Spanking children lowers IQ levels, creates stress

By Sheilah Downey

Parents who don't spare the rod may be spoiling their child's IQ, according to research presented Friday by Dr. Murray Straus, a no-spanking crusader since 1969.

Children who are spanked have lower IQs worldwide and also experience post-traumatic stress symptoms, according to Straus, a discipline and domestic violence expert of the University of New Hampshire.

"All parents want smart children," said Straus in a press release, "This research shows that avoiding spanking and correcting misbehavior in other ways can help make that happen. The results of this research have major implications for the well being of children across the globe.”

In a United States study on spanking, Straus and colleague Mallie Paschall, senior research scientist at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, studied samples of 806 children ages 2 to 4, and 704 children ages 5 to 9.

In a follow-up four years later, the IQs of children ages 2 to 4 who were not spanked were 5 points higher than those who were. The 5 to 9 year olds who weren't spanked had a 2.8-point higher IQ level.

"How often parents spanked made a difference," said Straus. "The more spanking, the slower the development of the child's mental ability. But even small amounts of spanking made a difference."

Straus has been studying the damaging effects of corporal punishment on children since 1969 and is a strong advocate for enacting no-spanking policies throughout the world.

"It is time for psychologists to recognize the need to help parents end the use of corporal punishment," he said, "and incorporate that objective into their teaching and clinical practice."

He said it is time for the U.S. to enact a federal no-spanking legislation, a policy that 24 nations have already adopted.

Worldwide study

Although the use of corporal punishment has decreased worldwide, said Straus, he found a lower national average IQ in nations where it was more prevalent.

In a study of 17,404 university students in 32 nations, Straus said the strongest link between lower IQ levels and spanking was in children where the corporal punishment continued into the teen years.

The reason spanking lowers IQ levels, according to Straus, is that the stress of corporal punishment leads to an increase in post-traumatic stress symptoms in children, especially those who are spanked three or more times a week, he said.

Symptoms of stress are associated with lower IQ levels.

In countries with higher economic development, he said, less corporal punishment is handed out and a higher national IQ is the result.

In other studies, Straus has found that children who are spanked face a risk of sexual problems later in life. He also found that spanking can lead to increased dating violence.

For more on Straus' research, go to http://pubpages.unh.edu/~mas2.

The study was presented Friday at the International Conference on Violence, Abuse and Trauma in San Diego.