Evaluation of a Brief Parenting Discussion Group for Parents of Young Children

Abstract

Although behavioral parenting programs are effective at treating child behavioral problems, a significant number of parents experiencing these problems do not receive help, and briefer, more cost-effective parenting interventions are lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a brief parenting discussion group. Sixty-seven parents were randomly assigned to either an intervention or waitlist control condition. Parents in the intervention condition took part in a 2-hour discussion group in which they were taught positive parenting strategies to prevent and manage their child's disobedience, and they received 2 follow-up telephone calls after the discussion group. Results showed that after intervention, there were reductions in child behavior problems and use of dysfunctional parenting and improvements in parental self-efficacy and the parenting experience for parents. These effects were maintained at 6-month follow-up. The results are promising because they show that a brief intervention can be minimally sufficient to improve child and parent outcomes for parents experiencing high levels of child behavior problems.