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Home > Blogs > Seen and Overheard > Archives > 2009 > September > 28 > Entry
Does spanking lower IQ?
This will surely ruffle the feathers of parents who spank.
Sparing the rod may do something better than spoiling he child.
Children who are spanked have lower IQ scores than those who are not, according to a study presented last week at the at the International Conference on Violence, Abuse and Trauma in San Diego.
The new study by University of New Hampshire professor Murray Straus found that children who were spanked had IQs 2.8 to 5 points lower than those who were not spanked.
“All parents want smart children. This research shows that avoiding spanking and correcting misbehavior in other ways can help that happen,” Straus says in a press release issued by his university. “The results of this research have major implications for the well being of children across the globe.”
Straus’ study included 806 children ages 2 to 4, and 704 ages 5 to 9.
For starters, Straus reasons that corporal punishment is extremely stressful and can lead to post-traumatic stress symptoms such as “being fearful that terrible things are about to happen and being easily startled.”
But is this hogwash? Do you think there is a link better spanking and IQ or is the professor on to something?
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Permalink | Comments (9) | Post your comment | Categories: talk
Comments
By This is why america is messed up
September 28, 2009 1:46 PM | Link to this
The Bible is clear about spanking - if you don’t do it, you don’t love your child. If its done properly, not abusively, it is not stressful - nor will it lead to a disorder. But, if they get you to believe this, you will send your kid to therapy and the doctors will make even more money.
By LovingParents
September 28, 2009 2:08 PM | Link to this
Some parents abuse their children. Michael Jackson claimed his father “beat” him; yet, the dad says, No, “that’s something you do with a stick” In this world today, I don’t even know why the issue would be equated with IQ tests which are notoriously biased. Here’s an idea, Love you child or don’t have one!
By Mercy!
September 28, 2009 2:45 PM | Link to this
Look professor- you’ve got hundreds of thousands of baby boomers and older generations that were spanked and most turned out to be productive, educated, intelligent people in society. Your study is worthless and wrong. “Time outs” and other worthless punishments are harsh enough and only breed brats, which is what we’re seeing in the younger generations. Old methods work the best in this case. Stop with the “kinder/gentler” nonsense already. Kids expect to get away with things now because society didn’t give them pain as a consequence for their actions. JMO
By clp
September 28, 2009 2:53 PM | Link to this
A rare, well-timed swat on the bottom (not in anger!) never harmed a child who was loved and respected - it’s an attention-getter that sometimes is needed. I would wager that parents with lower IQs who spank more often, and poorly, have children with lower IQs based on genetics and overall parenting styles, not simply spanking. But that theory can’t get a large study grant…
By K C
September 28, 2009 3:07 PM | Link to this
Maybe those who are spanked are generally from lower income families where education is not valued or supported sufficiently and the end result is really a self-fulling prophecy!
By F. Gump
September 28, 2009 3:11 PM | Link to this
Perhaps the gene pool/IQ of the cretins that spank their children is lower and the genius gene isn’t there to begin with. Dumb is as…..
By are you kidding
September 28, 2009 3:42 PM | Link to this
Never took an IQ test before I got spanked. Only after. I got spanked as a child, my children got spanked. These were spankings, not beatings. Spankings have nothing to do with one’s IQ. Mr. Gump, one’s IQ is like a box of chocolate. You never know what you are going to get.
By ToleratingOthers
September 28, 2009 4:19 PM | Link to this
Maybe, if the parents are spanking out of anger and just hitting the child, never explaining WHY they are being spanked, it could be stressful on a child. However, done correctly, spanking is very effective. I know I was smart enough to know if my parents said, “Do that one more time and you’re going to get spanked.” I didn’t do it.
By loving mom
September 28, 2009 4:20 PM | Link to this
my son was spanked as a child. He was valdictorn in his class & is working on his masters degree.spanking does not hurt children. the people who beat their children are the problem. Quit frankly that is what is wrong with todays society of spoiled brat children. they get away with everything or so they think.