Thanks, Kane. This really gave me a good LAUGH! Only anti-spanking
zealotS like yourself would believe such a "Gold Standard" research. :-0

Doan


On 8 Nov 2005 wrote:

http://www.nospank.net/guthrow.htm

CORRELATION BETWEEN HIGH RATES OF CORPORAL PUNISHMENT IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS
AND SOCIAL PATHOLOGIES
By John Guthrow
December 2002

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this study is to determine whether there is a
correlation between the use of corporal punishment in public schools
and larger societal outcomes. In other words, it seeks the answer to
questions such as: Do states that use corporal punishment in public
schools have higher or lower test scores, crime rates, and poverty
rates relative to other states? Is there a difference in macro-level
societal outcomes between states that paddle school children and those
that do not? Or is there no difference at all? These questions have not
received much attention in sociology literature, and this study is
meant to pose these questions, to analyze sociological data, and to
provide rudimentary answers to the questions such as those raised
above.

As of this writing, corporal punishment in schools is still
legal in twenty-two states in the United States. While corporal
punishment in schools used to be common and widely accepted in schools
across the U.S., it has become increasingly controversial. Those
opposed to paddling claim that it creates a violent, negative
educational environment and produces feelings of anger, anxiety,
humiliation, and aggression in children who are victims of corporal
punishment. Because of this controversy, many schools districts and
individual schools within states that allow paddling have nevertheless
banned the practice, joining those twenty-eight states that have banned
it altogether.

Those who defend paddling in those places where it is still
used often claim that it is a necessary tool to maintain discipline
among increasingly out-of-control children. In short, they claim that
it works and that it produces an educational environment conducive to
learning. Many cite Biblical verses which seemingly encourage the
physical punishment of children, and many claim that corporal
punishment was used against them as children and they turned out well.
And paddling proponents also point to states that have banned paddling
as examples of places where teachers do not have control of the
classroom anymore and where the educational environment suffers
accordingly.

Since Americans increasingly view education as one of the most
important foundations of society and a strong economy, the question of
what kinds of educational environments really work and which ones do
not has never been more important. Since many states have banned
corporal punishment in schools and many others have not and still allow
it, it is possible to study in a fairly scientific way whether one
approach to education works better than the other. In short, the
opportunity exists for a controlled experiment, in which it is possible
to study whether those states that still paddle children do better or
worse, in the classroom and in other areas of society, than those
states that do not.

If the claims of those who defend paddling are true, and
corporal punishment truly does produce an educational environment more
conducive to learning, then one would expect, for example, better test
scores and graduation rates in states that paddle children compared
with states that do not And if the schools are better in paddling
states, and to the extent that good schools produce a strong economy
and society, one would also expect, in general, a stronger economy,
less poverty, healthier citizens, etc.

This study tries to test that theory by objectively comparing
paddling states and non-paddling states in various sociological
categories, including test scores and graduation rates, poverty rates
and crime rates, and so forth. By comparing the results from paddling
states versus non-paddling states, it is possible to see whether there
is a correlation, or not, between school paddling and larger societal
outcomes. Does paddling produce a better educational environment and a
more orderly, successful society? Or not? Do non-paddling states
perform better than paddling states in education and other categories?
Or is there no correlation at all? Do paddling states and non-paddling
perform at roughly equal levels in the classroom and in other areas?
This study seeks the answer to these questions.


METHODS

In order to determine whether there is a correlation between
corporal punishment in schools and macro-level societal outcomes, two
sets of data were compared and analyzed. The first is the United States
Department of Education's 1998 Elementary and Secondary School Civil
Rights Compliance Report, which tracks the use of corporal punishment
in public schools and, specifically, provides the number of incidents
of corporal punishment in each state in which it is legal for the
1997-98 school year.

The second set of data studied were various sociological
categories from Congressional Quarterly's State Fact Finder 2002. This
publication analyzes data relating to the economy, crime, education,
health care, and other categories for the fifty states in the United
States. The data in the State Fact Finder 2002 are themselves taken
from many different sources ---state governments, various departments
and bureaus of the federal government, including the Census Bureau and
the Department of Justice, to name a couple. The specific purpose of
the State Fact Finder 2002 itself is to compile data relating to many
different subject areas and to rank the states in various specific
categories. For example, the State Fact Finder 2002 lists and ranks the
states by murder rate, from highest murder rate to lowest murder rate.
It also lists and ranks the states by graduation rate, best to worse.
Etc. In short, the State Fact Finder 2002 allows readers and
researchers to compare the states in various categories to see which
states are performing well in a particular category, relative to the
other states, which states are performing poorly, and which states are
about average.

Comparing these two sets of data ---the list of states which
use corporal punishment in schools and also the various rankings of the
states in different sociological categories relating to crime,
education, the economy, etc ---provides a mechanism for analyzing
whether there is in fact a correlation between corporal punishment in
schools and larger societal outcomes. For example, if one compares the
state rankings for high school graduation rates with the list of states
that use corporal punishment in schools, one can see whether there is a
correlation between the two lists. For the purposes of this study, a
"correlation" is defined as simply a disproportionate number of
paddling states at one end or the other of the rankings of each
category.

One can define "disproportionate" in fairly specific terms.
There were, at the time the data in this study were collected,
twenty-three states in the United States that allow corporal punishment
in public schools. Twenty-three states represent 46% of the states in
the United States. If there were no correlation between corporal
punishment in public schools and larger societal outcomes, one would
expect an even distribution of paddling and non-paddling states within
each percentile of each category. In other words, within any random
sample of ten states, one would expect 4.6 paddling states and 5.4
non-paddling states to appear. The "best ten" states in terms of the
graduation rate, for example, would contain 4.6 paddling states and 5.4
non-paddling states. (In real terms, of course, that translates into 4
to 5 paddling states and 5 to 6 non-paddling states, but statistically,
4.6 and 5.4 are the expected numbers.) The "worst ten" states would
also contain 4.6 paddling states and 5.4 non-paddling states. And so
would the second tier (spots 11-20), the middle tier (spots 21-30), and
the fourth tier (spots 31-40). Again, this would be the case in the
theoretical scenario in which there was absolutely no correlation
between corporal punishment in public schools and larger societal
outcomes.

If there is a correlation between corporal punishment in
schools and larger societal outcomes, then one would expect an uneven
distribution of paddling and non-paddling states within each percentile
of each category. In other words, within any random sample of ten
states, one would expect either significantly more or significantly
fewer than 4.6 paddling states to appear in any given sociological
category and an inversely proportional number of non-paddling states.
For example, the "best ten" states in terms of the graduation rate
might include 2 paddling states (instead of 4 to 5) and 8 non-paddling
states (instead of 5 to 6). Or visa versa, i.e., the "best ten" states
might include 6 paddling states (instead of 4 to 5) and 4 non-paddling
states (instead of 5 to 6). Either scenario would represent, by
definition, a disproportionate representation within the sample. And
this logic applies to each tier of ten states ---the "best ten," as
well as the second tier, third tier, fourth tier, and the "worst ten"
---for any given sociological category, whether the murder rate or the
graduation rate or any number of other categories.

This study examines thirteen sociological categories and
applies the analytical logic described above to determine whether there
is in fact a correlation between states that use corporal punishment in
schools and larger societal outcomes. Specifically, the study targets
the "best ten" states and the "worst ten" states in each sociological
category to determine whether there is an even or uneven distribution
of paddling and non-paddling states. In other words, the study
examines, for example, whether a disproportionate number of paddling or
non-paddling states appear among those states with the highest murder
rates, and also the lowest murder rates, or whether there is an even
distribution of paddling and non-paddling states in one or both tiers.
By definition, of course, if there are a disproportionate number of
paddling states in a given category, there is an inversely
disproportionate number of non-paddling states. In other words (as
described above), if there are 8 paddling states in a given tier, there
are, by definition, 2 non-paddling states in the same tier.

The thirteen categories studied a the murder rate, the
incarceration rate, the condition of children index, the average
proficiency in math for 8th graders, the high school completion rate,
the percentage of the population over 25 with a high school diploma,
state and local education spending, spending per pupil, the percentage
of the population in poverty, the percentage of children in poverty,
the percentage of births to unwed mothers, state health rankings, and
the death rate. The results appear on the following pages.


RESULTS

Murder Rate (highest):

Of the states with the ten highest murder rates in the United
States, educators paddle children in eight of them.

Those eight paddling states are. in order by murder rate:
Louisiana, which has the highest murder rate in the nation (6th in the
nation by percentage of students struck by educators); Mississippi,
which has the 2nd highest murder rate in the nation (1st by percentage
of students struck by educators); Georgia. which has the 4th highest
murder rate (7th in the nation by percentage of students struck by
educators); Alabama and New Mexico, tied with the 5th highest murder
rate in the nation (3rd and 10th, respectively, by percentage of
students struck by educators); Tennessee, which has the 7th highest
murder rate (4th by percentage of students struck by educators); and
North Carolina and Arizona, which are tied with the 9th highest murder
rate in the nation (12th and 18th, respectively, by percentage of
students struck by educators). The two non-paddling states a
Maryland, which has the 4th highest murder rate; and Illinois, which is
tied with Tennessee with the 7th highest murder rate.

Murder Rate (lowest):

Of the states with the ten lowest murder rates in the nation,
educators paddle children in one of them.

That paddling state is Idaho, which has the 3rd lowest murder
rate (18th by percentage of students hit).

The nine non-paddling states a North Dakota, which has the
lowest murder rate in the nation; South Dakota, which has the 2nd
lowest murder rate; Maine, which is tied with Idaho with the 3rd lowest
murder rate; Vermont, with the 5th lowest murder rate; Iowa, with the
6th lowest murder rate; New Hampshire, with the 7th lowest murder rate;
Montana, with the 8th lowest murder rate; Utah, which has the 9th
lowest murder rate; and Oregon and Massachusetts, which are tied with
the 10th lowest murder rate.

Incarceration Rate (highest):

Of the ten states with the highest percentage of the population
in prison, educators paddle children in nine of them.

Those states are, in order by incarceration rate: Louisiana,
which has the highest incarceration rate in the nation (6th by
percentage of students hit); Texas, which has the 2nd highest
incarceration rate (8th by percentage of students hit); Mississippi,
which has the 3rd highest incarceration rate (1st by percentage of
students hit); Oklahoma, which has the 4th highest incarceration rate
(5th by percentage of students hit); Georgia, which has the 5th highest
incarceration rate (7th by percentage of students hit); Alabama, which
has the 6th highest incarceration rate (3rd by percentage of students
hit); South Carolina, which has the 7th highest incarceration rate
(11th by percentage of students hit); Arizona, which has the 9th
highest incarceration rate (18th by percentage of students hit); and
Delaware, which has the 10th highest incarceration rate (16th by
percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling state is: Nevada, which has the 9th highest
incarceration rate.

Incarceration Rate (lowest):

Of the ten states with the lowest percentage of the population
in prison, educators do not paddle children in any of them.

Those non-paddling states a Minnesota, which has the lowest
incarceration rate in the nation; Maine, which has the 2nd lowest
incarceration rate; North Dakota, which has the 3rd lowest
incarceration rate; New Hampshire, which has the 4th lowest
incarceration rate; Rhode Island, which has the 5th lowest
incarceration rate; West Virginia, which has the 6th lowest
incarceration rate; Vermont, which has the 7th lowest incarceration
rate; Nebraska, which has the 8th lowest incarceration rate;
Washington, which has the 9th lowest incarceration rate; and
Massachusetts, which has the 10th lowest incarceration rate.

Condition of Children lndex* (worst):

Of the ten worst states in the United States in which to raise
children, as measured by the condition of children index, educators
paddle children in all ten of them.

Those states are, in reverse order of the condition of children
index (worst to best): Mississippi, which ranks 50th on the condition
of children index (1st by percentage of students hit); Louisiana, which
ranks 49th on the condition of children index (6th by percentage of
students hit); New Mexico, which ranks 48th on the condition of
children index (10th by percentage of students hit); Arkansas, which
ranks 47th on the condition of children index (2nd by percentage of
students hit); Alabama, which ranks 46th on the condition of children
index (3rd by percentage of students hit); Arizona, which ranks 45th on
the condition of children index (18th by percentage of students hit);
Georgia, which ranks 44th on the condition of children index (7th by
percentage of students hit); Tennessee, which ranks 43rd on the
condition of children index (4th by percentage of students hit); South
Carolina, which ranks 42nd on the condition of children index (11th by
percentage of students hit); and North Carolina, which ranks 41st on
the condition of children index (12th by percentage of students hit).

* The condition of children index measures the overall
well-being of children in terms of poverty, education, health, etc.

Condition of Children lndex* (best):

Of the ten best states in the United States in which to raise
children, as measured by the condition of children index, educators do
not paddle children in any of them.

Those states a New Hampshire, which ranks 1st on the
condition of children index; Minnesota, which ranks 2nd; Utah, which
ranks 3rd; Massachusetts, which ranks 4th; Wisconsin, which ranks 5th;
Iowa, which ranks 6th; New Jersey, which ranks 7th; Nebraska, which
ranks 8th; Washington, which ranks 9th; and Maine, which ranks 10th.

* The condition of children index measures the overall
well-being of children in terms of poverty, education, health, etc.

Average Proficiency in Math --8th grade (worst):

Of the states in the bottom ten percent* in terms of average
proficiency in math, educators paddle children in all of them.

These states are, in reverse order of math proficiency:
Mississippi, which ranks last, 39th out of 39, in average math
proficiency for 8th graders (1st by percentage of students hit by
educators); Louisiana, which ranks 38th out of 39 in average math
proficiency (6th by percentage of students hit by educators); New
Mexico, which ranks 37th out of 39 in math proficiency (10th by
percentage of students hit); and Arkansas, which ranks 36th out of 39
in math proficiency (2nd by percentage of students hit).

* Note: Only 39 states submitted data for this category;
therefore, rather than the worst ten states, the lowest ten percent of
states are evaluated. For 39 states, ten percent represents
approximately 4 positions. Thus, the worst four states (36th to 39th in
math proficiency) are evaluated. -

Average Proficiency in Math --8th grade (best):

Of the states in the top ten percent* in terms of average
proficiency in math, educators paddle children in one of them.

The paddling state is: Kansas, which ranks 2nd out of 39 in
math proficiency (18th by percentage of students hit). The non-paddling
states are, in order of math proficiency: Minnesota, which ranks 1st
out of 39 in average math proficiency for 8th graders; Montana, which
ranks 2nd out of 39; and Maine, which ranks 3rd out of 39.

* Note: Only 39 states submitted data for this category;
therefore, rather than the best ten states, the best ten percent of
states are evaluated. For 39 states, ten percent represents
approximately 4 positions. Thus, the best four states (1st to 4th in
math proficiency) are evaluated.

High School Completion Rate (worst):

Of the states with the ten worst high school completion rates,
educators paddle children in seven of them.

Those states are, in reverse order of high school completion
rate: Arizona, which has the worst high school completion rate in the
nation (18th by percentage of students hit by educators); Texas, which
ranks 48th out of 50 by high school completion rate (8th by percentage
of students hit by educators); Alabama and Colorado, which ~e tied at
46th out of 50 by high school completion rate (3rd and 18th,
respectively, by percentage of students hit)~ Lousiana, which ranks
45th (6th by percentage of students hit); Mississippi, which ranks 43rd
(1st by percentage of students hit); and New Mexico, which ranks 41st
(10th by percentage of students hit). The non-paddling states a
Nevada, which ranks 49th out of 50 by high school completion rate;
Oregon, which ranks 43rd out of 50 by high school completion rate; and
California, which ranks 41st out of 50.

High School Completion Rate (best):

Of the states with the ten best high school completion rates,
educators paddle children in one of them.

That paddling state is: Missouri, which has the 4th best high
school completion rate in the nation (9th by percentage of students
hit). The non-paddling states a Maine, which has the best high
school completion rate in the nation; North Dakota, which has the 2nd
best high school completion rate; Alaska, which has the 3rd best rate;
South Dakota, which has the 5th best rate; Minnesota, which has the 6th
best rate; Hawaii, which has the 7th best rate; Connecticut, which has
the 8th best rate; Nebraska, which has the 9th best rate; and Montana,
which has the 10th best rate.

State and Local Education Spending (worst):

Of the ten worst states in terms of state and local education
spending, educators paddle children in seven of them.

Those paddling states are, in reverse order of spending:
Horida, which ranks last in the nation in state and local education
spending (12th by percentage of students hit by educators); Tennessee,
which ranks 49th out of 50 in state and local education spending (4th
by percentage of students hit); Kentucky, which ranks 47th (14th by
percentage of students hit); Arizona, which ranks 45th (18th by
percentage of students hit); Arkansas, which ranks 43rd (2nd by
percentage of students hit); Missouri, which ranks 42nd (9th by
percentage of students hit); and Louisiana, which ranks 41st (6th by
percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling states a Hawaii, which ranks 48th in the
nation in state and local education spending; New Hampshire, which
ranks 46th; and South Dakota, which ranks 44th.

State and Local Education Spending (best):

Of the ten best states in terms of state and local education
spending, educators paddle children in one of them.

That paddling state is: Delaware, which ranks 4th in terms of
state and local education spending (16th by percentage of students
hit). The non-paddling states a Alaska, which ranks 1st in the
nation in state and local education spending; Wyoming, which ranks 2nd;
Michigan, which ranks 3rd; Vermont, which ranks 5th; New York, which
ranks 6th; Wisconsin, which ranks 7th; New Jersey, which ranks 8th;
Minnesota, which ranks 9th; and Iowa, which ranks 10th.

Spending per Pupil (worst):

Of the ten worst states in terms of spending per pupil,
educators paddle children in seven of them.

Those states are, in reverse order of spending per pupil:
Arizona, which ranks 48th out of 50 in spending per pupil (18th by
percentage of students hit); Alabama, which ranks 47th out of 50 in
spending per pupil (3rd by percentage of students hit); Mississippi,
which ranks 46th (1st by percentage of students hit); Colorado, which
ranks 45th (18th by percentage of students hit); Arkansas, which ranks
43rd (2nd by percentage of students hit); Tennessee, which ranks 42nd
(4th by percentage of students hit); and Idaho, which ranks 41st (18th
by percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling states a Utah, which ranks 50th out of 50
in terms of spending per pupil; North Dakota, which ranks 49th; and
Nevada, which ranks 44th.

Spending per Pupil (best):

Of the ten best states in terms of spending per pupil,
educators paddle children in one of them.

That paddling state is: Delaware, which ranks 6th in terms of
spending per pupil (16th by percentage of students hit). The
non-paddling states a Connecticut, which ranks 1st in the nation in
terms of spending per pupil; New York, which ranks 2nd; New Jersey,
which ranks 3rd; Alaska, which ranks 4th; Massachusetts, which ranks
5th; Vermont, which ranks 7th; Rhode Island, which ranks 8th;
Wisconsin, which ranks 9th; and Illinois, which ranks 10th.

Percentage of the Population Over 25 With a High School Diploma in
2000 (worst):

Of the ten worst states in terms of percentage of the
population over 25 with a high school diploma, educators paddle
children in seven of them.

Those paddling states are, in reverse order of the percentage
of the population over 25 with a high school diploma: Alabama, which
ranks 49th out of 50 (3rd by percentage of students hit); Kentucky,
which ranks 48th out of 50 (14th by percentage of students hit); Texas
and North Carolina, which are tied at 46th (8th and 12th, respectively,
by percentage of students hit); Tennessee, which ranks 45th (4th by
percentage of students hit); Mississippi, which ranks 44th (1st by
percentage of students hit); and Louisiana, which ranks 43rd (6th by
percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling states a West Virginia, which ranks 50th
out of 50 by percentage of the population over 25 with a high school
diploma; California, which ranks 42nd; and Rhode Island, which ranks
41st.

Percentage of the Population Over 25 With a High School Diploma in
2000 (best):

Of the ten best states in terms of percentage of the population
over 25 with a high school diploma, educators paddle children in one of
them.

That paddling state is: Colorado, which ranks 9th (tied with
Iowa) by percentage of the population over 25 with a high school
diploma (18th by percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling states a South Dakota, which had the
highest percentage of the population over 25 with a high school
diploma; Washington, which ranks 2nd; Minnesota, which ranks 3rd; Utah,
which ranks 4th; Alaska and Nebraska, which are tied at 5th; Vermont
and Wyoming, which are tied at 7th, and Iowa (tied with Colorado) at
9th.

Percentage of the Population in Poverty (worst):

Of the ten most impoverished states in the United States,
educators paddle children school in seven of them.

Those paddling states are, from highest to lowest percentage of
the population in poverty: Arkansas, which ranks 1st by percentage of
the population in poverty (2nd by percentage of students hit by
educators); Louisiana, which ranks 2nd by percentage of the population
in poverty (6th by percentage of students hit); New Mexico, which ranks
3rd in poverty (10th by percentage of students hit); Oklahoma, which
ranks 5th in poverty (and also 5th by percentage of students hit);
Texas, which ranks 6th in poverty (8th by percentage of students hit);
Tennessee, which ranks 7th in poverty (4th by percentage of students
hit); and Alabama, which ranks 8th in poverty (3rd by percentage of
students).

The non-paddling states a Montana, which ranks 4th by
percentage of the population in poverty; West Virginia, which ranks
9th; and New York, which ranks 10th.

Percentage of the Population in Poverty (best):

Of the ten least impoverished states in the United States,
educators paddle children school in two of them.

Those paddling states a Missouri, which ranks 44th by
percentage of the population in poverty (9th by percentage of students
hit); and Colorado, which ranks 43rd by percentage of the population in
poverty (18th by percentage of students hit). The non-paddling states
a New Hampshire, which has the lowest poverty rate in the nation;
Minnesota, which ranks 49th in poverty; Connecticut, which ranks 48th;
Iowa, which ranks 47th; Virginia and Maryland, which are tied at 45th;
Alaska, which ranks 42nd; and New Jersey, which ranks 41st.

Percentage of Children in Poverty (worst):

Of the ten states in the United States with the highest
percentage of children in poverty, educators paddle children in eight
of them.

Those states are, from highest to lowest percentage of children
in poverty: Arkansas, which has the highest child poverty rate in the
nation (2nd by percentage of students hit by educators); Oklahoma,
which has the 3rd highest child poverty rate in the nation (5th by
percentage of students hit); Louisiana, which ranks 4th highest in
child poverty (6th by percentage of students hit); New Mexico, which
ranks 5th highest in child poverty (10th by percentage of students
hit); Texas, which ranks 6th highest in child poverty (8th by
percentage of students hit); Alabama, which ranks 7th highest in child
poverty (3rd by percentage of students hit); Tennessee, which ranks 8th
highest in child poverty (4th by percentage of students hit); and
Arizona, which ranks 9th highest in child poverty (18th by percentage
of students hit).

The non-paddling states a Montana, which ranks 2nd in child
poverty; and California, which ranks 10th in child poverty.

Percentage of Children in Poverty (best):

Of the ten states in the United States with the lowest
percentage of children in poverty, educators paddle children in two of
them.

Those paddling states a Missouri, which has the 10th lowest
child poverty rate (9th by percentage of students hit); and Indiana,
which has the 8th lowest child poverty rate (15th by percentage of
students hit).

The non-paddling states a Maryland, which has the lowest
child poverty rate in the nation; New Hampshire, which has the 2nd
lowest child poverty rate; Virginia, which ranks 3rd lowest in child
poverty; Maine, which ranks 4th lowest in child poverty; Minnesota and
Iowa, which are tied with the 5th lowest child poverty rate;
Connecticut, which ranks 6th lowest, and Alaska, which ranks 9th
lowest.

Percentage of Births to Unwed Mothers (worst):

Of the ten states in the United States with the highest
percentage of births to unwed mothers, educators paddle children in
nine of them.

Those states a Mississippi, which has the highest percentage
of births to unwed mothers in the nation (also 1st by percentage of
students hit); Louisiana, which has the 2nd highest percentage of
births to unwed mothers in the nation (6th by percentage of students
hit); New Mexico, which has the 3rd highest percentage of births to
unwed mothers (10th by percentage of students hit); South Carolina,
which has the 4th highest percentage of births to unwed mothers (11th
by percentage of students hit); Arizona, which has the 5th highest
percentage of births to unwed mothers (18th by percentage of students
hit); Florida, which has the 6th highest percentage of births to unwed
mothers (12th by percentage of students hit); Delaware, which has the
7th highest percentage of births to unwed mothers (16th by percentage
of students hit); and Georgia, which has the 8th highest percentage of
births to unwed mothers (7th by percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling state is: New York, with the 9th highest
percentage of births to unwed mothers.

Percentage of Births to Unwed Mothers (best):

Of the ten states in the United States with the lowest
percentage of births to unwed mothers, educators paddle children in two
of them.

Those paddling states a Colorado, which ranks 46th by
percentage of births to unwed mothers (18th by percentage of students
hit); and Idaho, which ranks 48th by percentage of births to unwed
mothers (tied at 18th by percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling states a Utah, which has the lowest
percentage of births to unwed mothers in the nation; New Hampshire,
which ranks 47th by percentage of births to unwed mothers; Minnesota,
which ranks 45th; Massachusetts, which ranks 44th; Nebraska, which
ranks 43rd; Iowa, which ranks 42nd; and Washington and Vermont, tied at
40th.

State Health Rankings (worst):

Of the states with the ten worst state health rankings,
educators paddle children in eight of them.

Those paddling states are, in reverse order by state health
ranking: Louisiana, which ranks 50th (the worst in the nation) by state
health ranking (6th by percentage of students hit); Mississippi, which
ranks 49th out of 50 by state health ranking (1st by percentage of
students hit); South Carolina, which ranks 48th by state health ranking
(11th by percentage of students hit); Florida, which ranks 46th by
state health ranking (12th by percentage of students hit); Alabama,
which ranks 45th by state health ranking (3rd by percentage of students
hit); Tennessee, which ranks 44th by state health ranking (4th by
percentage of students hit); Arkansas, which ranks 42nd by state health
ranking (2nd by percentage of students hit); and Oklahoma, which ranks
41st by state health ranking (5th by percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling states a West Virginia, which ranks 47th by
state health ranking; and Nevada, which ranks 42nd by state health
ranking.

State Health Rankings (best):

Of the states with the ten best state health rankings,
educators paddle children in one of them.

That paddling state is: Colorado, which ranks 10th by state
health ranking (18th by percentage of students hit). The non-paddling
states a Minnesota, which ranks 1st by state health ranking; New
Hampshire, which ranks 2nd by state health ranking; Utah, which ranks
3rd by state health ranking; Connecticut, which ranks 4th by state
health ranking; Massachusetts, which ranks 5th by state health ranking;
Vermont, which ranks 6th by state health ranking; Hawaii, which ranks
7th by state health ranking; and Iowa and Maine, which are tied at 8th
by state health ranking.

Age-Adjusted Death Rate (worst):

Of the ten states with the highest age-adjusted death rates,
educators paddle children in nine of them.

Those states are, in order by age-adjusted death rate, highest
to lowest: Mississippi, which has the highest age-adjusted death rate
in the nation (also 1st by percentage of students hit); Tennessee,
which has the 2nd highest death rate (4th by percentage of students
hit); Louisiana, which has the 3rd highest death rate (6th by
percentage of students hit); Alabama, which has the 4th highest death
rate (3rd by percentage of students hit); Kentucky, which has the 6th
highest death rate (14th by percentage of students hit); Georgia, which
has the 7th highest death rate (also 7th by percentage of students
hit); Arkansas, which has the 8th highest death rate (2nd by percentage
of students hit); South Carolina, which has the 9th highest death rate
(11th by percentage of students hit); and Oklahoma, which has the 10th
highest death rate in the nation (5th by percentage of students hit).

The non-paddling state is: West Virginia, which has the 5th
highest age-adjusted death rate in the nation.

Age-Adiusted Death Rate (best):

Of the ten states with the lowest age-adjusted death rates,
educators paddle children in one of them.

That paddling state is: Colorado, which has the 6th lowest
age-adjusted death rate in the nation (18th by percentage of students
hit).

The non-paddling states a Hawaii, which has the lowest
age-adjusted death rate in the nation; California, which has the 2nd
lowest death rate; North Dakota, which has the 3rd lowest death rate;
Minnesota, which has the 4th lowest death rate; Utah, which has the 5th
lowest death rate; Nebraska, which has the 7th lowest death rate;
Connecticut, which has the 8th lowest death rate; Iowa, which has the
9th lowest death rate; and Washington, which has the 10th lowest death
rate.

ANALYSIS

There is a clear statistical correlation between corporal
punishment in public schools and larger societal outcomes.
Specifically, there is a strong correlation between those states that
use corporal punishment in public schools and negative societal
outcomes, and there is an equally strong correlation between those
states that have banned corporal punishment in public schools and
positive societal outcomes. As was stated earlier, if there were no
correlation between corporal punishment in public schools and larger
societal outcomes, one would expect an even distribution of paddling
and non-paddling states within each tier of each category. In other
words, within any random sample of ten states, including the "best ten"
and the "worst ten," one would expect 4.6 paddling states and 5.4
non-paddling states to appear.

Clearly that is not the case. The data presented in this study
show that there is clearly a correlation between the use of corporal
punishment in public schools and negative social pathologies. In
category after category, the "worst ten" states are disproportionately
represented by paddling states. Instead of 4.6 (or 4 to 5, in real
terms) paddling states appearing in the bottom tier, or "worst ten," of
each category, we consistently see seven, eight, nine, and even ten
paddling states appearing there. And in the top tier ---the "best ten"
tier ---we consistently see non-paddling states dominating, and we see
zero, one, and, in rare cases, two paddling states appearing. Again,
there is clearly a correlation between corporal punishment in public
schools and negative social pathologies.

In layman's terms, this correlation means the following:
non-paddling states like Minnesota have relatively better test scores,
lower drop-out rates, lower poverty rates, and better health care.
Paddling states like Louisiana have relatively lower test scores,
higher drop-out rates, higher poverty rates, and lower-quality health
care. Those findings cannot be more clear.

It is important to note that correlation does not equal
causation. For example, the fact that paddling states have relatively
higher death rates obviously does not mean that people are dying at a
higher rate directly because of school paddlings. The question of why
there is in fact a correlation between corporal punishment in schools
and social pathologies is, for the most part, beyond the scope of this
study.

Having said that, the following is a very brief hypothosis as
to why there may be such a strong correlation between corporal
punishment in schools and negative social pathologies. ..There is
existing research, such as that of Dr. Murray Strauss of the University
of New Hampshire, that has linked physical punishment of children to
increased aggression and anti-social activity. This research suggests
that children who are physically punished experience long-term feelings
of anger, fear, humiliation, and withdrawal more than children who are
not physically punished. If one accepts these results, it is not a
great leap to suggest that children who are punished violently at
school on a regular basis probably display aggression and anti-social
behavior, and experience feelings of anger, fear, humiliation, and
withdrawal, with far greater frequency and intensity than other
children. Children in this stressful, negative social environment find
it relatively more difficult to learn and succeed in school ---this
would explain the paddling states' relatively lower test scores and
higher dropout rates. And once educational achievement suffers, other
aspects of society suffer proportionately. Economic development
suffers, for example, and in turn, education and health care suffer.
This in turn makes it even harder to grow the economy, and so on. In
short, the society becomes locked in a cycle of dysfunction.

Of course, many factors account for any given society's
relative level of success or dysfunction, and the suggestion is not
that school paddling in and of itself causes economic stagnation and
societal dysfunction. However, to the extent that education is the
foundation of any society's success, and to the extent that school
paddling has created a hostile, violent, negative educational
environment for generations of children in states where it is still
used, it does not seem unreasonable to suggest that paddling is in fact
at least one of the factors that contributes to the overall societal
troubles that are clearly so prevalent in those states where the paddle
is used.

In any case, it would be beneficial to have more research
studying the possible links between violence directed en mass at
children and subsequent societal consequences such as low educational
achievement and poor economic growth. Again, the technical question of
why exactly there is a strong correlation between corporal punishment
and social pathologies is beyond the scope of this study. However, the
hypothesis described above, along with the undeniable correlation
presented in this study between paddling and pathology, should at the
very least cause educators to question the effectiveness of paddling as
a disciplinary method and to seek alternatives. In short, one way to be
certain that paddling is not causing larger societal problems is simply
to end the practice of paddling and to employ more positive
disciplinary methods that have worked so well for so long in states
such as Minnesota and Vermont. In an age when educators, parents, and
politicians are desperately trying to reduce violence in schools in
order to produce a more peaceful and functional society, it seems a
no-brainer to begin this endeavor by banning the practice of
state-sponsored, teacher-inflicted violence towards schoolchildren.

As was stated earlier, educators in paddling states often
defend the practice of paddling by saying that it maintains the
discipline necessary to create educational achievement and, by
extension, a successful society. They further claim that in places
where paddling has been banned, discipline and educational achievement
have suffered. If nothing else, this study shows that that line of
reasoning is simply absurd. Clearly, those states which have banned
paddling altogether and which employ more positive disciplinary
measures in the classroom achieve far greater educational success and
have created far more functional societies than those states which
still use the paddle. That fact is simply irrefutable.


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