & James Ritchie, From Spare the Rod, (1989) pp. 13-19

  44. Rod Inspired Wisdom, By Adah Maurer, Ph.D., 1993

  45. The Neurobiology of Child Abuse -- Negative effects on brain development and function, By Martin H. Teicher, Excerpt from article in Scientific American, March 2002

  46. Culture of abuse, The Press, Canterbury, New Zealand, 10 October 2003

  47. "Spanking in Moderation" Debunked, By Stephen Strauss, The Globe and Mail, July 11, 2003

  48. Lehigh researchers examine link between abusive child-rearing, overly aggressive behavior
    SOURCE: EurekAlert!.org, February 1, 2001

  49. La Fessée: 100 questions-réponses sur les châtiments corporels (French)
    by Oliver Maurel, 2001

  50. Study finds showering an infant with attention in 1st year produces a secure, relaxed child once independent,
    Study commissioned by Germantown-based Brio Corp., Advisory Group Chairman: J. Ronald Lally, Director of the WestEd Center for Child and Family Studies in San Francisco. Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, October 14, 2000

  51. The Swedish Ban on Corporal Punishment: Its History and Effects, Joan E. Durrant, Ph.D., 1996.

  52. Moms and Dads Flunk a Parenting Test, Eric Nagourney, New York Times, October 24, 2000

  53. American Academy of Pediatrics' position on physical punishment

  54. American Academy of Pediatrics calls for end of school paddling, August, 2000

  55. Abuse 'triggers schizophrenia', BBC News, January 14, 2002

  56. McLean Researchers Document Brain Damage Linked to Child Abuse and Neglect, Release: McLean Hospital, December 14, 2000

  57. Babies might be killed by even mild shaking, Andy Coghlan and Michael Le Page, New Scientist, June 16, 2001

  58. Childhood Abuse Changes the Developing Brain, Emma Patten-Hitt, Yahoo! News, December 29, 2000

  59. Punished for Life--Canadian study links spanking to addiction and psychiatric disorders, Reuters, re: Study, Canadian Medical Association Journal, October 5, 1999

  60. Raising children the right way is not easy--Professor Herrenkohl, lectures about how child rearing affects children's behavior later in life, By Julie Silverman, News Writer, The Brown and the White, Lehigh University, April 3, 1998

  61. A brief psychological explanation for pro-punishment sentiment
    Excerpt from "The Need to Punish: Political Consequences of Identifying with the Aggressor," by Arno Gruen. This article, which appeared in The Journal of Psychohistory, Vol 27, No. 2, Fall 1999, is based on Der Fremde In Uns (The Stranger Within) by Arno Gruen, to be published in Spring of 2000 by Clett-Kotta, Stuttgart. Prof. Dr. Phil. Arno Gruen, Rütisrasse 4, Ch-8032 Zürich, Switzerland, is a psychoanalyst and psychotherapist.

  62. Corporal punishment by mothers and cognitive development of children: a longitudinal study, Murray A. Straus and Mallie J., Paschall, Family Research Laboratory, University of New Hampshire, presented at the World Congress of Sociology, 1998.

  63. Want smarter kids? Don't spank them Reuters, August 3, 1998

  64. Paddling States v. Non-Paddling States: A National Academic Comparison, By Jeff Charles, September 2000

  65. CORPORAL PUNISHMENT, by The Joint Methodist-Presbyterian Public Questions Committee, New Zealand, July 1994

  66. Severe Parental Punishment and Aggression: The Link between Corporal Punishment and Delinquency, Ralph S. Welsh, Ph.D. This revised Web edition (January 1998) was originally published in Corporal Punishment in American Education: Readings in History, Practice and Alternatives, Editors: Irwin A. Hyman and James H. Wise, Temple University Press, Copyright 1979 (pp. 126-142).

  67. Delinquency, Corporal Punishment and the Schools, Ralph S. Welsh, Ph.D., from Crime & Delinquency, 1978, pp. 336 - 354.

  68. Physical punishment and signs of mental distress in normal adolescents, Bachar, Eytan; Canetti, Laura; Bonne, Omer; DeNour, Atara Kaplan; Shalev, Arieh Y., Vol. 32, Adolescence, 12-22-1997, pp 945(14)., Libra Publishers Inc., 1997.

  69. Spanking makes children violent, antisocial--Effect same regardless of parenting style, socioeconomic status, sex of child or ethnic background, Murray A. Straus, Ph.D.; David B. Sugarman, Ph.D.; Jean Giles-Sims, Ph.D., from the "American Medical Association News Update," August 13, 1997, about "Spanking by Parents and Subsequent Antisocial Behavior of Children," Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, August 1997.

  70. Demystifying the Defenses of Corporal Punishment, Murray A. Straus, Ph.D., Family Research Laboratory, University of New Hampshire Durham, NH 03824. [This is a PDF file. Acrobat Reader is required for viewing.]

  71. Spanking teaches short-term lesson, but long-term violence, Murray A. Straus, Ph.D., July 24, 1999

  72. There never was a time when a major social problem was solved by beating a child. And there never will be such a time , C. Everett Koop, M.D., Sc. D., Surgeon General of the U.S. Public Health Service, U. S. Department of Health and Human Services; from the Keynote Address to the Kids Symposium, "Uniting America to Fight Childhood Injury," Washington, D.C., February 16, 1989

  73. It Never Did Me Any Harm, Ian Gibson from The English Vice: Beating, Sex and Shame in Victorian England and After, London: Duckworth, 1978, pp. 2-4, 284, 308, 310-15.

  74. Violence toward women and children: Perverse fantasies said more common, By Daniel Goleman, New York Times, Copied from the Detroit Free Press, Tuesday May 14, 1991

  75. What good is school paddling?--The gonorrhea rate, graduation rate and violent crime rate of top ten paddling states are compared to the national averages., Jeff Charles, (1997)

  76. Psychological Evaluation of a Child Abused at School

  77. What Spanking Does for Kids, Irwin A. Hyman, from The Case Against Spanking: How to Discipline Your Child Without Hitting, (1997) pp. 58-62.

  78. Child abusers' destructive use of 'time-out', Irwin Hyman, from Reading, Writing and the Hickory Stick, (1990) pp. 139-140, 12-13.

  79. Research on EIPTSD [Educator-Induced Posttraumatic Stress Disorder], Irwin Hyman, from Reading, Writing and the Hickory Stick, (1990) pp. 97-101.

  80. Forced Retention of Bodily Waste: The Most Overlooked Form of Child Maltreatment, Laurie A. Couture

  81. The Biology of Soul Murder--Fear Can Harm a Child's Brain. Is It Reversible?, Shannon Brownlee (1996)

  82. When Discipline Silences, Forever, from Philadelphia Inquirer--Metro Section, January 14, 1999

  83. Hidden Scars--Childhood abuse, whether physical or sexual, leads to psychological disturbances in up to 40 percent of survivors. It may also cause changes in brain structure., Madhusree Mukerjee (1995).

  84. Discipline and Punishment, Chapter 6 of The Men They Will Become, By Eli H. Newberger, M.D. (1999).

  85. Fear Cripples--When parenting meant short tempers, loud voices and 'a good hiding,' it left us children significantly impaired., Neil Blacklock

  86. Getting Wise to "Babywise", by Katie Allison Granju, Salon 1998

  87. EZZO-FIED!, by Katie Allison Granju, from BestFed.com

  88. How Children Really React to Control, Dr. Thomas Gordon

  89. Experts Speak Out on Punishment, Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish, from How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk, Avon Books, 1980, (pp. 115-117)

  90. Institutionally Sanctioned Violence, Albert Bandura, Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, Vol II, No. 3, Spring 1975

  91. Punishment: A Most Dangerous Tool, John J.B. Morgan, from Child Psychology, Revised. New York: Farrar & Rinehart, Inc. 1940. (p. 178)

  92. Aggression and Delinquency, Professor Philip Greven, Rutgers University (1990) PDF version

  93. Spanking and the 'Alarm Reaction' by Adah Maurer, Ph.D.

  94. The Influence of Corporal Punishment on Crime, Adah Maurer, Ph.D. and James S. Wallerstein (1987)

  95. Psychological Profile of Kids who Kill from Entertainment Wire, April 21, 1999

  96. A Tale of Two Criminals: The Primal Roots of Violence, David Chamberlain, Ph.D., Psychiatrist, National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Yale University

  97. Psychodynamics of the Punisher, Adah Maurer, Ph. D. (1974)

  98. No vital organs there, so they say by Lesli Taylor, M. D. and Adah Maurer, Ph. D.
    This succinct and authoritative short essay on the physical and psychological effects of buttocks-beating is essential reading for parents, health care providers, educators and public education policymakers.

  99. Health Tips: Corporal Punishment in Our Schools
    A publication of the California Medical Education and Research Foundation, prepared and edited by physician members of the California Medical Association, Index 479 - October 1985

  100. What Causes Spanking Fetishes? A Testable Model, Chris Dugan
    Originally published in three parts as "Origins of Spanking Fetish," on newsgroups alt.sexuality.spanking and soc.sexuality.spanking, July 1996.

  101. Tactile Deprivation and Violence, Ashley Montagu, Excerpted from Touching: The Human Significance of the Skin, Third Edition, New York: Harper & Row Publishers, 1986. (pp. 224-28)

  102. Anthropologist [Ashley Montagu] Finds Psychological Seed of War in Baby Spanking, from The Boston Globe, January 5, 1941.

  103. Ashley Montagu condemns corporal punishment in a letter to Jordan Riak, March 13, 1989 (122KB graphic)

  104. Karl Menninger condemns corporal punishment in a letter to Jordan Riak, February 6, 1984 (97.8KB graphic)

  105. The spirit of vengeance, Karl Menninger, from The Crime of Punishment, Viking Press, 1969.

  106. Defence for Children International (DCI) condemns corporal punishment in a letter endorsing Parents and Teachers Against Violence in Education (PTAVE), July 5, 1984 (116KB graphic)

  107. Dr. Spock on Spanking
    The record set straight

  108. Ten Principles of Mother-Infant Bonding to Change the World, James W. Prescott, Ph.D., Institute of Humanistic Science, from The Truth Seeker March/April 1989

  109. Swedish Parents Don't Spank, Adrienne Ahlgren Haeuser, University of Wisconsin

  110. Researchers find slower skill development in spanked toddlers, Ruth J. Moss, Psychology Today, November 1986

  111. Beating in child-rearing has its psychological roots in slavery, William H. Grier, M.D. and Price M. Cobbs, M.D., from Black Rage, Basic Books, Inc., New York, 1968. Pages 137-8.

  112. Abused Tots Take On Abusive Parents' Ways, from Growing Child Research Review, September, 1986

  113. The Sins of the Fathers, David Bakan, From Slaughter of the Innocents: A Study of the Battered Child Phenomenon (1971). Boston: Beacon Press. pp. 115-117. (1971)

  114. Parental and home influences on the development of aggression in children, Norma and Seymour Feshbach, from The Young Child: Reviews of Research, Edited by Willard W. Hartup, Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. Published by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, Washington, D.C. (1972). Volume 2, pp. 290-292.

  115. Some Antecedents of Felonious and Delinquent Behavior, Alan DeWitt Button, Ph.D. A version of this paper was presented at the annual convention, American Psychological Association, Honolulu, Hawaii, September 8, 1972.

  116. The Social Causes of Crime - Overview, Elliott Barker, M.D.


  117. Corporal Punishment to Children's Hands A Statement by Medical Authorities as to the Risks

  118. Dr. J. J. H. Beek speaks out about his patient's hand injuries resulting from corporal punishment at school

  119. Force and Fear Have No Place in Education, Albert Einstein, From the essay "On Education" in Out of My Later Years, Philosophical Library, Inc., 1950, New York. (pp. 33-35)

  120. Spanking and Mental Health; Prescription for Reform, By Herbert A. Falk, Ph.D., Excerpted from Corporal Punishment: A Social Interpretation of its Theory and Practice in the Schools of the United States, Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1941. pp. 144-47

  121. A Lecture on the Abuse of the Fear Instinct in Early Education, Boris Sidis, Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 1919, (vol. 14, pp. 333-348)
COLLECTIONS

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  • Jordan Riak

  • Murray Straus

  • Martin H. Teicher

  • Ralph Welsh

  • Childhood origins of terrorism

  • Corporal Punishment Archive

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