scholarly journals Parental relationship and child development: A study protocol for a randomized controlled trial for strengthening couples and children from pregnancy until four years after birth

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guy Bodenmann ◽  
Céline Stadelmann ◽  
Peter Zimmermann ◽  
Alexandra Iwanski ◽  
Mirjam Senn ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The transition to parenthood is a critical phase for couples and often relationship relational well-being (i.e., relationship satisfaction) deteriorates. As parents’ relationship well-being is a significant predictor of children’s well-being, this decrease is also critical for children. Thus, strengthening couples during the transition to parenthood seems particularly important. Different intervention programmes targeting the transition to parenthood reported positive effects on relationship satisfaction, communication and child adjustment. This study protocol describes a randomized controlled trial for two couple-focused interventions, targeting the enhancement of partners’ relational skills (communication, dyadic coping, problem-solving, self-regulation in relationships) with the aim to improve relational well-being, partners’ well-being, coparenting and, consequently, foster healthy child development.Methods/design We randomly assigned mixed-sex couples to a high or low dose intervention or a waiting list control condition. The high dose intervention consists of a training of relational skills, whereas in the low dose condition participants receive a psychoeducational movie. Outcomes are assessed over 11 time points from the third trimester of pregnancy until four years after birth assessing self-report and home observations of couple- and parent-child interactions. Primary outcomes include relational skills, individual and relational well-being and coparenting; a secondary outcome is healthy child development. Statistical analyses include multilevel modelling, structural equation modelling as well as standard statistics.Discussion The aim of this study is to support families with couple-focused interventions and thus improve relational skills, relationship well-being, coparenting, individual well-being, and healthy child development. If the intervention reveals to be effective, we will target a broader dissemination.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shefaly Shorey ◽  
Yvonne Peng Mei Ng ◽  
An Ling Siew ◽  
Joanne Yoong ◽  
Evalotte M�relius

BACKGROUND Supportive educational programs during the perinatal period are scarce in Singapore. There is no continuity of care available in terms of support from community care nurses in Singapore. Parents are left on their own most of the time, which results in a stressful transition to parenthood. There is a need for easily accessible technology-based educational programs that can support parents during this crucial perinatal period. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to describe the study protocol of a randomized controlled trial on a technology-based supportive educational parenting program. METHODS A randomized controlled two-group pretest and repeated posttest experimental design will be used. The study will recruit 118 parents (59 couples) from the antenatal clinics of a tertiary public hospital in Singapore. Eligible parents will be randomly allocated to receive either the supportive educational parenting program or routine perinatal care from the hospital. Outcome measures include parenting self-efficacy, parental bonding, postnatal depression, social support, parenting satisfaction, and cost evaluation. Data will be collected at the antenatal period, immediate postnatal period, and at 1 month and 3 months post childbirth. RESULTS Recruitment of the study participants commenced in December 2016 and is still ongoing. Data collection is projected to finish within 12 months, by December 2017. CONCLUSIONS This study will identify a potentially clinically useful, effective, and cost-effective supportive educational parenting program to improve parental self-efficacy and bonding in newborn care, which will then improve parents’ social support–seeking behaviors, emotional well-being, and satisfaction with parenting. It is hoped that better supported and satisfied parents will consider having more children, which may in turn influence Singapore’s ailing birth rate. CLINICALTRIAL International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 48536064; https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN48536064 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6wMuEysiO)


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ratib Lekhal ◽  
May Britt Drugli ◽  
Turid Suzanne Berg-Nielsen ◽  
Elisabet Solheim Buøen

BACKGROUND Universal, high-quality childcare offers a unique opportunity to prevent developmental trajectories leading to mental health problems. Yet, growing evidence has shown that the process quality of Norwegian childcare centers varies considerably, and that research-based models for quality building are significantly lacking. OBJECTIVE To examine whether a model for quality building in childcare centers, Thrive by Three, increases the quality of child–caregiver interactions, and promotes child development, well-being, and mental health. METHODS The Thrive by Three study is a clustered randomized controlled trial involving 187 toddler groups in childcare centers across 7 municipalities within southern and central Norway. Each center is randomly allocated to the intervention or wait-list control group. Data are collected at 4 points: preintervention (T1), midway (T2), postintervention (T3), and 1-year postintervention (T4). Primary outcomes are changes in childcare quality measured by the Classroom Assessment Scoring System toddler version (CLASS), Student–Teacher Relationship Scale, Short Form (STRS-SF), and Life in Early Childhood Programs (LECP), as well as child development and mental health measured by The Brief Infant Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA, parent and teacher report), the Caregiver–Teacher Report Form (C-TRF), and Child Behavior Checklist (parent report) from the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA) from 1.5 to 5 years, and child well-being measured by the Leiden Inventory for Child’s Well-Being in Day Care (LICW-D). Secondary outcomes are child cortisol levels, assessed in a subsample of 372 children. RESULTS As of August 2020, a total of 1531 children and 769 staff from 187 toddler groups were recruited. Because of turnover, the recruitment of staff will be ongoing until August 2020. As of January 2020, the intervention group has been working with Thrive by Three for 1.5 years. Data at T1, T2, and T3 from both the intervention and control groups have been completed and T4 will be completed in August 2020. CONCLUSIONS This study makes an important contribution to the field of quality building in childcare centers. The results will provide greater insight into how high quality can be obtained and the effects of high-quality early childcare on child mental health. This in turn will be significant for policymakers and to the Norwegian society at large. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03879733; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03879733 and Norwegian Research Council 260624/H10; https://prosjektbanken.forskningsradet.no/#/project/NFR/260624/Sprak=en INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT DERR1-10.2196/17726


10.2196/17726 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. e17726
Author(s):  
Ratib Lekhal ◽  
May Britt Drugli ◽  
Turid Suzanne Berg-Nielsen ◽  
Elisabet Solheim Buøen

Background Universal, high-quality childcare offers a unique opportunity to prevent developmental trajectories leading to mental health problems. Yet, growing evidence has shown that the process quality of Norwegian childcare centers varies considerably, and that research-based models for quality building are significantly lacking. Objective To examine whether a model for quality building in childcare centers, Thrive by Three, increases the quality of child–caregiver interactions, and promotes child development, well-being, and mental health. Methods The Thrive by Three study is a clustered randomized controlled trial involving 187 toddler groups in childcare centers across 7 municipalities within southern and central Norway. Each center is randomly allocated to the intervention or wait-list control group. Data are collected at 4 points: preintervention (T1), midway (T2), postintervention (T3), and 1-year postintervention (T4). Primary outcomes are changes in childcare quality measured by the Classroom Assessment Scoring System toddler version (CLASS), Student–Teacher Relationship Scale, Short Form (STRS-SF), and Life in Early Childhood Programs (LECP), as well as child development and mental health measured by The Brief Infant Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA, parent and teacher report), the Caregiver–Teacher Report Form (C-TRF), and Child Behavior Checklist (parent report) from the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA) from 1.5 to 5 years, and child well-being measured by the Leiden Inventory for Child’s Well-Being in Day Care (LICW-D). Secondary outcomes are child cortisol levels, assessed in a subsample of 372 children. Results As of August 2020, a total of 1531 children and 769 staff from 187 toddler groups were recruited. Because of turnover, the recruitment of staff will be ongoing until August 2020. As of January 2020, the intervention group has been working with Thrive by Three for 1.5 years. Data at T1, T2, and T3 from both the intervention and control groups have been completed and T4 will be completed in August 2020. Conclusions This study makes an important contribution to the field of quality building in childcare centers. The results will provide greater insight into how high quality can be obtained and the effects of high-quality early childcare on child mental health. This in turn will be significant for policymakers and to the Norwegian society at large. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03879733; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03879733 and Norwegian Research Council 260624/H10; https://prosjektbanken.forskningsradet.no/#/project/NFR/260624/Sprak=en International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/17726


2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 984-994 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas D. Myers ◽  
Isaac Prilleltensky ◽  
Ora Prilleltensky ◽  
Adam McMahon ◽  
Samantha Dietz ◽  
...  

Challenges ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Tanja Sobko ◽  
Gavin T. L. Brown

Urbanized children today have fewer opportunities to interact with nature which may lead to a greater risk of mental health problems. The objective of this randomized controlled trial was to investigate which particular changes in connectedness to nature (CN) would improve psychological well-being (PW) in young children. Six hundred and thirty-nine preschoolers (52.0% boys, age 34.9 ± 9.5 months) participated in Play&Grow, an early environmental education intervention. Children’s CN and PW were evaluated by parents before and after the program with validated measures; the CNI-PPC (four factors) and the SDQ, Strength and Difficulties questionnaire (five factors), respectively. The effectiveness of the intervention on the primary outcomes (CN, PW) as well as the relationship between them was analyzed in a repeated measures path model with intervention status as a causal predictor. Specific CN factors consistently increased ProSocial behavior and reduced Hyperactivity and Emotional problems. In summary, this study showed that the previously reported impact shifted from the total CN score to the specific CN factors. The Play&Grow intervention positively increased children’s CN and improved some aspects of psychological well-being in children which is a preliminary evidence of developmental benefits of connecting young children with nature. Our results indicate promising direction of action for the improvement of families’ psychological health.


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