Problem with punishment

Limits are valuable, some things have too much consequence to be accomplished.

Watch any toddler crawling around a couch that gets too close to the edge of the cushion, that is a valuable limit. Or a middle school aged boy deciding on what humor is socially acceptable at thanksgiving dinner, also another valuable limit.

But finding those limits and pushing the boundaries of what people think is possible, is a really important part of progress and growth.

Punishment teaches people to fear the limits, as opposed to respecting limits due to natural consequences. Punishment causes people to fear limits because it is not always clear what they are being punished for, Or the punishment is far too harsh for the boundary they pushed. They are being punished because they reached A limit.

Therefore they are restraining their actions due the possibility of authority intervention, instead of because they have learned where the natural consequences of action exist.

Most everyone want to be successful, but people also want autonomy in their action. They want to find new and creative ways to solve problems and live their lives.