NEWYORK--Parentswhoteach"toughlove"bydiscipliningtheirchildrenwithspankingscouldbemakingthemmorelikelytohavesexualproblemsasteenagersandadults,aleadingresearchersaid.
ProfessorMurrayStraus,oftheUniversityofNewHampshire,foundthatchildrenwhoarespankedorexperienceothercorporalpunishmenthavearaisedriskasteenagersandadultstoverballyorphysicallycoerceapartnerintohavingsex.
"It'smoreevidencethatparentsshouldnotspankifthewellbeingoftheirchildrenisatstake,"hesaidinaninterview.
StrausanalyzedtheresultsoftheInternationalDatingViolenceStudy,asurveyofmorethan14,000universitystudentsat68universitiesin32countries.Thestudentswereaskediftheyhadbeenspankedorhitfrequentlybeforeage12andiftheyhadcoercedasexualpartnerintheprevious12months.
Menwhohadexperiencedcorporalpunishmentwerefourtimesmorelikelytophysicallycoerceapartnerintohavingsex,thanthosewhohadnotexperiencedalotofcorporalpunishment.
Physicalcoercionincludesholdingsomeonedownorhittingthem.Womenwhohadexperiencedcorporalpunishmentwerealsomorelikelytocoercesexfromapartnerthanthosewhohadnotbeenspanked.
"Peoplegeneralizethattheuseofcoercion,physicalcoercion,isokay.Theylearnthatfrompeopletheyloveandrespect-theirparents,"saidStraus,whopresentedthefindingsatasummitoftheAmericanPsychologicalAssociation.
Bothmenandwomenwhohadexperiencedcorporalpunishmentaschildrenwerelessthan10percentmorelikelythanthosewhohadnotbeenspankedtoverballycoercesexfromapartner.
Straussaidstudieshaveshownthatcorporalpunishmentleadstolowselfcontrolandselfesteem,aswellasaggressiveness,antisocialpersonalitiesandtheunderstandingthatviolenceisokaywhichmayleadtosexualcoercion.
Headdedthattherearealternativewaystodisciplinechildrenthatworkbetteranddonothavesideeffects.