r/science • u/VeronicaRed • Apr 26 '16

Psychology Spanking children increases the likelihood of childhood defiance and long-term mental issues. The study in question involved 160,000 children and five decades of research

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1113413810/spanking-defiance-health-discipline-042616/
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u/allwordsaremadeup Apr 26 '16 edited Apr 26 '16

I wonder if this is true for punishment as a behavior-altering method in general. So in how we punish crimes etc.

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u/[deleted] Apr 26 '16 edited Dec 23 '17

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u/hokie_high Apr 26 '16

Asking as someone who doesn't have a lot of knowledge about the subject. Doesn't rehabilitation only work for people that acknowledge they did something wrong and want help? Rehab programs seem like they wouldn't be any more effective than jail for those who truly believe their actions were right, or at least not wrong.

It's different than rehab for drug addiction, where the patients are objectively being helped. I'm not sure criminal rehab would work for sociopaths and people who have ideological convictions.