Almost half of Irish people believe it is acceptable to slap a child as punishment, a new survey has found.
Commissioned by Newstalk, the new survey found that 49 per cent of Irish people thought it was acceptable to slap a child at least under some circumstances, with 49 per cent saying they had actually done so.
According to TheJournal.ie, some respondents admitted to feeling guilty after slapping a child, and claimed that they only ever did so out of frustration, although one respondent answered: 'A little tip on the hand or bum never done anyone any harm.'
However, a recent Canadian study found that spanking erodes developmental growth in children and decreases a child's IQ.
The new Irish survey, which collected responses from nearly 800 people, also found that a quarter of people believe Irish parents dress their children inappropriately for their age.
39.5 percent believed it was acceptable to give alcohol to a minor, while slightly less, 38.9 per cent, said it was never acceptable, while the remainder did not know.
In separate questions, 2.3 percent of Irish people said it was acceptable to allow a child to smoke cigarettes and cannabis, although over 90 percent said it was never acceptable to do so.
70 percent of respondents to the survey said they believed they were a good parent.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.danielbest1 | Oct 02, 2012, 05:05 AM EDT
I have seen Irish parents use sticks,rods,canes to hit kids,,I have heard them complain of hurting their hands will hitting children across their heads..I have seen blood seeping from wounds across the backs of legs from the impacts of full force full swing lashes of the cane on young children of 6,7,8,9,10 years and more.I have seen them punched and kicked by their parents.these parents are all holy catholic and never swear,never miss going to church,always give money to the holy priest.They outcast anyone who has children born out of wedlock and shun those kids!This is why I hate the Irish catholic church!
porkheaven | Aug 02, 2012, 10:16 AM EDT
I agree a light tap ok,never when you are angry,only on the butt or upper arm. You never want to hurt the child and only with your open hand because if your hand stings they you are wrong.
sirpeter | Aug 01, 2012, 10:39 PM EDT
@alisaann.I understand your concern that smacking could hurt a child if a parent wasn't careful.But the reality is I never heard of a parent breaking a child's leg/legs because they hit them too hard by accident.I'm talking about an open handed smack across the legs.Out of experience I have found my hand has come out the worse of any encounter with my children's legs.I respect your opinion on not smacking kids because I always hated doing it.But it works because my teenagers are happy and told me they had a great childhood and I can see they are happy.For me and I would imagine for every parent all you want is for your kids to be happy.How you rear your kids is your own business.But I am happy to give you the benefit of my years of experience in the hope you don't totally reject the use of the odd smack to discipline your child when all else fails.If you have always been able to get your boyfriends/husband/parents/friends to understand your point of view without getting angry at them at times then for you are skilled enough to never smack your kids.;))
TayandCake | Aug 01, 2012, 11:23 AM EDT
If ya want to scare a kid, tell them you'll lock them in the devils house and have a shed painted black down the back o the garden, with the window blackened out.
TayandCake | Aug 01, 2012, 11:18 AM EDT
While 50 percent don't,glass half full anybody?
NiGhabhainn | Aug 01, 2012, 10:59 AM EDT
Do you think that because upon listening to our mammies and our grannies comical advice; we were brought up to believe that a slap/smack for misbehaving as well as a shot of whiskey for teething/toothache has made SOME OF US a bunch of alcoholic partner beaters??? Not forgetting the Celtic tiger attitude amongst many, which brought a whole new age of spoilt brats, that those alcoholic partner beaters are now also unable to cope without getting their own way!!! Sorry for blasting this page with random thoughts on this subject, but I dislike when a survey speaks for me without asking me first!
NiGhabhainn | Aug 01, 2012, 10:47 AM EDT
PS....somebody compared gun laws to slapping earlier..I find this interesting as to teach a child patience is to be patient, to teach a child anger, is to be angry, to teach a child how to resolve a situation without violence, is to be non violent. Who knows, is it the parent or the child at fault and is the hand that slaps, any different to the hand that holds the gun in anger? @ Ciara,Please don't use "We" when speaking for the Irish people on this issue. I am Irish and I dont agree with it, yet I'm sure those who do are not out to harm their children!! :-)
NiGhabhainn | Aug 01, 2012, 10:37 AM EDT
Well, I didn't take the survey! I don't believe in slapping, I think its when an adult looses control over themselves to they tend to use physical force to get a child's attention and scare them into submission. I think how each were brought up is usually how they in turn bring their own up. Its harder to shake a habit of hitting than practicing staying calm and finding a way around it. I see it every day here, parents hand their children high sugar and colour foods to "Treat" them and when the child's body and brain react, the parent slaps them. Its really sad to watch. I'm not saying this is the case for every parent slapping, but I don't find it necessary and my children are very well behaved. We use the step along with a wee chat!
jamieLM | Aug 01, 2012, 10:18 AM EDT
@ciradexy, you're right. Some kids are more difficult to discipline than others. One style of disciplining doesn't work for all children. That's why I never tell other people how to discipline their kids. Parents have to do what works for them to get their children to behave appropriately - short of abuse, of course.
ciaradexy | Aug 01, 2012, 09:33 AM EDT
JamieLM, well said. My friend has 3 kids. The first 2 are very well behaved kids who she never slapped because for what ever reason, she was able to talk to them and they listened. The youngest however, is a brat and never listens to her. So she slapped him a couple of times for things like putting his finger in a socket and switching on the gas on the cooker. He hasnt done either since.
jamieLM | Aug 01, 2012, 09:29 AM EDT
@sirpeter, you're absolutely right. Children do need boundaries and they need to know what's going to happen when they cross those boundaries. I'm not telling anyone how they should discipline their kids, as long as they don't resort to beating, whipping, or punching. My kids know that consequences are definitely coming for bad behavior when I start counting to 3 and they haven't stopped misbehaving. I don't slap or spank my kids because I get the results I want from rewarding good behavior and consistently enforcing consequences for bad behavior. Every parent should do what works best with their kids.
ciaradexy | Aug 01, 2012, 05:39 AM EDT
Dear Americans, we dont tell you to change your gun laws, dont tell us how to raise our kids. Alisaann, hitting is very different to slapping. Slapping has never broken a kids arm or leg. Cop on woman.
alisaann | Jul 31, 2012, 10:00 PM EDT
you should NEVER hit on the legs....you chould BREAK a child's leg or even a arm. alisa
alisaann | Jul 31, 2012, 09:55 PM EDT
there is NEVER a good enough reason imo, to slap or HIT your child....hand are LOVE, NOT FOR HITTING.....if you slap out of anger...you could seriously injure the child. alisa
sirpeter | Jul 31, 2012, 06:33 PM EDT
Children especially from the age of two to seven react very well to the odd smack across the legs.All the explaining in the world will not get through to a willful three year old mind that some things are much too dangerous for them to do.It's natural for a child to push the boundaries.It's a parents job to show them the boundaries one way or the other but always within reason.Whatever works best and gets the desired result.Children love boundaries and a child without boundaries is the most miserable child you will ever see.The odd few good well timed smacks up to the age of seven or even to the age of ten and you will never have to lay a finger on your child again.That is if you are skilled enough at doing the job.Of course some weak willed parents want to be their children's friend and treat them almost as equals.Children don't want equality.These parents need an even harder smack.Children want parents,both parents,not parent friends.Children make their own friends.
Towngate | Jul 31, 2012, 02:42 PM EDT
Irish Children who are violently abused by thrashy dysfunctional so-called Parents, consider themselves lucky they are not getting the type of treatment all the other kids are getting!!
Belphagor | Jul 31, 2012, 02:31 PM EDT
yes and most of the priests think it's fine to rape kids, are you surprised?
fargobarbi | Jul 31, 2012, 01:36 PM EDT
My Irish grammy said "a good smack" delivered on your bum, is going to make you think twice about doing what ye were doing when ye got it" I'm a teacher & a therapist & there is a big difference between a "smack on the bum" & a beating. I'm okay with a "smack" by a parent as a consequence for unacceptable behavior. "Choose the behavior, you choose the consequence!" Hopefully this will not be taken out of context because I am a parent as well & have "smacked" my children.
lokionline | Jul 31, 2012, 12:45 PM EDT
When I lived in Dublin in the 60s and 70s I rarely saw a man hit a child. In fact I cannot recall seeing it happen outside of school. At school it happened all too often, but it was done by the not so holy brothers, not the lay men teachers... I am sure it went on behind closed doors in some families but I never saw it in all the years I lived there.
On the other side of the coin, I often saw a mother or older sister give a child, boy or girl, a smack on the leg for whatever reason and I know that mothers were often known as the one to give out stiffer physical punishment at home. Many an Irish child can attest to a fear of the wooden spoon.
This divides my family to this day. My wife, mother and sister insisting that a "smack" is harmless and my father, brother, son and I disagreeing.
I find this dichotomy intriguing if a bit disturbing. Have others noticed this and what may account for it?
PhlutiePhan | Jul 31, 2012, 11:21 AM EDT
Hitting and spanking are two different brands of cereal. The Irish believe in original sin and the lower nature of the human soul. The modern psychological trash states with Freud that man is basically good and the Gospel according to Sigmund believes in the "hug a thug" mentality.
CitizenWhy | Jul 31, 2012, 10:23 AM EDT
Interesting. My father from Ireland was horrified to see a parent hit a child. I do not know how they did it, but I saw many families from Irelald, including my own, where the children were never hit and the parents got complete respect from the kids, even in the teen years.
joan1954 | Jul 31, 2012, 10:22 AM EDT
How many times did I get spanked on the leg for not doing what I was supposed to or for talking back to my mother. Wasn't spanked hard on the leg but I knew it and never did it again. What is the big deal? How does one handle kids who sass back to parent/parents? We grew up with no ill effects.