Does spanking send kids a clear message of what’s right and what’s wrong? Or the message that violence is how to get your way? When spanking doesn’t change behavior, what’s a parent to try next?This program is an investigation of spanking - the most familiar form of corporal punishment-- as well as other physical punishments that are legal in many places. Viewers are given space to interpret their own experiences and values as we examine the common result of worldwide studies: corporal punishment works! But, it "works" only while the child is being hit and for a very short time afterward.
Long-term, a different picture emerges. When parents inflict pain, what a child feels most is rejection, which does not drive the desired response. Instead of compelling a desire to please, parental rejection compels anger, detachment and distrust - feelings that lead to social withdrawal and a desire to hurt back or take it out on others. Children who are spanked will typically develop a low opinion of themselves, matching the one they believe their parents hold of them.
So, if the parental power to cause physical and emotional pain does not instill the desired behavioral change, where’s the value in that position of power?
In this program, we show viewers how parents can harness the unique power of their position to get the results they seek. We offer concrete examples of adults meeting their own needs and encouraging children to do the same, in ways that are simple, socially acceptable, effective, and positive. We explain that real change happens with practice over time, not in an instant or in a particular moment. And we demonstrate that learning to handle conflict, disappointment, or anger is not like learning how to spell a single word - it’s more like learning to speak an entire language.
*Closed Captioned
*A full-length preview of this title is available upon request