Empower Parents Research Articles

Politics of Plasticity: Implications of the New Science of the "Teen Brain" for Education.

In recent years, claims that developmental brain science should inform pedagogical approaches have begun to influence educational policies. This article investigates the promise, pitfalls, processes, and implications of these claims. We explore how research on neuroplasticity has led to enormous interest in harnessing mechanistic models of development for applications in the classroom. Synthesizing analysis from the scientific literature on "neuroeducation" and interviews with key actors in the field, we analyze how neural and cognitive processes are mapped onto pedagogical constructs, and how psychological and social-structural factors are (or are not) integrated into explanations. First, we describe the historical trajectory of educational neuroscience and identify how tensions between antagonist groups struggling for authority over brain-based educational claims shaped the field. Second, we focus on the pervasive use of the concept of "neuroplasticity" in the literature. We argue that it is used as a rhetorical device to create hope and empower children, teachers, and parents through educational exercises that promote neurobiological reflexivity. Third, we turn to the notion of "self-regulation" in the neuroeducational programs. We argue that the rationale of these programs emphasizes the young person's responsibility in navigating their social worlds through the imperative to enhance their executive functions while failing to adequately account for the role of the social environment in the development of self-regulation.

Postponed Withholding: Balanced Decision-Making at the Margins of Viability

Advances in neonatology have led to improved survival for periviable infants. Immaturity still carries a high risk of short- and long-term harms, and uncertainty turns provision of life support into an ethical dilemma. Shared decision-making with parents has gained ground. However, the need to start immediate life support and the ensuing difficulty of withdrawing treatment stands in tension with the possibility of a fair decision-making process. Both the parental “instinct of saving” and “withdrawal resistance” involved can preclude shared decision-making. To help health care personnel and empower parents, we propose a novel approach labeled “postponed withholding.” In the absence of a prenatal advance directive, life support is started at birth, followed by planned redirection to palliative care after one week, unless parents, after a thorough counseling process, actively ask for continued life support. Despite the emotional challenges, this approach can facilitate ethically balanced decision-making processes in the gray zone.

A SWOT analysis of parent-mediated intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder: Oman as a Regional Model

The prevalence of autism in the Arabian Gulf region is on the rise leading to overstretching of the pre-existing intervention services. The World Health Organization Caregiver Skills Training Program is a novel renovation being studied around the globe to overcome the scarcity of resources, improve autistic children’s outcome and empower parents with comparable results to therapist-based models. Recently, Oman achieved great success in advocating for autism and initiated the first screening program for autism in the region. This review aims to use a Strength, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis matrix to investigate the potential for using a parent-mediated intervention program as a supplementary approach to the currently used therapist-based intervention model in the country as an example for Gulf region.

The effects of parental involvement in parent–child reading for migrant and urban families: A comparative mixed-methods study

Reading is one of the most important educational activities for children, and a child’s relationship with reading is largely shaped by parental involvement and family environment. Families of lower socioeconomic status often have poor reading environments and less awareness of the importance of reading. This study explores the effects of Rainbow Flowers, a community service organization that promotes parent–child reading in Shenzhen, the city with the largest proportion of migrants in China. Using mixed-methods analyses of a city-wide online survey of 16,328 parent participants (13,523 migrants and 2805 locals) and six volunteer case studies, we compare migrant and local family reading outcomes, examine whether (through quantitative analysis) and how (through qualitative analysis) in-depth parental involvement in parent–child reading is associated with family reading outcomes, and identify which families benefit more from such involvement.Our analyses show that migrant families overall have significantly poorer reading outcomes than locals. However, parents who volunteer in Rainbow Flowers reading programs experience substantially better family reading outcomes. The benefits of parents engaging as both service users and volunteers are especially strong for migrant and low-income families, and include improved reading environment, parental awareness of the value of reading, and child socioemotional development. The findings suggest that parental involvement plays an important role in enhancing family reading outcomes and may improve non-reading-related family well-being, particularly for low-resource families. Public institutions and social service organizations should collaboratively provide accessible reading resources and empower parents to effectively engage their children in joint reading activities.

Can counter-advertising diminish persuasive effects of conventional and pseudo-healthy unhealthy food product advertising on parents?: an experimental study

BackgroundTo help address rising rates of obesity in children, evidence is needed concerning impacts of common forms of marketing for unhealthy child-oriented food products and the efficacy of educational interventions in counteracting any detrimental impacts of such marketing. This study aims to explore parents’ responses to advertising for unhealthy children’s food products that employ different types of persuasive appeals and test whether a counter-advertising intervention exposing industry motives and marketing strategies can bolster parents’ resistance to influence by unhealthy product advertising.MethodsN = 1613 Australian parents were randomly assigned to view online either a: (A) non-food ad (control); (B) conventional confectionery ad (highlighting sensory benefits of the product); (C) pseudo-healthy confectionery ad (promoting sensory benefits and health attributes of the product); (D) conventional confectionery ad + counter-ad (employing inoculation-style messaging and narrative communication elements); (E) pseudo-healthy confectionery ad + counter-ad. Parents then viewed various snacks, including those promoted in the food ads and counter-ad. Parents nominated their preferred product, then rated the products.ResultsExposure to the conventional confectionery ad increased parents’ preference for the advertised product, enhanced perceptions of the product’s healthiness and reduced sugar content and boosted brand attitude. Exposure to the pseudo-healthy confectionery ad increased parents’ preference for the advertised product, and enhanced perceptions of healthiness, fibre content and lower sugar content. The counter-ad diminished, but did not eliminate, product ad effects on parents’ purchasing preference, product perceptions and brand attitudes. The counter-ad also prompted parents to perceive processed foods as less healthy, higher in sugar and lower in fibre and may have increased support for advertising regulation.ConclusionsExposure to unhealthy product advertising promoted favourable perceptions of products and increased preferences for advertised products among parents. Counter-advertising interventions may bolster parents’ resistance to persuasion by unhealthy product advertising and empower parents to more accurately evaluate advertised food products.

Parent-Mediated Music Interventions with Children with ASD: a Systematic Review

Parent-mediated interventions complement professional services and empower parents. In music therapy, this treatment modality is emerging. A systematic review was conducted to assess the existence of parent-mediated music interventions with children with ASD, identify the characteristics of parent coaching used, and summarize results. Thirteen studies were selected. Framework analyses were performed on descriptions of “parent-mediated,” “parent coaching,” outcomes, measures, and findings. Quality of the research and of the training programs varied substantially. Salient findings include emerging interest in involving parents in treatment, limited conceptual frameworks for parent coaching, and limited development of this modality. High attrition, parental effort, and mixed populations limit the internal and social validity of studies. Music therapists may consider investigating parent-mediated interventions, while considering parental effort.

Community Intervention Self-Efficacy Scale for Parent Leaders (CONNECTED): Parents' Empowerment to Prevent Adolescent Alcohol Use.

Empowering parents by actively engaging them in environmental prevention strategies is a promising approach that only a few programs use. Evidence suggests that when families and the wider community are engaged, alcohol prevention is more efficient. However, due to the novelty of this approach, no specific assessment tools for measuring this type of engagement are available. The objective of this study is to design a parental empowerment measurement tool to evaluate parents’ self-efficacy when engaging in environmental and community actions and to analyze its psychometric properties. A total of 132 parents active in in-school parent associations from Spain (n = 77; 58.4%) and Portugal (n = 55; 41.7%) completed a pencil and paper battery of four questionnaires, including the developed scale COmmuNity iNtervention SElf-Efficacy SCale for ParenT LEaDers (CONNECTED). The scale showed a good reliability and good test-retest stability in a three-month period. The convergent validity with other well-established instruments that assess similar constructs was significant. A preliminary confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) showed an acceptable fit. Environmental prevention supported by families is a promising preventive strategy because the participation and involvement of families is an effective way to address some risks in adolescence; however, new assessment tools are needed in this field. The developed scale could be a first step to identify the areas of need in a community and to monitor the progress and evaluate the outcomes of the preventive interventions implemented.

Prematurity‐related knowledge among mothers and fathers of very preterm infants

Empowering parents as health promoters may contribute to decrease the costs associated with prematurity. In Portugal, 8% and 1% of the births occurring in 2018 were preterm and very preterm, respectively. This study aimed to assess prematurity-related knowledge with regard to its prevalence, causes and consequences, according to sociodemographic, obstetric and offspring's characteristics, among mothers and fathers of very preterm infants. Between May and July 2017, mothers and fathers of very preterm infants were invited to participate through the Portuguese association of parents for support to the premature baby, with 196 parents being included. Knowledge on prematurity (prevalence, causes and consequences) was collected through a structured online questionnaire. Reporting of this research follows STROBE guidelines for cross-sectional studies. Parents estimated a median prevalence of preterm and of very preterm delivery in Portugal of 15% and 8%, respectively. However, approximately 20% did not provide an estimate. More than 90% of the participants acknowledged placental complications, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, multiple pregnancy and intrauterine growth restriction as causes of preterm delivery, whereas only 24.2% identified low socioeconomic status. Cardiac complications and respiratory morbidity were recognised as the main consequences of prematurity by more than 80% of the parents. Overall, parents with a higher socioeconomic status tended to provide correct responses more frequently than those with a low socioeconomic status. The results revealed the existence of knowledge gaps regarding the prevalence, causes and consequences of premature delivery. Understanding the main facilitators and barriers to the achievement of prematurity-related knowledge may contribute for the global improvement of preventing this condition. It is crucial to include the improvement of parents' knowledge about prematurity as a complementary dimension during the provision of medical care, with nurses playing a key role as main sources of information.

The Competences of Pedagogues Ensuring Successful Partnership with Parents of the Contemporary Generation: the Attitude of Students – the Future Pre-school Teachers

The change of society, in particular concerning the generation of contemporary parents, imposes new requirements on pre-school education teachers and their competences. In case of teachers, it is not only pedagogical literacy, consisting of general, psychological knowledge, as well as knowledge about the child that are necessary. The skills of activity planning and organisation, organisation of education process, active involvement in the change of pre-school education system are also required. Moreover, the competences of communication and collaboration with parents, the ability to adapt and find necessary access to parents of the contemporary generation, the ability to involve them into the activities of an educational institution, empower parents to become competent partners of teachers are of appropriate significance. All these skills, although within different scopes, are taught and developed by future pre-school education teachers during their university education and internships. The aim of the study is to reveal, according to the opinion of students – future teachers - which pre-school education teacher competences are the most meaningful in order to ensure a successful partnership with parents of the contemporary generation. The applied research methods are as follows: the analysis of content of scientific information resources (to reveal the theoretical context), questions in writing (to collect empirical data) and content analysis (analysis of empirical data). The scope of qualitative research is 18 informants who agreed to participate in the research. They are students – future pre-school education teachers. The study results showed that the informants mostly emphasise the competence of pedagogical literacy that includes knowledge about the child, personal features of teachers helping to promote partnership relations with parents and students of the contemporary generation, professional expertise and values. The following features were accentuated: patience, self-confidence, benevolence in communication with parents of the contemporary generation with different attitudes and expectations. Future teachers did not focus on the competences of education process organisation, i.e. the ability to organise education process based on human resources – the parents. Thus, parents are not sufficiently involved in the education process. They pay little attention to the competence of activity prediction and planning.

A 3-year longitudinal study of effects of parental perception of children's ideal body image on child weight change: The Childhood Obesity Study in China mega-cities

This study examined prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity (ov/ob) and central obesity in five mega-cities across China (Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Nanjing and Chengdu); described parental perceptions of children's ideal body image (IBI); and prospectively examined associations between parental perception of child IBI and child weight changes over 3 years. In this NIH-funded, open cohort study, data were collected from students and their parents in 2015, 2016 and 2017 (n = 3298, in 3 waves). Cross-sectional analysis included all 3298 children; longitudinal data analysis used mixed effects models and included 1691 children aged 6–17 years with ≥two body mass index (BMI) measurements during 2015–2017. Ov/ob prevalence based on Chinese age-sex-specific BMI cut-points was 30.0%. Based on waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), the abdominal obesity rate was 19.8%. Parents reported different preferred IBI for boys vs girls, being about 3 times more likely to select ov/ob as ideal for boys than for girls (4.5% vs 1.5%, respectively, P < .001). In longitudinal analysis, children whose parents selected ov/ob as ideal had higher BMI Z-scores and WHtR increase over time than those whose parents selected an average body image (β [SE] = 0.042 [0.011], and β [SE] = 0.010 [0.004], respectively, all P < .05). Ov/ob rates were high among children in major cities in China. Chinese parents preferred a heavier ideal body image for their boys. Health promotion programs should help empower parents and their children to develop appropriate body images and maintain healthy body weight.

Empower Parents and Enable Breastfeeding

Empower Parents and Enable Breastfeeding

Empower parents, enable breastfeeding: a behavioral change communication exercise conducted at a community health centre of Haryana

In India, only 41.6% of the children are breastfed within 1 hour and 54.9% of the children are exclusively breastfed till 6 months. In order to promote breastfeeding, the first week of August is being observed as World Breastfeeding week. We organized a brainstorming session followed by an Interactive, audio-visual health education event on breastfeeding for the pregnant women and their household members at a Community Health Centre (CHC) in Haryana, during that week. A behavior change communication (BCC) session was held on 1st August 2019 at the Antenatal clinic of the CHC. Target population was the pregnant, lactating mothers and their household members. Needs assessment was done to assess their current knowledge, attitude and needs about the breastfeeding and breast milk, by interacting with them and posing questions. Based on the above needs assessment exercise, we delivered a health education session. The household members were enlightened about their role in breastfeeding. The behavior change communication exercise, tailored to local population and conducted by us would have improved the knowledge, attitude of the pregnant women and their family members towards breastfeeding, and in turn will improve the practice in near future. The exercise is replicable in other settings, by tailoring it according to the local needs.

Empower parents and enable breastfeeding: Role of employers

Empower parents and enable breastfeeding: Role of employers

Problematic interactive media use in teens: comorbidities, assessment, and treatment.

Problematic Interactive Media Use (PIMU), aka internet or video game addiction, is increasingly presenting to pediatricians for care. The majority of youth now use mobile media almost constantly to communicate, learn, and entertain themselves, but for some, uncontrolled video gaming, social media use, pornography viewing, and information-bingeing on short videos or websites contribute to functional impairment. PIMU can result in academic failure, social withdrawal, behavioral problems, family conflict, and physical and mental health problems. There is no formal diagnosis to describe the spectrum of PIMU behaviors and therefore no standardized therapeutic interventions. Anticipatory guidance will help identify youth at risk and empower parents to recognize and prevent problems. In addition, epidemiology and etiology indicate that Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), affective disorders, and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) may predispose to and, in some cases, result from PIMU, offering opportunities for effective treatment by addressing underlying pathology that is manifesting itself in the interactive media environment. Efforts to establish evidence-based diagnoses, develop and evaluate therapeutic strategies, and to train clinicians in recognition and care of PIMU are reviewed.

How Behavioral Science Can Empower Parents to Improve Children's Educational Outcomes

Parents powerfully influence their children's educational outcomes. Yet psychological and informational barriers impede parents’ ability to engage with their children in ways that improve outcomes: parents tend to have inflated perceptions of their children's performance, which can deter them from taking helpful steps to effectively support their learning, and parenting is complex. Limited cognitive bandwidth for coping with complexities can steer parents’ attention away from actions that have long-term benefits for their children and toward actions yielding immediate returns. Poor school-to-parent communication and poverty exacerbate all of these problems. In this article, the author demonstrates how providing timely, actionable information to parents can lower these barriers and help parents engage with their children more productively from kindergarten through high school. Moreover, providing this information can improve educational outcomes at low cost.

Parental digital health information seeking behavior in Switzerland: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundDigital media are increasingly abundant and used to seek health information, however, to date very little is known on parents’ seeking behavior in the context of child’s health and development outside English-speaking and Scandinavian countries. By investigating the prevalence of, and reasons for use, we studied parents’ perception of the Internet as a resource for improving their health-related knowledge.MethodsThe survey was conducted in a random sample of 2573 Swiss-German parents with at least one child aged less-than 2 years old. Parents received a mailed invitation to fill in an online questionnaire. Two reminders were sent, the later with a paper questionnaire attached. The questionnaire included questions on use of print, digital, and personal information sources, as well as different information situations: general health and development or illness. We ran descriptive analyses on information seeking behavior, type of digital media used, reasons of use. We also conducted regression analyses to explore factors associated with parental perceptions with regard to the Internet’s utility as a source for health information.ResultsA total of 769 questionnaires were returned (response rate 30%). Nearly all parents (91%) used digital media for seeking information on their child’s health and development, and the main reason for use was indicated as being the 24/7 availability of information. Search engines (55%) and webpages for parents (47%) were by far the most frequently used digital media. Generally, the internet is perceived as a good resource, especially by fathers (OR = 1.80, 95% CI: 1.03–3.16). However, a large percentage of parents are skeptical about the correctness of online info (91%), are unsure about their interpretive understanding, and ask for guidance from their pediatrician (67%).ConclusionsThe Internet has become a highly frequented source of information for Swiss-German parents on children’s health with largely valuable perceptions of its utility. Digital media are used in addition to and not in replacement of print media and personal contacts. Increasing parental guidance by health and public health professionals could improve parental digital health utilization and empower parents in the new role they adopt.

Gabay Magulang: A Parent-Empowerment Program

Background and context: Gabay Magulang or Parent Guide is a collaboration between Kythe Foundation Inc. and selected medical students to provide support for and empower parents of children newly diagnosed with cancer. With the guide, parents would be better able to understand and care for their children. Aim: The program has two aims. First, it seeks to inform parents by providing relevant information on childhood cancer and its treatment. Second, the program hopes to develop and empower core Parent Leaders who will take the lead in educating and supporting other parents. Strategy/Tactics: Focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with parents of children with cancer to better understand their needs and how best they can be supported. With the information gathered, a draft of the guide was written by the medical students and forwarded first to Kythe staff and then to pediatric hematologists/oncologists for editing. Four pediatric hematologists/oncologists edited the booklet before publishing. From the initial FGDs, a select group of core parents were invited to be Parent Leaders. Four training sessions on the use of the guide were conducted by Kythe. After the training, the Parent Leaders led learning sessions with parents of newly diagnosed children. Program/Policy process: Two programs are run every year with four months for each program. Monthly learning sessions are conducted in the four months by the Parent Leaders using Gabay Magulang (Parent Guide). In these four sessions, Kythe staff are present to provide support and a pediatric oncology fellow or consultant is on hand to either discuss a specific topic or provide answers to questions that arise. Outcomes: There are now four Parent Leaders who actively help in educating and empowering parents of newly diagnosed patients. More of the latter set of parents have expressed an increase in awareness and information of pediatric cancer. Likewise, they have become more involved in their children´s journey and treatment process. A new batch of Parent Leaders are now being chosen. What was learned: Empowering parents to be active partners and advocates in the holistic healing of their children undergoing treatment of cancer is essential. The Gabay Magulang program has published a parent guide, trained Parent Leaders to lead learning sessions and has provided parents with opportunities for better understanding of their children's illness and treatment and answered questions through sessions with a pediatric oncology fellow or consultant.

An online resource to support speech, language and communication development in children

Speech, language and communication (SLC) skills are a critical factor in a child's development and in predicting children's wellbeing outcomes and later life chances. There are links between social disadvantage and SLC needs. This article provides an overview of SLC and describes the development of an online resource entitled Speech, language and communication: Giving children the best possible start in life. The tool aims to support health visitors and other early years workers to assess SLC development, and empower parents to facilitate it in their children.

Scoping the evidence for EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus, two United Kingdom-developed parent education training programmes for autism spectrum disorder.

EarlyBird and EarlyBird Plus are parent education and training programmes designed by the UK National Autistic Society in 1997 and 2003, having been delivered to more than 27,000 families in 14 countries. These group-based programmes aim to (1) support parents immediately after diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, (2) empower parents, encouraging a positive perception of their child's autism spectrum disorder and (3) help parents establish good practice. In the absence of any previous comprehensive review, we performed a scoping review of all peer-reviewed publications on EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus. A search was conducted between February and June 2016 using EbscoHost, Sabinet, SAGE Journals, Directory of Open Access Journals, BioMed Central, Scopus, ScienceDirect and grey literature. Two reviewers independently screened titles and abstracts for inclusion. In total, 18 articles were identified: 16 from the United Kingdom and 2 from New Zealand. We reviewed the context, study populations, design, outcome measures, whether focus was on parental perception, parental change or child changes and programme feasibility. Strong parental support for the acceptability but lower level evidence of efficacy of EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus was found. Future research should consider randomised controlled trials. There is no research on EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus in low-resource settings; therefore, we recommend broader feasibility evaluation of EarlyBird/EarlyBird Plus including accessibility, cultural appropriateness and scalability.

Skin-to-skin hospital transfers are physiologically sound and empower parents.

Skin-to-skin hospital transfers are physiologically sound and empower parents.