You see a mother in a supermarket slap her child.

Vous voyez une mère dans un supermarché donner une gifle à son
enfant.

As long as it's not abusive. Children learn quickly what is appropriate when disciplined in public.
Cringe.
Depending on the severity of the slap, I'll either support the mother's action and say nothing, or think "what a bad mother" and walk on by.
Feel shocked
I call the police.
I make a sarcastic comment loudly to one of my friends so that she can hear it.
I talk about it behind her back. I don't do anything unless the slap is really hard.
I would be shocked, but I wouldn't say anything.
I would be very shocked, but I would not say anything because it is not my business.
I would feel sorry for the child but I can't have any say in how she raises her kid.
i would glare at her, and shake my head
I would look the other way.
I would make a loud comment about it to another person within her hearing range.
I would not react because I wouldn't know her motive
I would probably do nothing.
I would think I would not resort to that method, but I think she is entitled to her own judgment to bring up a child.
I would think to myself that this mother does not know how to discipline her children.
I wouldn't care
I'd ignore it
Ignore it, he's only cheating himself.
Mentally thank her if the child was misbehaving, stare at her if he was not
Mind my own business.
Nothing
That is her business

"Doucement"
c'est cool
c'est qu'il la méritait
c'est sa vie privée,mais je peux faire un jugement sur son action
ca m'énerve mais je ne dis rien
cela ne me concerne pas car gifler un enfant pour une bêtise n'est pas battre son enfant
j'apprécie
je laisse faire
je me dis que l enfant le mérite
Je me sens mal à l'aise et interviens si la gifle est violente
je me sens triste pour l'enfant et essaie de lui sourire
je ne connais pas la situation, je ne dis rien sauf si c'est plus qu'une giffle
je ne dis rien : j'ai reçu des gifles (pas douloureuses) et à bonne utilisation il n'y a pas de mal
je ne dis rien car ça ne me regarde pas
je ne fais rien
je ne fais rien, c'est pas mon problème
je ne lui dit rien parce que c'est pas mon gosse et peut-être qu'il a fait une bêtise
je ne m'en mêle pas, il a peut être désobéi
je ne m'en mêle pas
je ne suis pas surpris
je pense que c'est une bonne maman
je vais lui expliquer que ce n'est pas une solution
je vous demande de vous arrêter
normal !!! c'est juste de l'éducation
peut être que l'enfant l'a mérité, je n'interviendrai donc pas.

Discussion

I personally think that kids shouldn't be slapped by anyone especially
their mom. I think if you fear your child will be so complicated you
have to hit it you might want to think twice about having kids. that
said, I understand that some parents need ritualized violence like a
spanking etc. to make them feel like they are in charge, but to me slaps
in the supermarket don't quite fit the bill. When I see this happen I
always wonder if the caretaker is actually the mom/dad or some over
taxed babysitter. Thus though it may seem off topic, I was wondering
what the situation is with day-care in France.

I personally think that kids shouldn't be slapped by anyone especially
their mom. I think if you fear your child will be so complicated you
have to hit it you might want to think twice about having kids. that
said, I understand that some parents need ritualized violence like a
spanking etc. to make them feel like they are in charge, but to me slaps
in the supermarket don't quite fit the bill. When I see this happen I
always wonder if the caretaker is actually the mom/dad or some over
taxed babysitter. Thus though it may seem off topic, I was wondering
what the situation is with day-care in France.

Je suis particulièrement d'accord avec lauren. Les parents doivent faire
preuve d'autorité vis à vis de leurs enfants, mais il ne faut pas être
excessif. Le rôle d'une mère n'est pas de frapper son enfant, mais
plutôt de lui faire comprendre qu'il est dans l'erreur. Dans ce cas, ce
qui me gène, c'est plus le côté "mise en scène" que la gifle en elle-même.

La gifle en soi de me dértange absolument pas, à partir du moment où
elle est justifiée et où elle n'est pas douloureuse. Les gifles nont pas
besoin d'être violentes : la punition ne réside pas dans la force du
"coup" mais dans l'"humilitation" que l'enfant peut en retirer. Donc une
gifle qui n'est pas forte ne me pose aucun problème.

Je suis d'accord avec mes collègues et avec Laurent Robert, il ne faut
pas dépasser le cadre éducatif de la gifle, l'éducation étant le moyen
de sortir l'enfant de la déroute et de la banqueroute. Donc la gifle
peut être bénéfique pour le mener dans le droit chemin.

Je crois qu'on réagis un peu tous de la même façon !!! Les parents
doivent fixer des limites pour l'éducation des enfants. Evidemment la
gifle doit être justifiée. Dans un supermarché, l'enfant se sent
d'autant plus humilié car il y a des gens qui le regarde. Cela aura plus
d'impact!!! Cela forme le caractère!!!!

Actually, the French students, in their responses, made a pretty
interesting point. When you see a mom slap her child in a supermarket,
some of the people wrote that they don't immediately see the mom as
evil, but sit back and analyze, "could it be the child's fault?" And
man, let me tell you, there are a lot of stubborn kids out there
nowadays. Fine, kids like to be adventurous and stuff, but sometimes
they just cross the line, and parents have the right to teach them the
right behavior. Now, if the way the kids learn is by a slap, then go ahead.

Sometimes I think culture makes a difference. Back in my country (I
know, I say this a lot... but I'm really interested in cultural
differences and how it shapes people's actions and thoughts), not only
do you see a mother slap the child in the supermarket (or any other
open, public space), but you may see her take off her belt and give the
kid a full-blown beating right there on the spot. This way, the kid
knows that he should never do what he did, ever again.

On the other hand, some parents are just straight-up abusive. They are
angry about how their lives are going, and they take out their
frustrations on their children (many people's frustration in the United
States is related to financial situation, and the kids are directly
related to someone's finance--one has to pay for their food, clothes,
etc etc etc). So that is why it is hard to tell whether the kid is
acting stupid or the parent is abusive.

A question to the French students: How big a problem is child abuse in
France? I am part Japanese, and my mother has always talked about the
difference in the way parents treat their children in different
cultures. For example, I think, in America, the greatest problem in
child abuse is neglect. Maybe this has to do with individualism -
abusive parents are only concerned with themselves and leave their
children to fend entirely for themselves when they are too young? What
is the main type of child abuse in France? Are abusive parents mostly
physically, sexually, or emotionally abusive? This could settle my
hypothesis of neglect stemming from a very individualistic society.

My point of view is that kids are primitive psychological machines. You
know how babies learn to cry for attention as opposed to need? I feel
some kids think they can control their parents (some parents just give
everything to their children) and get away with everything, and slapping
them in supermarkets or whatever helps put the kid in its place. It
doesn't make sense for an adult to do that because adults know where
they stand, but some kids need to be told in this primitive way that
they are not in charge, that they can't do everything they want and that
they should respect others.

However, I approve slapping only as this psychological tool. I don't
approve child abuse and I also know some parents are not good parents at
all. But in a supermarket I think you can tell if a mom is slapping her
kid for his or her own good or if the mom wants to kill her boy or girl
with the slap.

Does anybody else observe this psychological phenomenon?

hey! I think breast feeding in public is okay, but am not for slapping.
People seem to think that slapping a child in public will teach him/her
that this behavior is wrong and they will never do it again. if hitting
actually was this effective I think we'd see a lot less of it because it
would only happen once for every child! in fact I don't know that it
really teaches a whole lot. my parents only spanked me once. I don't
even remember, but they said it was so awful they couldn't do it again.
I suppose it taught them.

I think you should just strap the child in the cart with the seat belt,
that would keep them in place no?

hey! I think breast feeding in public is okay, but am not for slapping.
People seem to think that slapping a child in public will teach him/her
that this behavior is wrong and they will never do it again. if hitting
actually was this effective I think we'd see a lot less of it because it
would only happen once for every child! in fact I don't know that it
really teaches a whole lot. my parents only spanked me once. I don't
even remember, but they said it was so awful they couldn't do it again.
I suppose it taught them.

I think you should just strap the child in the cart with the seat belt,
that would keep them in place no?

hey! I think breast feeding in public is okay, but am not for slapping.
People seem to think that slapping a child in public will teach him/her
that this behavior is wrong and they will never do it again. if hitting
actually was this effective I think we'd see a lot less of it because it
would only happen once for every child! in fact I don't know that it
really teaches a whole lot. my parents only spanked me once. I don't
even remember, but they said it was so awful they couldn't do it again.
I suppose it taught them.

I think you should just strap the child in the cart with the seat belt,
that would keep them in place no?

I wouldn't myself slap my children in public (or anywhere, for that
matter). I agree with those saying that the humiliation is unnecessary
and I believe that physical aggression of any kind can lead a kid to a
trauma and anger towards his parents. I like discipline in children, but
there are many other methods of attaining it, although these might not
be as easy to apply as violence. I do think, however, that raising
children has no unique recipe.