--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I read one psychologist's theory that…" description: "\"I read one psychologist's theory that said, \"Never strike a child in your anger.\" When could I strike him? When he is kissing me on my birthday? When h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f96/erma-bombeck-780_anger_i-read-one-psychologist-s-theory-that-sa_1894358.jpg" --- # I read one psychologist's theory that said, "Never strike… ![“I read one psychologist's theory that said, "Never strike a child in your anger." When could I strike him? When he is kissing me on my birthday? When he's recuperating from measles? Do I slap the Bible out of his hand on Sunday?” quote by Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f96/erma-bombeck-780_anger_i-read-one-psychologist-s-theory-that-sa_1894358.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f96/erma-bombeck-780_anger_i-read-one-psychologist-s-theory-that-sa_1894358.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f96/erma-bombeck-780_anger_i-read-one-psychologist-s-theory-that-sa_1894358.jpg) > “I read one psychologist's theory that said, "Never strike a child in your anger." When could I strike him? When he is kissing me on my birthday? When he's recuperating from measles? Do I slap the Bible out of his hand on Sunday?” [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Questioning the absurdity of never hitting a child, highlighting the humor in parental dilemmas. **In simple terms:** Never hit a child? absurd. Key Takeaway Reflect on parenting humor and limits. Themes parenting humor ethics absurdity family dynamics Mood lighthearted ironic Type satirical conversational When to use this quote - parent‑teacher meetings - family gatherings - conflict resolution Key Concepts comedy psychology social commentary Questions to Reflect On - When is humor appropriate in parenting? - How to balance discipline with compassion? A Different Perspective Humor may downplay serious issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Anger Strike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger-strike-2757278/) [Child Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-anger-1769118/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Kissing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kissing/) [Measles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measles/) [Measles Slap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measles-slap-2757279/) [My birthday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-birthday/) [Psychologist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychologist/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Slap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slap/) [Strike Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strike-child-327459/) [Strikes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strikes/) [Sunday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunday/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) ## Related quotes > [If you strike a child, take care that you strike it in anger, even at the risk of maiming it for life. A blow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-you-strike-a-child-take-care-that-you-strike-it-in-anger-even-at/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“It may surprise you that the primary lifetime threat to your child is his or her own anger.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-chapman/it-may-surprise-you-that-the-primary-lifetime-threat-to-your-child-is/) [Gary Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-chapman/) > [Spanking doesn't lead to anything in the child, other than anger, a sense of frustration and humiliation. And parents can do better. I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-hannity/spanking-doesn-t-lead-to-anything-in-the-child-other-than-anger-a/) [Sean Hannity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-hannity/) > [It's a joke to think that anyone is one thing. We're all such complex creatures. But if I'm going to be a poster child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alanis-morissette/it-s-a-joke-to-think-that-anyone-is-one-thing-we-re-all-such-complex/) [Alanis Morissette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alanis-morissette/) > [Having children made us look differently at all these things that we take for granted, like taking your child to get a vaccine against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melinda-gates/having-children-made-us-look-differently-at-all-these-things-that-we/) [Melinda Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melinda-gates/) > [Golf, like measles, should be caught young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-2/golf-like-measles-should-be-caught-young/) [P. G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-2/) > [Infectious diseases introduced with Europeans, like smallpox and measles, spread from one Indian tribe to another, far in advance of Europeans themselves, and killed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/infectious-diseases-introduced-with-europeans-like-smallpox-and/) [Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/) > [“It's my experience that people are a lot more sympathetic if they can see you hurting, and for the millionth time in my life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-niven/it-s-my-experience-that-people-are-a-lot-more-sympathetic-if-they-can/) [Jennifer Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-niven/) > [Your file was empty. Nothing. Not even an immunization record.” He didn’t even pretend to look surprised. He eased back in his seat, eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-fitzpatrick/your-file-was-empty-nothing-not-even-an-immunization-record-he-didn-t/) [Becca Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-fitzpatrick/) > [Throughout Asia and Europe, pearls were traditionally believed to ease a range of conditions, including eye diseases, fever, insomnia, 'female complaints', dysentery, whooping cough,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-finlay/throughout-asia-and-europe-pearls-were-traditionally-believed-to-ease/) [Victoria Finlay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-finlay/) > [“One marker, which I would read a bit later on, tells the familiar story of Narcissa Whitman, "trail-blazer and martyred missionary," who followed the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-kaplan/one-marker-which-i-would-read-a-bit-later-on-tells-the-familiar-story/) [Robert D. Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-kaplan/) > [“When one of us (children) caught measles or whooping cough and we were isolated in bad upstairs, we wrote notes to each other perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eudora-welty/when-one-of-us-children-caught-measles-or-whooping-cough-and-we-were/) [Eudora Welty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eudora-welty/) > [In America, you can segregate the people, but the problems will travel. From slavery to equal rights, from state suppression of dissent to crime,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-jordan/in-america-you-can-segregate-the-people-but-the-problems-will-travel/) [June Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-jordan/) > [Love Is like Measles, It Only Happens Once In A Lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-kafata/love-is-like-measles-it-only-happens-once-in-a-lifetime/) [Amos Kafata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-kafata/) > [“I cannot go to school today" Said little Peggy Ann McKay. "I have the measles and the mumps, A gash, a rash and purple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shel-silverstein/i-cannot-go-to-school-today-said-little-peggy-ann-mckay-i-have-the/) [Shel Silverstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shel-silverstein/) ## More by Erma Bombeck > [Cats invented self-esteem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/cats-invented-self-esteem/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [To my way of thinking, the American family started to decline when parents began to communicate with their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/to-my-way-of-thinking-the-american-family-started-to-decline-when/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [The woman who says, 'My kids are all speaking to one another and they love us' is a psychopathic liar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/the-woman-who-says-my-kids-are-all-speaking-to-one-another-and-they/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [The term 'working mother' is redundant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/the-term-working-mother-is-redundant/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [To say, "Well, I write when I really get into it" is a bunch of bull. Put the paper in the typewriter, stare at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/to-say-well-i-write-when-i-really-get-into-it-is-a-bunch-of-bull-put/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [I used everything you gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/i-used-everything-you-gave-me/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Just think of all those women on the Titanic who said, 'No thank you' to desert that night. And for what?!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/just-think-of-all-those-women-on-the-titanic-who-said-no-thank-you-to/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [The mole rat is the only rodent born without a fur coat. With a good lawyer, someone would pay for that little oversight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/the-mole-rat-is-the-only-rodent-born-without-a-fur-coat-with-a-good/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [God created man, but I could do better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/god-created-man-but-i-could-do-better/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [If the nest is truly empty, who owns all this junk?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/if-the-nest-is-truly-empty-who-owns-all-this-junk/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Housework, if it is done properly, can cause brain damage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/housework-if-it-is-done-properly-can-cause-brain-damage/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Making coffee has become the great compromise of the decade. It's the only thing "real" men do that doesn't seem to threaten their masculinity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/making-coffee-has-become-the-great-compromise-of-the-decade-it-s-the/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [I have a friend who lives by a three-word philosophy: Seize the Moment. Just possibly, she may be the wisest woman on this planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/i-have-a-friend-who-lives-by-a-three-word-philosophy-seize-the-moment/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/when-i-stand-before-god-at-the-end-of-my-life-i-would-hope-that-i/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Before we sent kids to computer camps and told them they were having a good time, there was imagination among the human species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/before-we-sent-kids-to-computer-camps-and-told-them-they-were-having/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) [Explore all 372 Erma Bombeck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) ## More Anger quotes > [“If I let myself think of it the pain and anger were still fresh, adrenalin racing down my limbs to pool, hot and itchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-ladd/if-i-let-myself-think-of-it-the-pain-and-anger-were-still-fresh/) [Kylie Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-ladd/) > [I receive something we might euphemistically call an 'inappropriately hostile' response - that is to say, more than fair criticism or even fair anger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/i-receive-something-we-might-euphemistically-call-an-inappropriately/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“When you feel terribly angry, you're possessed by anger ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-feel-terribly-angry-you-re-possessed-by-anger-ghost/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [My care will be in the heart n not in words My anger will be in Words n not in the Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/my-care-will-be-in-the-heart-n-not-in-words-my-anger-will-be-in-words/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/the-present-contains-nothing-more-than-the-past-and-what-is-found-in/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I always fight better when my opponent's angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-haye/i-always-fight-better-when-my-opponent-s-angry/) [David Haye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-haye/) > [ “Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari \[living a worldly life\] regardless of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-deceit-greed-there-is-worldly/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) [Browse all 7,469 Anger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I read one psychologist's theory that said, \"Never strike a child in your anger.\" When could I strike him? When he is kissing me on my birthday? When he's recuperating from measles? 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