Show I Y Your ur Baby I and Mine By Myrtle Meyer Eldred i WHY IS SLAPPING INEFFECTIVE INEFFECTIVE TIVE PUNISHMENT The habit of slapping small babies bable when they molest the tho home furnishings fur fur- ns 1 Is probably one ono of or tJi the commonest of pf I parental punishments punish punish- ments The Tho slapping may not be done done- in a a. mean nean way tho the parent ma may not oven even b be angry She hon hon- estly thinks that this is Is' a a. legitimate way vay to teach her cr child not ot to touch what she sha knows must not be to touched hed Suppose baby pulls a book from ho tho family table and tears It to ph pieces cs Naturally the tho mother is annoyed and angry Also she wants to o prevent this happening again So Soshe Sosho Sosho sho she slaps th the baby's hands a a. smart and ind stinging blow Baby aby cries piti pit fully and rubs his red little hand and mother feels feels' like a n. brute and says It lt hurt me more th than n it did him Mm But wo we days later baby finds c anOther another an em an- an other book and tears team It to bits bite The little wr wretch moans hits his mother er Ho knew w he was doing wrong wrong- for tor he look looked d at m me with v. absolute absolute absolute ab ab- ab- ab solute deviltry in hi hi eyes i I Just had to spank him hard PRIZED POSSESSIONS HARMLESS TO CHILDREN Why didn't tho the slapping do the tue work Wo We know there is a a. perfectly perfectly per per- good rule of ot psychology Thorndyke which says sas Attach I annoyance to a response and it is 11 weakened Surel Surely slapping is Js an annoyance to tho the child chUd as aa is hs all pain But In the above case caso the annoyance was ag not attached to the touching of ot tho the object but to the mother who is entirely outside of or ortho tho the situation S Had the pages pac of ot tho the book cut bab baby's fingers as he tore them apart ho would have havo howled and dropped I the sheets and in t the o future futuro looked Ith mistrust at all aU books Had the book toppled on him hint as he I pulled it off and g ven him n a a. bang he on the head ho would not need to be bo told that ho must not pull pun books bookstrom from the table I 1 Ho would probably cry at the at-the Hie sight of ot one Many any ob objects objects ob- ob have bave the power within themselves themselves themselves them them- selves of 01 teaching the child chUd the dangers of or handling hl them Hot Rot stoves radiators knives and scissors acts acts- scissors sors soya are aro all solf-puni solf solf hiers nut But ut we we weare are arc tho child's childs protectors and cannot cannot cannot can can- not allow him to handle these ob- ob In order to discover their natural penalties We Vo have to their keep I them out of ot his Ua way keeP Most of ot the tho things which W wo we tell children n they must not riot touch carry no penalties They are harmless harmle SOtar so o far tar as tho child chUd l is concerned So Instead ad of preventing tho child chUd from repeating the fot forbidden bidden activity slapping merely prevents him from doing it Jt while white we are around He Ho runs like Uke a ci deer with tho forbidden treasure in his tile hand han He Rc w watts waits until our ur back is 18 turned to shoot like on an an arrow straight for tor the prohibited spot Ho is not afraid of or doing what he has been slapped for tor doIn doIn do- do In Ing In Ho Re is afraid only of ot his hla mother who d does docs es the tho slapping Our let on 01 Obedience and P Punishment suggests some more mox more appropriate punishments than thon slapping and a n self addressed stamped enve envelop ope i with any l' l readers reader's will bring It to you 10 Slapping as punishment is ls' never oVer s successful It is just a temporary l. l p cheeky cheek and AncS that eh check IB Is removed as M soon RB as tho Is out o ot sl sight ht Wo We h hav ve t to U use uso o other tactic In la training children S I S |