Answers: Child Abuse

What is the line between disciplining a child and child abuse?

Another professional football player has been in the news for alleged violence. Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is facing felony child abuse allegations, and the NFL is facing scrutiny for its handling of the incident. Peterson was indicted after leaving marks on his 4-year-old son with a wooden switch. While the court will ultimately decide Peterson's fate, we want to know how you separate child discipline and child abuse.

FROM OUR INBOX

If the punishment results in broken skin or bruises lasting days, I believe it is abuse. If it results in redness that goes away in a few hours, I do not believe it is abuse, though that does not mean I even condone that. I was spanked on the bare bottom with a brush and the effects pretty much went away once the spanking stopped.

Of course this question only addresses physical abuse. Other kinds of abuse can be even worse, though harder to detect.

John Burgess

Cedar Rapids

'''

The role of a parent is to teach. If a school teacher struggles with a child learning material she isn't allowed to hit the student. She/he is expected to find more creative ways of teaching. The same idea is behind parenting/discipline. We should hold ourselves as parents higher than a school teacher.

Melissa Mullen

Marion

'''

While some acts are clearly child abuse (throwing a kid down the stars or tossing a kid in the closet for a week, e.g) and some things clearly aren't (taking away the Nintendo)

There is a grey area. A wrathful paddling because anger and rage and annoyance is different then a loving paddling with the intent to improve the child done out of love. That is all.

Robert Crozier

Fairfax

'''

FROM FACEBOOK

' Glen K.:

I empathize with Adrian Peterson. I believe it started out as discipline and it accidentally went too far. He said he didn't mean to cause the harm he did and I believe him. He's never ran from allegations and stood up for what he did. It's getting blown out of proportion. It is a serious issue and he says he's learned from it. Why ruin a person's life over a mistake. I know people won't agree with me, but look at yourself; you're not perfect either.

' Darcy T.:

Can an adult be struck without fear of arrest for assault? Why would the rules be different if a child is struck?

' Becky H.:

Peterson left injuries on his 4-year-old's bottom and scrotum … too far. No one has mentioned or asked, but did the boy have pants on at the time? And, if he did, think about how hard he would have had to hit him to leave those injuries.

' Katie B.:

Had Peterson stuffed leaves in his wife's mouth and beat her with a tree branch, it's be spousal abuse. Why is it OK to do that to a 4-year-old under the guise of discipline?

' Pete M.:

The sound of my dad's leather belt clearing belt loops on his jeans was enough for me to fly right.

' Austin S.:

My mother used an 18-inch ruler on me to keep me in line as a kid. Perhaps it did leave a slight red mark, but I don't care. I'm 25 years old and seriously considering going child-free because God forbid you should ever show a child discipline when all they want are the latest iPhones and Common Core setting them up to fail.

' Terry P.:

Leaving whip marks on a child is not discipline; it's abuse.

' Pete M.:

I see kids today who's parents don't use corporal punishment. Those snotty, little brats have so much disrespect for others it makes me want to snap on the parent, not the child. Am I advocating whipping your child senseless? No. But occasionally a butt whipping is what it takes to get the message through.

' Andrew R.:

I've never head anyone say that they remember a timeout they were given as a child and how it still affects them today. Spankings are the most effective form of discipline. We should be supporting Peterson for his stand on parental rights.

' Frank D.:

Just because your parents did it to you does not make it OK. The next generation is supposed to improve on the last.

' Libby T.:

Isn't it funny how if a person hits another person when they're adults, it's a crime called 'assault.” But when an adult hits a child … it's called discipline. Violence is nothing by a coward's way of solving a problem. Children are what they learn.

' Kenzie W.:

You should teach your children to respect you and respect themselves, not fear you.

' JoAnn G.:

Inflicting physical pain to teach a lesson is disturbing.

' Wayne J.:

Never leave a mark on a child. Spanking should not be about doing harm. You can spank a kid without cutting or bruising them. It should be a signal to the child that they have gone so far that their behavior cannot be accepted anymore.

' Amy L.:

I believe in spankings. Kids these day have no respect for adults anymore. I have seven kids and I have disciplined them the way I was disciplined as a child. And they are not troubled by this.

' Jennifer A.:

What Peterson did was horrible and should never be considered an appropriate form of discipline. I am disturbed in the amount of people coming to his defense.

' Andrew R.:

Crossing the line is any time you think you can impose on another parent's rights to discipline their children.

' Tristan S.:

As soon as you use anything besides an open slap to the bottom, it becomes abuse.

' Abby C.:

I believe as soon as you do anything besides an open slap to the buttocks or any action that leaves marks, it should be considered abuse.

' Matt K.:

If your child continues to act out and misbehave after all other forms of discipline have failed, beatign the child isn't going to work either.

' Barb H.:

If spanking really works so great, why do parents stop doing it when their kids get older/bigger?