The article that triggers this post comes from USA Today and shows that children who receive non-abusive physical punishment are more likely to exhibit mental disorders as adults. What could be more clear?
Punishment happens to children, mental disorders appear in adults. One happens before the other, therefore one causes the other, or does it?
I think it is even more likely that individuals who exhibit mental disorders as adults also are more erratic and disorderly as children. As such, they are more likely to receive non-abusive physical punishment.
The anti-physical punishment bias that pervades the psychological research community is reflected in this piece of work, not so much in the data as in the interpretation thereof. Kids who are well-adjusted are also well-behaved and attract less non-abusive physical punishment ... no kidding.
