Spank or not to spank?

Ashley Merryman: On Parenting from PopTech on Vimeo.

In a world of modern, involved, caring parents, why are so many kids aggressive and cruel? Where is intelligence hidden in the brain, and why does that matter? Why do cross-racial friendships decrease in schools that are more integrated? If 98% of kids think lying is morally wrong, then why do 98% of kids lie? What’s the single most important thing that helps infants learn language?

NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children is a collaboration between award-winning science journalists Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman. They argue that when it comes to children, we’ve mistaken good intentions for good ideas. They demonstrate that many of modern society’s strategies for nurturing children are in fact backfiring–because key twists in the science have been overlooked.

There is an interesting review of Nutureshock in today’s Independent Why Parents are getting it wrong

Tell us what you think- is too much praise a bad thing, what about spanking? What are your thoughts on children and lying?