Kelly Clarkson says she's 'not above' spanking her kids—What do you think?

January 17, 2018 8:27 PM

Reaction online was mixed—some people agreed with Kelly, while others were horrified.

"I'm not above a spanking, which people aren't necessarily into," the singer and mother of two children, ages 3 and 1, said in a recent radio interview with 98.9 The Buzz in Rochester, New York. Kelly specifically talked about spanking her 3-year-old daughter, River Rose, adding, "I don't mean hitting her hard. I just mean a spanking."

"My parents spanked me, and I did fine in life, and I feel fine about it, and I do that as well," she continued. "That's a tricky thing, when you're out in public, because then people are like, they think that's wrong or something, but I find nothing wrong with a spanking."

Kelly says she gives her daughter a warning before she actually does it. "I'm like, 'Hi, I'm going to spank you on your bottom if you don't stop right now, this is ridiculous,' and honestly it's really helped. She doesn't do that kind of stuff as often,” she said.

Parents tend to have mixed feelings about spanking, and it’s a highly controversial topic. A Gallup poll published in 2016 found that 60 percent of parents approve of spanking, but many organizations warn against it.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, for example, says that parents should not “spank or use other physical punishments" when they discipline their kids. "That only teaches aggressive behavior, and becomes ineffective if used often," the statement says. For discipline, the organization recommends “appropriate time outs” for young children and disciplining older children by “temporarily removing privileges” they like.

This advice is also backed up by recent research published in The Journal of Pediatrics, which found that spanking children may lead them to be in violent relationships as adults.

Nevertheless, spanking is a divisive topic. What do you think about Kelly spanking her kids?