Thanks for the video Assert'n. I never realised that was what Americans meant by spanking. (Hand to butt, used fairly frequently when you don't want something done.)

Mine in contrast, seemed less frequent (but maybe those were just condensed clips), but much more intimidating and painful. In my cases, elastic materials (the handle of a duster) were used. The point would be to induce pain and then act as a deterrent for repeating the "incriminating" behaviour.

I'm not sure how releated my experiences are though, since I was much older than the children in the video.