While some children need very little discipline, almost all children require some sort of teaching method that has been linked to the process of learning what is considered appropriate and acceptable behavior. Discipline should not be used as a way to punish a child for wrong-doing, although discipline almost always follows a specific incident so that children can recognize the connection between the disciplinary action and the activity that caused it.
Discipline should be used as a method to introduce and enforce basic rights and wrongs as well as the way that others should be treated and to identify what behaviors are acceptable in society.
While discipline serves an obvious immediate purpose by linking a specific action (or inaction, as the case may be) on the part of the child with an unpleasant reaction that will help shape future behavior, children who are disciplined consistently have several benefits later in life that children who weren’t disciplined fail to develop. For instance, effective discipline can actually help to increase a child’s confidence as they become more aware of social expectations and proper ways to behave. Children who were disciplined also have a more highly developed sense of self-discipline and display a greater ability to control their impulses. Because of these two latter traits, people who were disciplined as a child tend to deal better with the normal stresses of everyday life.
As a parent, one of the most important tools you have to teach your children what their behavioral expectations are is the use of discipline. Deciding the best method of discipline depends largely on your parenting style, the lesson you’re trying to teach and how your child reacts to different methods of discipline. Trying several different methods until you find one that helps your child to really connect their actions with the consequences can take some trial and error, but there are plenty of resources to help you make a wise decision.