ELF Blog
Effective Parent Training Programs
What makes parenting training programs effective? A recent study reviewed 77 published evaluations of parent training programs and identified the common characterisitics. With effectiveness defined as the greatest impact on parent and child (birth - 7) behaviors, four areas emerged: 1) helping parents create positive interactions with their children; 2) providing an opportunity for parents to practice the new skill; 3) training for parents in emotional communication; and 4) including timeout and providing opprotunities for consistent response to children's behavior.
An abstract of the study can be found at http://cbexpress.acf.hhs.gov/articles.cfm?article_id=1529 . The full report was published in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, May, 2008.