Studies of child-rearing practices have consistently shown that the degree of physical punishment used by parents is positively correlated with various forms of psychopathology and negatively related to conscience development. One explanation of these findings has to do with modeling; the child learns by example that aggressiveness toward those of lesser power is permissible. Many educators maintain that judicious occasional use of corporal punishment is beneficial to the child. While resulting in immediate decrements in the undesired behavior, however, occasional punishment actually strengthens the behavior by allowing it to be intermittently reinforced. Unfortunately, many educators are apparently unaware that effective and more humane alternatives exist. A list of techniques for maintaining discipline without physical punishment was prepared by the National Education Association Task Force on Corporal Punishment. From the limited amount of research on the popularity of physical punishment, it appears that approximately 55-65 percent of school officials, but only one-third of parents, feel that it is an effective technique. (Author/JG)