Spanking is hitting the buttocks of another person to cause them pain. Spanking normally involves one person hitting the buttocks of another person with an open hand.
Usually in a spanking, the child lies across the parent's lap, and the parent brings their open hand down upon the child's buttocks. At other times, the youngster might be told to bend over, or lie face down across a bed. Spankings may be given over the trousers, over the underwear, or on the bare buttocks.
The American Academy of Pediatrics is a group of medical doctors who work with children. They have said that spanking is not a good way to help children learn how to behave. They say that it can easily turn into child abuse. 
Dr. Elizabeth T. Gershoff is a scientist who studies spanking by parents. She has said that many studies done over many years show that spanking does not work. She has said that the science shows that spanking does not teach children good behavior or to obey their parents. In fact, she said that children who are spanked obey their parents less as time goes on. Dr. Gershoff said that spanking is "violent" and should be stopped. In 2012, a Canadian team of scientists also said that spanking does not work. They said that over time, spanked children become more aggressive. Murray Straus is another scientist studying spanking of children. He has said that there is new research showing that spanked children commit more crimes when they grow up. He said that this was so even if their parents were "loving" to them.
Many scientists have looked at the question of what happens to spanked children. A small number of scientists have claimed that there is no harm from spanking. Other scientists say that "over 100" studies have shown that spanking can be harmful to children. They say that spanking harms children's growth. They also say that children who are spanked grow up to have more mental illnesses. They say that no study has shown any good to come from spanking. When children are asked how they feel when they are spanked, many say that it makes them feel sad, angry, and afraid. Young children in the United Kingdom who got spanked said things like, “it feels like someone banged you with a hammer” and “it hurts and it’s painful inside – it’s like breaking your bones”. Scientists at the University of Manitoba in Canada found that children who were hit even "sometimes" suffered more mental illnesses when they grew up. They could have different kinds of mental illnesses: long-lasting sad or discouraged feelings and a loss of pleasure and interest in life (depression), a lot of fear and worry (anxiety), racing thoughts that are hard to control and acting without thinking (mania), or a need to take drugs or alcohol to feel well (drug and alcohol abuse). Other scientists have discovered that spanking children often can make their brains grow less than they should. These children end up less able to think clearly. They also try to hurt others more.
Some groups of people have said that spanking is violent and goes against human rights. They are people like lawyers, social workers, and politicians. Spanking a person under the age of 18 is now against the law in more than 40 countries. Some of those countries are Brazil, Germany, Israel, Argentina, Sweden, Netherlands, Spain, Poland, New Zealand, Kenya, and Costa Rica.
References[change | change source]
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