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Video: If you go to MSN Video, look up "Study: Spanked Kids Have Lower IQ"

The kids in the study were followed for 4 years.

- Kids age 2-4: Kids not spanked had IQ 5 points higher.
- Kids age 5-9: Kids not spanked had 2.8 points higher.
- Globally: Countries that don't use corporal punishment have overall higher IQs.


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Article taken from: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Spanking-Children-Lowers-Their-IQ-122620.shtml


According to leading experts, it may be that the century-old habit of spanking children may do them more harm than good. It may, indeed, make them move more hastily, or even teach them not to do something (for a while, at least), but it could also lower their intelligence coefficient (IQ), scientists report. The recent investigation, which was conducted on several hundred US children, shows a clear correlation between a lot of spanking and a drop in IQ levels later on in life, LiveScience reports.

"All parents want smart children. This research shows that avoiding spanking and correcting misbehavior in other ways can help that happen,” University of New Hampshire (UNH) researcher Murray Straus, who has been involved in the current research, explains. In order to address concerns that the children in the study may have had their IQs influenced by other factors, such as less education opportunities or a lower inherited intelligence, Straus reveals that, when compiling the results of the new study, he took other factors into account too, such as the parents' socio-economic status.

“You can't say it proves it, but I think it rules out so many other alternatives; I am convinced that spanking does cause a slowdown in a child's development of mental abilities,” Straus says. The expert collaborated with Mallie Paschall, a scientist at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation in Maryland, on the new research. Two age groups were analyzed – about 806 two- to four-year-old children, and some 704, who were aged between five and nine. The survey was conducted for a period of four years, and the children had their IQs measured at the beginning, during, and at the end of the research.

In the first age group, all children naturally got smarter as they grew older. But those who also got spanked registered, on average, a five-point lower IQ than their peers who were not hit. For the older age group, the difference was smaller, of only 2.9 points on the IQ scale. Even if the discrepancies may seem small at first, they are statistically significant, the expert explains. Among the other factors that the team took into account when assessing IQs, the experts mention parental education and income, as well as the levels of cognitive stimulation that children received from their parents

“Contrary to what everyone believes, being hit by parents is a traumatic experience. We know from lots of research that traumatic stresses affect the brain adversely,” Straus adds. “With spanking, a parent is delivering a punishment to get the child's attention and to get them to behave in a certain way. It's not fostering children's independent thinking,” University of Texas in Austin childhood development scientist Elizabeth Gershoff concludes.

Multiple studies have shown that spanking does more harm than good. In addition to lowering a child's IQ, it may also make them more likely to do bad things. They've found that children who are spanked are more likely to engage in bad behavior as long as they think are not likely to get caught.


That doesn't prove the studies wrong. The studies are not saying that every child who is spanked is going to be a complete moron. Obviously some kids who are spanked are going to end up smart, others won't. And some kids who are not spanked will end up smart while other won't. The study is just saying that on average, spanked kids are not as smart as their peers. And on average, a spanked child's IQ is not as high as it otherwise would be.


It's possible that your nephews have ADD, learning disabilities, or something else that makes it hard for them to learn from certain methods. Or it's possible that their parents are not being consistent enough with the punishment. Any number of things can make a lesson not sink in with a child. So you can't really draw any serious conclusions from just your situation and your nephews' situation.

That's where studies come in handy. They control for all that stuff, and they look at way more than just a few kids. So I would recommend doing some research before you decide on how you will punish your children.

I don't want to spank my kids, unless it's for something really serious (like walking in front of oncoming traffic, etc). My brother and I were never hit once growing up, and I'd like to continue that with my kids if possible.

My boyfriend is the exact opposite of how I was raised, his parents used the paddle, but he has said he'll defer to me when dealing out punishment for any kids we may have.