Parent-child relationships are the sole exception to prohibitions on force as discipline.

Evidence

We do not permit “reasonable” assault between adults. If one adult strikes another — in the workplace, on the street, in the home — the act is criminal regardless of the striker’s intent, the force used, or the marks produced. An employer cannot strike an employee as a corrective measure, even mildly, even without leaving marks, even with a “legitimate disciplinary purpose.” A prison guard cannot strike an inmate as a behavior-management tool, regardless of the inmate’s noncompliance. A nursing-home attendant cannot strike an elderly patient who refuses to eat. In every relationship except one, the law prohibits the use of physical force as a disciplinary instrument. The exception is the parent-child relationship — the one relationship in which the power differential is greatest, the vulnerability of the person being struck is most extreme, and the capacity of the person being struck to seek help, leave, or resist is most limited. — , The Rod and the Child, 6678

Categorization

• SEED: The parallel between spanking and other banned force practices (prison guard, nursing home, employer) is a compelling rhetorical framing for advocacy writing.