Up to a point. If you beat the shit out of your kid because s/he left a smudge on the counter then that might be abusive

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Many American kids are so pampered in many foreign countries if you do something wrong your parents can legally hit you with a belt.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I'm American, and I've been hit with a belt. I'm not saying I didn't deserve it, but not all American kids are born with silver spoons in our mouths.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

It depends exactly what they did wrong. I think that the problem is that some parents have trouble deciding what counts as an appropriate punishment and hit the kid whenever they see fit.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

That's the discipline of a lazy parent. It's very easy to slap your kid in the face, and they'll get the point right away. Why? We don't want to get hit in the face! But what does that show? If parents really cared, they could find a way to discipline their children by other means, like setting a system of rewards and consequences, and strictly enforcing them. Not, "You piss me off, you get hit!".

by Anonymous 13 years ago

No one slaps their kid in the face. That, IMO, is abuse. And for kids, just not getting a reward or just facing not-severe consequences doesn't mean they'll stop. Not to sound like kids are animals, but when they're young, they don't know the difference between right or wrong. If they throw things, you can't just say, "No!" They won't think it's a big deal. You don't necessarily beat them, but a small smack on the butt and a stern, angry tone tells them, "Oh, this isn't good," and they stop. I know at least 10 kids that were never truly disciplined as kids and know they're bitchy, slutty, and don't take their parents seriously.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

some kids deserve a good smack

by Anonymous 13 years ago

This is ridiculous. Good parents DO NOT spank or slap their children. That is completely unacceptable and WRONG. Violence is nothing you want to teach your children. It's not just humiliating towards the child, it doesnt teach the child a single positive thing except that the parent is unable to handle conflicts with words. And the child NEEVER deserves being hit/spanked/smacked/slapped. It's a serious shocker that most of you can actually agree on this. Crazy americans

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I was surprised so many agreed and then that you got so many votes down. hitting your children is never good and only teaches them to get what they want thru violence and doesn't establish good decision making. there have been numerous studies that support this. if only more people learned developmental psychology before having children

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I live in Denmark and here it's illegal for a parent to hit a child. Even if it is just to teach them a little disciplin and it won't hurt them. If kids grow up being taught that it's okay to use mild violence to teach discipline, they will teach their children the same. And that might evolve to something serious. There is a lot of ways to teach children discipline.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

(Kamilla): I've been hit with abelt and i turned out fine. It doesn't make my parents bad people it means they cared it enough to make sure i didn't turn into a bratty slut.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I was spanked as a kid. It wasn't long before I knew what the difference between good and bad behavior was. I don't agree that outright violence is a good way to discipline your kid, but spanking can be an effective method.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I was spanked and got my hand slapped when I was young, it only ever hurt temporarily, and it taught me damn well that I better not act out of line. I thank my parents for doing that, and I always will

by Anonymous 13 years ago

So you will actually slap your own children? I can't see how parents can cause their children pain like that on purpose. Bad parents, that is. And I can see some of you are mentioning not turning in to a slut or being slutty because of the spanking. Exactly how did your parents teach you that by slapping you? Violence is NEEEVER the answer. How can anyone say that? How can you thank your parents for having caused you pain instead of using their voices by talking and telling you that what you did was wrong in a proper way. Im sure children that has been spanked or slapped by their parents grow up to be way more violent than children that hasn't. Statistically speaking. I was never spanked, i have good parents that has thought me the difference between right and wrong by showing and telling me. i did not become a slut or a brat, and no one that wasnt slapped that i know have become that either. I cant see how thats related would be grateful if someone could answer my questions:)

by Anonymous 13 years ago

They obviously didn't teach you how to use punctuation. c:

by Anonymous 13 years ago

(12+Year+Old): Oh they did. I'm dyslectic and have troubles learning grammar,and my native language isn't english, but I've improved a lot lately. Thanks for pointing it out

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Spanking or slapping is fine, as long as it's done in a moderate amount. My parents would give me a warning if I did something wrong, if it was something minor (calling someone a name, staying up past my bedtime). Then if I continued to do it, I was get a light spanking. But if it was something really serious (throwing something at someone, locking my brother out of the house) then I was spanked right away.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

The amount of people who said no way really makes me wonder how badly they were spoiled. I got spanked and I don't hate my parents for it.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

My sister and I were never spanked (because my mum was physically abused when she was a kid/teenager and couldn't bring herself to physically hurt us) and we were both very well behaved. We were still disciplined and taught respect just in a diffrent way than parents who spanked/slapped their kids. I don't think parents who do hit their kids are bad people, unless it crosses the line to abuse. But there are alternative methods that are still effective.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

I have only been hit once or twice by my parents - every other time I just got told off by my parents or was given a computer ban etc, which I think is far more effective. When I was hit I just got even more mad and wanted to make trouble again to annoy my parents even more, but when they told me off, I would actually feel bad, even if I didn't want to admit it, and not do it again. I don't have kids yet but I hope to one day and I will never, ever slap them - it just teaches them that violence is okay and if they get into arguments at school they're more likely to slap people there, which just gets them into more trouble, so it's a vicious circle.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

Finally, someone on here with some sense.

by Anonymous 13 years ago