Any number of studies have shown that corporal punishment (spanking, etc.) is more common among Black families than it is among White families.
There are a number, largely historical, of reasons given for this:
- The greater religiosity of African Americans.
- The higher than the general population incidence of Evangelical African Americans.
- The heritage of slavery.
- That African Americans are poorer than their whiter counterparts. (Poverty increases the incidence of corporal punishment)
- The larger proportion of African Americans in (or from) the south.
These all might be contributing factors, but I think that they ignore the proverbial elephant in the room: A Black parent perceives a greater threat to the health and well being of their child in response to their acting up than does a white parent.
To put it bluntly, asking a cop about a warrant, or just running around a store at age 12, is far more likely to make a black child injured or dead than it would if the child is white.
In white society, going out for Skittles is not a capital offense. Neither is walking down the street, or getting in a car accident and asking for help.
In the White world, an out of control 12 year old is a problem that can be dealt with over a few hours or perhaps days, in the Black world, you are one cop or one George Zimmerman away from tragedy.
Until we address the very real threat of Black youths being assaulted, arrested, and killed for being black, it is reasonable to expect that the priority of Black parents will be control over any potential development issues arising from spanking.