Grounding is a form of punishment given to older children, preadolescents or adolescents by their parents (or teachers or headmasters in a school setting) for bad behavior and poor performance in school or other duties. In the terms of behavioral psychology, grounding is a negative punishment because it involves the removal of desired things, rather than the addition of undesired things.
Every now and then, a young person who is grounded is banned from leaving home or his/her room to go anywhere other than to attend required activities such as meals, school, church, work, music practice, etc. Grounding does not necessarily mean people are unable to come over, only going out is prohibited. It is commonly combined with the withdrawal of privileges such as the use of computer, Internet, video games, television, telephone, cars, mobile phones, prom, slumber party, etc., and some children may even be sent to bed early. Some groundings can last from as short as a day or two, to as long as a month or year, while some last an indefinite amount of time. The uncertainty makes it difficult for the person to cope, which in some cases can make the punishment more effective. For some children and teenagers, grounding can backfire easily, encouraging bad behavior in the form of rebellion against their parents.
Grounding can be a punishment that substitutes spanking or time-outs, as those punishments are designed more for younger children, usually aged 2–5.
The term most likely originated in the aviation community. When an aviator is restricted from flying due to misconduct, illness, or other reasons they are said to be "grounded."