Hi I tend to keep the discussion pretty focused on the empirical questions implied by the paper (are Black kids less likely than White kids to throw temper tantrums, do Black parents use spanking more, are kids who are spanked [black or white] less likely to throw temper tantrums) and on what research would be necessary to answer these questions (emphasizing distinction between non-experimental and experimental studies [surveys, parent training studies] and strength of causal conclusions). I do NOT try to give answers to these questions.
Most of my actual lectures are on the standard classification of parenting styles. I could (and probably should) do a lot more with questions like cultural differences in use of spanking (corporal punishment) beyond Black parents, and look more intensively at literature mentioned by Beth. I do mention faith-based groups (e.g., in Ontario a few years ago) who threaten to leave the country when Child and Family services intends to interfere with parental use of spanking), but not enough on other cultural groups. I also cite examples of corporal punishment I've witnessed in Greece (my wife is Greek), even in parents of my or later generations. The class tends to be pretty multi-ethnic, largely due to large-scale Canadian immigration for some time now, and that has generally produced some differences in other sorts of experiences (direct or vicarious). For example, pretty much every year I have several students who know of people in arranged marriages (often their parents). Similar style of discussion (i.e., familiarity with rather than personal experience) might work well for use of corporal punishment. I'm also old enough to have personal knowledge of spanking in the home and at school, and don't have any "gut" aversion to it as opposed to a more intellectual one. Although it is shocking to see parents behave that way in public (e.g., in Greece). Take care Jim James M. Clark Professor of Psychology 204-786-9757 204-774-4134 Fax j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca Department of Psychology University of Winnipeg Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 2E9 CANADA >>> Beth Benoit <beth.ben...@gmail.com> 31-Aug-09 1:43 PM >>> What an interesting article, Jim. It agrees with developmental findings that I've read about African-American attitudes toward parenting, but honestly, I've hesitated to discuss this in class. I have very few black students, and worry that if I interjected this, it could be oversimplified and misconstrued. I'd be very interested if you'd share a little of what your students think about the article. Beth Benoit Granite State College Plymouth State University New Hampshire On Mon, Aug 31, 2009 at 2:06 PM, Jim Clark <j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca> wrote: > Hi > > In my culture and psych class I use an activity on spanking centered around > a short magazine piece on use of spanking by Black parents. See > > http://io.uwinnipeg.ca/~clark/teach/3050/Act07-spanking.pdf > > Take care > Jim > > > James M. Clark > Professor of Psychology > 204-786-9757 > 204-774-4134 Fax > j.cl...@uwinnipeg.ca > > >>> Beth Benoit <beth.ben...@gmail.com> 31-Aug-09 1:00:30 PM >>> > I've found it interesting that every year since I began teaching at the > college level (in 1993), when I ask how many of my Human Development and > Child Psychology students were ever spanked, the numbers become smaller. > In 1993 when I would ask that question, maybe one or two out of a class of > 40 or 50 would say they'd never been spanked. It was so unusual that heads > would turn to check out this strange creature, and the person was often > asked, "So how did your parents discipline you?" > > But over the years, as the number of the "unspanked" increased, I've found > that more and more students marvel that there are parents who did spank. > (Remember that most of these students would have been children in the > early > nineties.) > > It's my understanding that spanking is more commonly accepted in Southern > states - at least, according to > > http://www.childinjurylawyerblog.com/2009/08/spanking_in_tennessee_and_sout_1.html > > , > it's still legal within many of the school systems. And a study done as > long ago as 1996, entitled "Regional differences in spanking experiences > and > attitudes: A comparison of northeastern and southern college students," by > Clifton Flynn, found exactly this: that students in northeastern colleges > were less likely to have been spanked and less likely to approve than > students in southern colleges. It appeared in Journal of Family > > Violence<javascript:__doLinkPostBack('','ss~~JN%20%22Journal%20of%20Family%20Violence%22%7C%7Csl~~rl','');>, > Vol 11(1), Mar, 1996. pp. 59-80. > > Beth Benoit > Granite State College > Plymouth State University > New Hampshire > > On Mon, Aug 31, 2009 at 1:41 PM, Michael Britt < > michael.br...@thepsychfiles.com> wrote: > > > In the latest episode of my podcast I interviewed the author of a > > great parenting book: Raising Children You Can Live With. Although > > the author discuss a lot of great ideas regarding how to interact with > > your child, it seems that my brief thoughts regarding the > > ineffectiveness of spanking is getting the most response. There's an > > interesting comment on the episode from a listener who strongly feels > > that spanking is needed in response to certain behaviors. You'll see > > my response as well. Also, I feel there's a nice "marriage" I think > > between behavioristic and humanistic philosophies in the author's > > approach to dealing with undesirable behavior from children. Since > > spanking is an experience that most students have had, the episode > > could make for an interesting discussion or homework around these two > > different approaches to modifying a child's behavior. If you want to > > check it out: > > > > http://bit.ly/vj4dZ > > > > Michael > > > > -- > > Michael Britt, Ph.D. > > Host of The Psych Files podcast > > www.thepsychfiles.com > > mich...@thepsychfiles.com > > > > > > --- > > To make changes to your subscription contact: > > > > Bill Southerly (bsouthe...@frostburg.edu) > > > > --- > To make changes to your subscription contact: > > Bill Southerly (bsouthe...@frostburg.edu) > > > --- > To make changes to your subscription contact: > > Bill Southerly (bsouthe...@frostburg.edu) > --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly (bsouthe...@frostburg.edu) --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly (bsouthe...@frostburg.edu)
