Social media and gamification: Engaging vulnerable parents in an online evidence-based parenting program

The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility (accessibility, engagement and impact) of adding social media and gaming features (e.g., social sharing with anonymity, badges to incentivize skills practice, an accredited facilitator for support) and access via smartphones to an evidenced-based parenting program, Triple P Online. The highly vulnerable population included 155 disadvantaged, high-risk parents (e.g., 76% had a family annual income of less than $15,000; 41% had been incarcerated; 38% were in drug/alcohol treatment; and 24% had had a child removed due to maltreatment). The ethnic groups most commonly identified were African American (24%) and Hispanic (66%). Respondents were primarily mothers (86%) from five community programs in Los Angeles. The study used a single group repeated measures design (pre, post, 6-month follow-up). Data collected included standardized self-report measures, post-intervention focus groups and interviews, website usage reports, and Google Analytics. Significant multivariate ANOVA time effects were found, demonstrating reductions in child behavioral problems, reduced lax/permissive and over-reactive parenting, and decreased parental stress. No effects were found for parental confidence, attributions, or depression and anxiety (which were in the normal range at baseline). Positive effects were maintained or improved at 6-month follow-up. The participants engaged in the online community and valued its flexibility, anonymity, and shared learning. This foundational implementation trial provides support for future rigorous evaluation of social media and gaming features as a medium for increasing parental engagement in evidence-based parenting programs online—a public health approach to protect and improve the development of vulnerable children.     

Bridge over troubled water: using implementation science to facilitate effective services in child welfare

To maximize benefits to children and their families, effective practices need to be used competently in child welfare settings. Since the 1990s, researchers and policy makers have focused attention on empirically supported interventions (ESIs). Much less attention has been paid to what is needed to implement these in a range of real-world settings. Without proper implementation, which includes an evaluation strategy from feasibility to fidelity to on-going work on moderators and mediators of program effects, established effective programs can be rendered ineffective in practical application. The paper will touch on progress, to date, of implementation science, its application to child welfare programs and practices, and will highlight a set of practical strategies for implementing empirically supported interventions in child welfare.     

Bridging research and practice: challenges and successes in implementing evidence-based preventive intervention strategies for child maltreatment

Child maltreatment has been associated with a wide range of negative developmental outcomes for children and families as well as significant economic consequences. While efficacious intervention strategies have been demonstrated to reduce symptoms of trauma and to improve behavioral and emotional functioning, these models have not been widely adopted by clinicians. The challenges associated with exporting evidence-based interventions into community settings are discussed, along with an example of a preventive intervention program for young mothers, successfully implemented through a partnership of community agencies and funders.     

Patterns of individual change in a parenting program for child maltreatment and their relation to family and professional environments

In the area of child maltreatment prevention, little is known about the typology of changes that individuals undergo in response to parent-training interventions. In this study, we examined the patterns of change observed in parents immediately after their completion of the Apoyo Personal y Familiar (APF, Personal and Family Support) parenting program. We identified five clusters and classified 496 parents according to two criteria: (a) the amount of pre-post changes (total or partial) as reflected in their self-reports on implicit theories, parental agency and childrearing practices, and (b) the positive, negative or mixed character of these changes. The study also included a follow-up of a subset of 95 participants intended to examine the extent to which the patterns of change identified in the first part of the study might predict the quality of the childrearing environment at home and the successful integration of the APF program into social services structures one year on. In this follow-up study, external evaluators observed families’ home environments and collected the parenting program facilitators’ self-reports on changes to their work environment. The evaluators found higher-quality childrearing environments and more positive appraisals of the changes to the teams’ work with families in those cases where participants had experienced partial or total positive changes as a result of the APF. This approach offers insights into processes of individual change that have practical implications for the successful implementation of parenting programs in child maltreatment prevention services.