Abstract
ObjectiveTo investigate whether changes in parenting after behavioural parent training in routine clinical care are associated with improvements in preschool children's disruptive behaviours.MethodWe evaluated changes after parent training in maternal and paternal self‐reports of parental discipline practices parenting sense of competence, and parents' ratings of child disruptive behaviours in parents of 63 children, with a one group pretest–posttest design. We also compared parenting parameters in this clinical sample with a nonclinical sample (n = 121).ResultsMothers' self‐reports of parental discipline practices and parenting sense of competence significantly improved after behavioural parent training. Less over‐reactivity in both mothers and fathers was associated with fewer disruptive behaviours in children. After parent training, mothers' ratings of their discipline techniques did not differ anymore from those in the nonclinical sample.ConclusionPositive changes in parental discipline practices, particularly less over‐reactive parental behaviours, were related to a decrease of disruptive child behaviours.
Highlights
Behavioural parent training aims to enhance prosocial behaviours and reduce disruptive behaviours in children, by improving parenting practices and decreasing coercive parent–child interactions
We report on changes in parental discipline practices and sense of competence of both mothers and fathers after behavioural parent training, and possible associations with improvements in young children's disruptive behaviours
We investigated whether parents reported less adequate parental discipline practices and lower parenting self‐esteem before treatment than parents of preschool children from the general population
Summary
Behavioural parent training aims to enhance prosocial behaviours and reduce disruptive behaviours in children, by improving parenting practices and decreasing coercive parent–child interactions. In our previous study (Van der Veen‐Mulders, Hoekstra, Nauta, & van den Hoofdakker, 2018), we reported on the effectiveness of behavioural parent training for preschool children with disruptive behaviours, and on parental predictors of response Both mother and father reported child behaviour problems decreased significantly after treatment. In this secondary analysis, we report on changes in parental discipline practices and sense of competence of both mothers and fathers after behavioural parent training, and possible associations with improvements in young children's disruptive behaviours. The main aim of the present study was to examine whether changes in parental discipline practices and parenting sense of competence of mothers and fathers of regularly referred preschool children after behavioural parent training, as provided in routine clinical practice, were associated with changes in parent‐rated child behaviour problems. Concerning differences on parenting between fathers and mothers, one could hypothesize that mothers of young children with disruptive behaviours show lower levels of sense of competence on parenting and less adequate parenting behaviours than fathers, assuming they focus more on daily care and discipline in their parenting role
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