[Big TR]

30 year old father of a 5 year old.

I was occasionally spanked with the stylish 1970's 3 inch wide white belt and/or wooden spoon. I turned out fine. My brother, not so much. This small sample size evaluation leads me to believe that beatings don't translate to how you become as an adult.

I have smacked my son's hands a couple times when he was doing something dangerous after being told not to do it, like touching the stove. I smacked his mouth once when he talked back. My wife was never hit growing up and has never struck my son. She doesn't like when I do it.

I feel bad when I do it, but don't think I am causing irreparable harm to my son. My wife and I find it is much more effective to take away his favorite game or to send him to the corner for 5 minutes to get the wanted behavior.