Research Paper on "Parenting Educational Initiative by Mbrace"

Research Paper 4 pages (10124 words) Sources: 2

[EXCERPT] . . . .

These groups can be useful for primary prevention of the problems, as well as effective intervention (Barlow & Stewart-Brown, 2000). Effective parenting allows children to develop to their fullest potential, but it is necessary to have parenting relationships that provide stability, consistency, affection and responsiveness, and this is part of what is proposed to be taught in these groups (Bowman et al., 2010).

There is another area closely related to many laws and policies where parent education can be useful even before serious trouble arises. This is in the area of child abuse, where it has been found that parent educations programs can improve parenting skills, as well as child outcomes, and also reduce the future risk of maltreatment (Johnson et al., 2006). Child abuse policy often is focused on the identification and reporting of the victims, and there is little consideration given to prevention (Newberger & Newberger, 1982). Parent education programs are designed to increase the parent's knowledge about children and parenting; give parents a chance to practice using what they have learned; teach parents how to manage their children without abusing them; teach parents how to manage stress; and help their parents improve their relationships with others (Shannon, n.d.).

Effective parenting education programs can enhance parent's child-rearing skills, competence and confidence (Bowman et al., 2010). It is a well-researched and clinically tested method for addressing a wide range of childhood problems and dysfunctions (Hardin & Mulsow, 2001).These groups can promote protective factors and lead to positive outcomes for both parents and children (Child Welfare Information Gateway, 2001).

Goals and Objectives

The purpose of the Mbrace agency's Maximizing Parenting Potential (MPP) group is to create a safe and supportive setting for psychoeducation for the client population to learn about effective parenting, so that stress in the family can be reduced, relationships may improve, and protective factors in the family, as well as positive outcomes may be enhanced. The process objective is to have the participants take part in an 8-week program, which includes one home visit. The outcome objectives are as follows:

Goal #1: To increase parents' knowledge of effective parenting techniques in a variety of areas and strategies through psycho education, and thus reducing the likelihood of child abuse.

Objective #1: Measure increase in knowledge of appropriate expectations for children over the course of the 8-week Maximizing Parenting Potential group, including an increase in empathy and attitudes toward punishment with overall improvement of 30% as measured by the Adult Adolescent Parenting Inventory (AAPI-2) (Family Development Resources, 2014).

Objective #2: Increase knowledge in protective factors against child abuse by 30% and reduce likelihood of abuse occurring by 50% as measured by pre and posttest by the Nurturing Skills Competency Scale (NSCS) chosen according to the age of the child and the status of the parent as a teen parent or not (Family Development Resources, 2014).

Goal #2: To reduce stress in families as parents perceive themselves to be more competent as parents, and children's behavior improves.

Objective #1: Decrease of parental stress by 30% by the end of the eight-week MPP Program as measured by the Parenting Stress Index (Abidin, 2012).

Objective #2: Decrease in behavioral issues of 50% as measured by the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessments (ASEBA) as reported by parents (ASEBA, 2015).

Program Statement

Overview

The Mbrace Maximizing Parenting Potential program is an eight-week psycho educational group that will improve the knowledge of the parents who attend in the areas of child development and non-violent discipline, as well as to enhance communication and problem-solving skills (NREPP, 2015). The groups will meet weekly, in either English or Spanish, and will be divided into age groups of children, with one group for parents of 0- to 7-year-olds and one for parents of 7- to 12-year-olds. The initial program will consist of 3 different groups meeting for 2 hours each on a weekly basis, and each family will be offered one home visit. There will be up to 15 parents in each group, and childcare will be offered during the meetings. The groups will be led by trained parent educators, who may be social service professionals, para professionals or parents who have previously completed the program, and there will be training for these leaders (NREPP, 2015).

The owner and founder of the Mbrace Counseling and Behavioral Health Services, Lo'Rece Mebane, has identified the need of a parent education group to assist those in the client base to improve their information and skills in parenting, even as they face the challenges of economic difficulties and, in many cases, single-parent households. A study was published in 2014 that assessed parenting education needs for parents and caregivers of young children in southern Nevada, where the agency is located. This study reported that parenting is a learned skill that can be strengthened through education and experience, and the quality of interactions between parents and children have a significant impact on early development, both positively and negatively (Kim, 2015). Parenting education has been shown to have positive long-term results for both parents and children, and they noted that a self-administered survey given to residents of southern Nevada found that the parents or caregivers who were Latino and had the least education and the lower income, often being non-English speakers, were the most interested in attending parenting workshops (Kim, 2015).

Program Services

The program services would include not only psychoeducation to increase knowledge of child development and expectations, good communication practices and interactions to improve children's behavior, but also stress reduction technique. Stress reduction would be achieved not only through having a better knowledge on how to parent well, but also by teaching techniques such as meditation. A service that would result from the group setting is social support, and there would also be a component to help parents learn skills of identifying community services that are offered to families (Grayson, 2013). Childcare would be provided because it would increase attendance, which can have a significant impact on the results, and participants could choose to continue with ongoing support groups. It has been shown that participation in parent education groups can improve parental attitudes, reduce parenting stress levels and encourage authoritative parenting practices (Wolfe & Haddy, 2001). Parent education has also been identified as a core preventative service for reducing child abuse by the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (Grayson, 2013).

Target Population

The target population would be clients of the MBrace agency who could benefit from parenting information and increasing parenting skills in order to be more knowledgeable and effective parents, reduce stress, and the likelihood of child abuse, as they face economic difficulties, and in many cases the stress of being a single parent. The pilot groups would be recruited from the agency's client base, and then future participants would be recruited through posters and advertisements at churches, neighborhood stores, schools and other areas that the target population might visit. There could also be public service announcements on the radio, particularly the Spanish speaking stations. If needed, more of the sessions could be conducted in Spanish, but the 3 groups, which could be slightly staggered so they could share space and child care services, could each be offered 4 times a year, so serving 180 parents a year.

Evidence-Based Model

The curriculum will be based on a program that has been called Parenting Education Program, Metropolitan Family Services, and Parenting Fundamentals, and is currently on the SAMHSA's National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices where the research ratings were 3.3 out of 4.0 for understanding of parenting strategies and improvements in child behavior (NREPP, 2015). The model will be adapted to cover the two age groups, instead of 4 different age groups, at least initially, but the program has already been tested in Spanish (NREPP, 2015). The evidence-based findings show outcomes of a greater understanding of parenting strategy at the end of the intervention, as well as a better home environment, and improved child behavior. The components added, in order to better serve the clients, would be the availability of child care, continuation of groups for those who desire continued support, and information specific to the area to give information about other available services.

Program Theory

Because of the many stressors in the lives of the clients of the Mbrace agency, parent education could help give education, information on services and social support to those who are struggling with financial and family hardships. Effective parenting training can allow parents to acquire and internalize parenting and problem-solving skills that will assist them in having a healthy family that operates well as a unit (Grayson, 2013). Such groups can also promote protective factors and thus bring about positive outcomes for parents and children alike. Maximizing Parenting Potential will show parents the importance of nurturing and… READ MORE

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