Putting the Soul
back in Psychology!

The real definition
Any two year old can hit someone when they don't get their way and are trying to make the other person do or stop doing what they want, which is exactly what any adult does who hits when they don't get their way with a child...
Calling the action some fancy vocabulary word like "spanking", or worse lying by calling it "discipline", doesn't change what it is;...Hitting to try and make the other person do or stop doing what you want; i.e. the spiritual maturity of a two year old.
Discipline means to teach and learn.
Hitting teaches children to learn the sins of fear, anger, disrespect, impatience, controllingness, poor boundaries, physical assault, only do what's right to avoid suffering (which both Augustine and Aquinas call a sin), and "might makes right".
When are we going to grow up and learn mature respectful charitable ways to be a leader and teach?