As a child, I remember my father threatening to spank me. I left my Barbie dolls out and he stopped on one. He told me I would never forget him again, so I screamed at the top of my lungs. A neighbor telephoned the police; all because of the fear of a spanking. Parents should avoid spanking their children due to the physiological and psychological pain a child endures from this form of punishment. For starters, parents should avoid spanking their children due to the physiological consequences. There is sufficient evidence to show that spanking slows children's cognitive development (Straus, 2011). Spanked children tend to perform much worse on achievement tests than those whose parents used other forms of punishment (Straus, 2011). Due to delayed cognitive development, spanked children must spend their entire lives catching up with their peers who did not receive such harsh punishments and cannot enjoy a quality childhood. Hitting children can cause back problems (Hunt, 2011). Shock waves travel along the spine and cause nerve damage (Hunt, 2011). If a parent disciplined their child out of love, they would not do so with expensive medical bills later in life. Parents who spank their children claim that spanking prompts their children to quickly stop misbehavior. In truth, spanking only temporarily solves the problem because children do not know why the action was wrong, so they will repeat it (Pitzer, 2011). Even children learn a new lesson; slapping someone when they don't get their way, which shows that spanking is an unorganized discipline (Pitzer, 2011). Additionally, parents should avoid spanking their children because it lowers their self-esteem. Children believe that... the center of the paper...unt, J. (2011). Discipline your child. Retrieved November 22, 2011, from Natural Child: http://www.naturalchild.org/jan_hunt/tenreasons.htmlOppenheimer, D. (2011). To spank or not to spank. Retrieved November 22, 2011, from UT Texas: http://www.utexas.edu/know/20111/03/22/spanking/Pitzer, Ronald. (2011). How about spanking?. Retrieved November 28, 2011, from University of Michigan: http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/familydevelopment/w00021.htmlStraus, M. (2005). Children should never, ever be spanked, no matter the circumstances. Retrieved November 22, 2011, from Pub Pages: http://pubpages.unh.edu.as2/cp67 Children should never be spanked.pdTimes, Family. (2011). Discipline: Help your children develop feelings of esteem. Retrieved November 28, 2011, from New Mexico State University: http://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/family_times/family_times_4_ENG.pdf