Narrowing My Focus

After writing questions for blog post 9.7, I picked the questions that I think are most important to finding out more about the spanking controversy.

What is the logic/science behind why some people who were spanked are strongly opposed to it and others see it as a perfectly fine method of punishment?Is it a cycle of abuse type situation? Or were they really left unscathed by how they were punished?

• This question is central to the controversy. The studies that have been done show that, even though spanking often has negative effects on children, many people who were spanked go on to use spanking with their own children. This, in some ways, seems to refute the science. Finding out why would be a great place to start my research.

Image by Hunter, Mark. "Focus." Uploaded 4/22/10 via Flickr.
Attribution 2.0 Generic license. 

How has the legality of spanking changed over time? In a day and age where there is immense social change happening, has this controversy become any more hotly debated than it was previously? How was spanking viewed by the majority of people when my generation's parents or even our grandparents were growing up?

• Okay, this is actually like four questions rolled into one, but they all connect in a way that is essential to this issue. Finding out how this debate started and how it has changed over time might help me find more insightful information and come at this project with more knowledge than I would if I didn't investigate the background.

What kind of discussions have been happening in comment feeds and on discussion boards?

• Oftentimes, especially with contemporary controversies, how the general public views the issue is essential to discovering exactly why it's important. Maybe someone tells a personal story that changes some people's views. That is something that I, as a writer, would like to know about. Obviously I can't read every post on every discussion board, but hopefully I can find at least one that has or could have a significant effect on the debate.