Posts by Kyle MacDonald
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Hard News: Making it up on smacking, in reply to Steve Withers,
I agree. It's hard to see where the balance was in the original story.
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Hard News: Making it up on smacking, in reply to Chris Waugh,
There's also this summary from the APA (American Psychological Association):
http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/04/spanking.aspx -
Hard News: Making it up on smacking, in reply to Dan Horne,
"The study concluded that even low and common levels of spanking were associated with increases in antisocial behaviour. Unlike studies using other statistical methods, this study suggests that the effect of punishment on behaviour is not linear, and challenges the assumption that only frequent and severe punishment is associated with harmful effects." http://ow.ly/syC0u
It's uncomfortable, but the data in the social sciences literature is crystal clear, in fact from the same paper:
"The extent of agreement in the research literature on this issue is unusual in the social sciences. Physical punishment is associated with increased child aggression, antisocial behaviour, lower intellectual achievement, poorer quality of parent–child relationships, mental health problems (such as depression), and diminished moral internalisation."
FACT: there is no known safe level or frequency of any form of physical punishment.
People can believe what they like, but that's the science.
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Hard News: Making it up on smacking, in reply to Graeme Edgeler,
You might be right Graeme, but if you accept that the psychological evidence is that ALL physical punishment can cause damage, then the state has a right to protect, even just from a Health policy perspective. The hard part is where do you draw the line, and given the potential for damage, it has to be zero tolerance, with discretion. In the ideal world, "minor cases" should receive support and input to learn better, more effective parenting strategies, and more severe prosecuted.
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Great post Russell. I too have spent a bit of time riding in Urban Auckland, and found that it's best to just do what works, including all the supposedly "illegal" things cyclists do. I for one haven't ridden on the roads since becoming a parent, it just got to scary and too dangerous, and I miss it. Decent cycle lanes and I might consider it, but a lot of Auckland drivers just seem to transform into psychopaths once behind the wheel...
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Hard News: How a thing happens, in reply to Rich of Observationz,
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I wholeheartedly agree about Radio Live's lack of responsiveness, but it's also true there were lots of people within the station uncomfortable about what had happened too. When I was asked to come on Marcus's show on Friday morning and talk about my recent blog, about the need for men to stand up etc. I was more or less instructed to be free to talk about "Willie and JT" (as I had mentioned them in my blog.) If there's a problem, it's managerial IMHO.
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Stating the obvious:
Isn't pastoral care of your sources one of the cornerstones of good ethical journalism? -
Does Jacinda's change represent a promotion or just a shuffle? I thought she was doing a great job of Social Development, and making Paula sound generally ill-informed.
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Up Front: Professional Counsel, in reply to David Drillien,
David,
I would certainly happily support any public statement from Sovereign that clearly states that they support and are happy to continue to fund the ongoing use of talk therapy in the treatment of depression, and especially in those covered under your income protection policies.One point of clarification from your comment. It is not only psychiatrists who are qualified to diagnose and make treatment recommendations for those affected by depression, this is a role that clinical psychologists and registered psychotherapists can also fulfil. This is well recognised by the public mental health system and by the ACC.
Furthermore Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or "CBT" is not the only evidentially supported talk therapy treatment for depression. The UK's NICE guidelines for example rightly recognise that many forms of talk therapy may be beneficial in the treatment of mild to moderate depression.