'She was spanked, grew up to be successful'

Children who were beaten by their parents when they grew up were more likely to be happy and successful than those who never received physical punishment, a new study reveals.

The study found that children who were beaten before the age of six were better at school and also more optimistic about life than those who were never underprivileged by their parents, Telegraph said.

This study can make children 's rights defenders angry, because they often argue that physical punishment can have a long - term impact on a child's mental health.

Marjorie Gunnoe, a professor of psychology at Calvin University in Michigan, USA, said her research shows that there is not enough evidence to deny the freedom of parents to decide to punish their children.

"I think spanking is a dangerous tool, but there are times when it is necessary to use that dangerous tool. Only you should not use your arms and legs in everything."

The study asked 179 teenagers about how often they were beaten when they were young, and the age was last beaten.

The answers are then compared to the information that these teenagers provide, about the behaviors they suffer from spanking, such as boredom, early love, violence and depression.

As a result, people who were beaten before age 6 performed better in all positive aspects, and were not worse in negative aspects than those who didn't.

Teenagers who are beaten by their parents from the age of 7 to 11 are also more successful at school than children who have never been touched by their parents, but are inferior in some negative aspects, such as fighting more.

However, the youth group insisted that they were still beaten until now, scoring the lowest points compared to all other groups.

Gunnoe found very little difference in results between the sexes or between different racial groups.

Previous studies have argued that child spanking can lead to behavioral disorders, which are more aggressive.