James Dobson

Dr. James Clayton Dobson (born April 21, 1936) is a conservative protestant Christian fundamentalist and psychologist who presents a daily radio program called Focus on the Family on over 6,000 stations worldwide in more than a dozen languages. He is chairman of the board of a nonprofit organization based in Colorado Springs, Colorado of the same name, which he founded in 1977. His programs are estimated to be heard by more than 200 million people every day in 164 countrieshttp://www.family.org/docstudy/aboutdrdobson.cfm, and Focus on the Family is also on 80 US television stations daily.

Views on corporal punishment and authority

Dobson advocates the spanking of children of up to eight years old when they misbehave, but warns that "Corporal punishment should not be a frequent occurrence" and that "discipline must not be harsh and destructive to the child's spirit." He does not advocate harsh spanking: "It is not necessary to beat the child into submission; a little bit of pain goes a long way for a young child. However, the spanking should be of sufficient magnitude to cause the child to cry genuinely." (Dare to Discipline, p.7.)

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Dobson recognizes some of the dangers of child abuse, and considers disciplining children to be a necessary but unpleasant part of raising children that should only be carried out by qualified parents: "Anyone who has ever abused a child -- or has ever felt himself losing control during a spanking -- should not expose the child to that tragedy. Anyone who has a violent temper that at times becomes unmanageable should not use that approach. Anyone who secretly 'enjoys' the administration of corporal punishment should not be the one to implement it."http://www.uexpress.com/focusonthefamily/?uc_full_date=20041121

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In his book The Strong-Willed Child, Dobson suggests that by correctly portraying authority to a child, the child will understand how to interact with other authority figures: "By learning to yield to the loving authority... of his parents, a child learns to submit to other forms of authority which will confront him later in his life -- his teachers, school principal, police, neighbors and employers." (p. 235.)

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Dobson stresses that parents must uphold their authority and do so consistently, comparing the relationship between parents and disobedient children to a battle: "When you are defiantly challenged, win decisively." (Dare to Discipline, p. 36.) In The Strong-Willed Child, Dobson draws an analogy between the defiance of a family pet and that of a small child, and concludes that "just as surely as a dog will occasionally challenge the authority of his leaders, so will a little child--only more so." (emphasis Dobson)

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When asked "How long do you think a child should be allowed to cry after being punished? Is there a limit?" Dobson responded:

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:"Yes, I believe there should be a limit. As long as the tears represent a genuine release of emotion, they should be permitted to fall. But crying quickly changes from inner sobbing to an expression of protest... Real crying usually lasts two minutes or less but may continue for five. After that point, the child is merely complaining, and the change can be recognized in the tone and intensity of his voice. I would require him to stop the protest crying, usually by offering him a little more of whatever caused the original tears. In younger children, crying can easily be stopped by getting them interested in something else." http://www.troubledwith.com/stellent/groups/public/%5C@fotf_troubledwith/documents/articles/twi_012701.cfm?channel=Parenting%20Children&topic=Discipline&sssct=Questions%20and%20Answers

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Anti-spanking groups disagree with Dobson's views, suggesting they are too simplistic and even dangerous for children.

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