Parental Support Research Articles

Supporting parents' emotional and mental health in the antenatal consultation.

Supporting parents' emotional and mental health is crucial during antenatal consultations, in which expectant parents often receive serious news about their infant and sometimes face complex antenatal or postnatal decision-making. Being considerate of the circumstances to mitigate barriers and stressors, utilizing clear and sensitive language, and personalizing counseling and decision-making to support parents' pluralistic values are strategies that individual neonatologists can use to promote parents' mental wellness in these encounters. Partnership with clinicians of other disciplines and professions in antenatal consultations can help in providing additional medical information and parent support; however, care must be coordinated within the team to ensure that confusing or conflicting counseling is avoided. In addition to improving communication skills for these encounters as individuals and teams, opportunities also exist to enhance support of parents' mental health at the institutional and national level.

Telehealth based parental support over 6 months improves physical activity and sleep quality in children with autism: a randomized controlled trial.

Sleep disturbances are prevalent in autistic children. The emergence of telehealth offers new possibilities for remote professional intervention. By combining telehealth with parental support, this study aims to explore a novel family-based model to enhance moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and improve sleep quality in children with autism. Thirty-four autistic children (mean age = 15.7 years) were randomly assigned to either a 6-month intervention group or a control group. Both groups received standard physical education classes at school. The intervention group received additional after-school telehealth support. MVPA and sleep quality were assessed 1 week before the intervention and at the 6-month follow-up. After 6 months, children in the intervention group nearly doubled their daily MVPA compared to the control group (Cohen's d = 8.34, CI95% = 6.17-10.52). Actigraphy-assessed sleep efficiency was notably higher (d = 2.35, CI95% = 1.44-3.26), and there were reductions in wake time (d = 1.65, CI95% = 0.84-2.46), sleep fragmentation (d = 0.80, CI95% = 0.07-1.52), and sleep latency (d = 0.82, CI95% = 0.09-1.54) were all reduced. These improvements in objective sleep metrics were corroborated by subjective assessments using the Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children (d = 0.86, CI95% = 0.13-1.59). Telehealth combined with parental support addresses barriers to enhancing health behaviors at home. This innovative model not only improves after-school MVPA and sleep quality in autistic children but also holds significant potential for benefiting other populations requiring remote support. https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06444659?id=NCT06444659&rank=1 (NCT06444659).

Experiences and Challenges of Teachers in Handling Learners with Intellectual Disability During Covid-19 Pandemic

This study delved into the list of significant challenges that teachers were experiencing in handling ID learners. It employed a qualitative method in gathering data on teachers-participants’ experiences and challenges. A total of 20 teachers were selected using a convenient purposive sampling as the participants. The findings of this study revealed that teacher participants have observed and experienced multifaceted scenarios and difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data showed the existence of the challenges based on DepEd support, the lack of governmental provision of devices to aid learning, the limited learning experience, and instructional time that affect the learner’s personality, social orientations, and performance due to the absence of direct instruction. Likewise, the study concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected and brought challenges to teachers and learners and has created the failure of support from the DepEd and the government. It conveyed the importance of parental support without the teacher’s direct instruction. Hence, it is recommended that schools enhance teacher training, prioritize face-to-face instruction, strengthen parental support, increase resource allocation, promote inclusive practices, and conduct further research on effective strategies.

Stories of absence: Experiences of parental and familial rejection among gender-diverse children and young people.

Previous research has demonstrated the positive associations with parental support with better mental health outcomes in gender-diverse young people. However, less is known about what happens within a family structure if an unsupportive parent or family member leaves the family unit and sees the child only on the condition that they present in a way that conforms to their birth gender. This paper will focus on the first interviews with nine families within the wider sample of 39 families in the LOGIC-Q (Longitudinal Outcomes of Gender Identity in Children - qualitative) study who reported they had experienced rejection by a parent or family member after the young person had disclosed their gender non-conformity. These families' narratives are examined through two themes: How rejection impacts visitation, and Moving past the loss of rejection. The families all spoke about how they had adapted to the loss of their family members. They described how any negative impact would have been worse had they stayed living together, or were in contact with, the rejecting family member. Here, it becomes important then to understand the context of why a gender-diverse young person may choose to no longer see a parent or family member.

Exposure to secondhand smoke among school-going adolescents in Malaysia: Results from the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2022: Adolescent Health Survey (AHS).

The adverse effects of secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure on health have been well established. Using the NHMS 2002: Adolescent Health Survey (AHS), this study attempts to evaluate the extent and factors associated with SHS exposure among Malaysian school-going adolescents. We conducted the NHMS 2022: AHS to gather a representative sample of school-age teenagers. We employed a cross-sectional study design and a multi-stage sampling procedure. We utilized a pre-validated self-administered questionnaire to collect data from the selected respondents. The data analysis included adjusted odds ratios (AORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). Additionally, we investigated the possible two-way interactions between the independent variables. The SHS prevalence was 42.0%. Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) was associated with male gender (AOR=1.28; 95 CI: 1.20-1.38), older age (AOR=1.46; 95% CI: 1.33-1.60), Malay (AOR=1.88; 95% CI: 1.49-2.37), Bumiputra Sabah (AOR=2.23; 95% CI: 1.67-2.99), Bumiputra Sarawak (AOR=2.43; 95% CI: 1.80-3.28), and Chinese ethnicity (AOR=2.89; 95 CI: % 2.30-3.64), as well as current smoking (AOR=2.78; 95% CI: 2.50-3.09), having separated or divorced parents (AOR=1.12; 95% CI: 1.02-1.23), and parental tobacco product use (AOR=4.75; 95% CI: 4.44-5.08). We found significant interactions between: 1) Age group with gender and ethnicity; 2) Gender and ethnicity; and 3) Parental smoking status with gender, response to tobacco use, parents' marital status, and ethnicity. Parental characteristics, sociodemographic characteristics, and SHS exposure are strongly correlated. In addition, there is evidence of smoking displacement to the house from other areas by parents/guardians. This study offers a fresh perspective on how these variables influence the likelihood of SHS exposure for Malaysian school-age teenagers. More efforts should focus on parental variables and sociodemographic traits, especially parental smoking cessation support.

Parental Involvement and Mental Well-Being of Chinese International Students

This research examines the impact of parental involvement during elementary school on the mental well-being of Chinese international college students. It aims to uncover how early parental support influences mental health as these students navigate the challenges of higher education abroad. The study highlights that while parental involvement can enhance academic performance, self-esteem, and social skills, its long-term effects on international students remain underexplored. By using a mixed-methods approach with data from 200 Chinese students at Johns Hopkins University and qualitative interviews, the study seeks to identify which forms of involvementsuch as direct academic support, emotional support, and extracurricular engagementare most beneficial or detrimental to mental well-being. The findings are expected to provide insights for educators, parents, and policymakers to develop culturally sensitive support systems that enhance both academic success and mental health for international students.

The Moderating Role of Oxytocin in the Association Between Parental Support and Change in Secure Attachment Development

The Moderating Role of Oxytocin in the Association Between Parental Support and Change in Secure Attachment Development

Is AI-assisted assessment liable to evaluate young learners? Parents support, teacher support, immunity, and resilience are in focus in testing vocabulary learning

This study investigates the impact of artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted assessment on young L2 learners’ vocabulary knowledge, immunity, and resilience, considering parental and teacher support roles. Sixty junior high school students in Afghanistan, aged 13 to 14, participated in the study. They were divided into an experimental group receiving AI-assisted assessment and a control group with traditional instruction. The research employed a pretest–posttest control group design, using teacher-made vocabulary tests validated for reliability and instruments measuring immunity and resilience. The findings revealed that AI-assisted assessment significantly improved vocabulary knowledge and emotional resilience compared to the control group. While parental support showed a positive trend toward vocabulary enhancement, teacher support did not significantly impact the outcomes. The study highlights the potential of AI in language education, emphasizing the need for collaborative efforts among educators, parents, materials developers, syllabus designers, and policymakers to maximize the benefits of AI tools. These findings underscore the importance of integrating advanced technologies into educational frameworks to support cognitive and emotional development in learners.

The Relationship Between Acculturative Stress, Integration Strategy, Parenting Self-Efficacy, and Multicultural Youth's Perceived Parental Support in South Korea

Over the past decades, ethnically and racially diverse populations have constantly increased in South Korea. In their acculturation, a number of multicultural families encounter acculturative stress, which can negatively influence their individual as well as relational well-being. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the association between acculturative stress of multicultural parents ( n = 2,249) and parental support perceived by multicultural youth ( n = 2,271) in South Korea. Additionally, the authors examined the potential mediating effect of parental self-efficacy moderated by parental acculturation on the association between parental acculturative stress and perceived parental support. Moderated mediation analysis was conducted to test the association between multicultural mothers’ acculturative stress and their youth's perceived level of parental support with the mediating effect of multicultural mothers’ parenting self-efficacy level moderated by integration strategy. The moderation analysis identified a significant buffering effect of achieving an integrated level of acculturation on multicultural parents’ acculturative stress and parenting self-efficacy. In addition, parenting self-efficacy significantly mediated the link between multicultural parents’ acculturative stress and multicultural youth's perceived level of parental support. Implications and future directions for mental health professionals, educators, and researchers were discussed.

The experiences of children with Williams syndrome and their nondisabled siblings of their relationship

AbstractObjectiveThis study explored sibling relationships from the perspective of children with Williams syndrome (WS) and their nondisabled (ND) siblings.BackgroundWS, a genetic condition with a profile that can include intellectual disabilities, hypersociability and anxiety, might be predicted to impact sibling relationships, but this has not been qualitatively explored from the children's perspective.MethodsThirty‐nine children (6–17 years; 20 male, 19 female) participated: 20 sibling dyads in which one child had WS and the other was ND (one child with WS did not participate). Children were interviewed about experiences of their relationship. Data were analyzed with reflexive thematic analysis.ResultsSiblings described multifaceted relationships, in which love and positivity were overtly evident and embedded in the reciprocity of sibling expertise and support. Children skillfully navigated the spaces and boundaries of their relationship across home, school, and friendship contexts, with parent support. ND siblings' knowledge of WS supported interactions, relationships, and advocacy, but some children with WS felt their sibling lacked knowledge of the challenges of WS.ConclusionsThe WS profile was woven through multidimensional relationships.ImplicationsFindings have implications for how parents are supported to help siblings navigate relationships and learn about WS, and how schools support WS sibling relationships.

Adult mental healthcare professionals' experiences of family centred conversations with patients who are parents: a qualitative study.

Many parents with a mental illness report a desire for both recognition of their parental role and support for themselves and their children. However, parents are often fearful of negative judgements from professionals about their ability to be a parent, which inhibits raising concerns about their children with clinical teams. Consequently, an essential first step to supporting families is for professionals to proactively identify which patients are parents, although evidence indicates this is not consistently part of services. Professionals could play a pivotal role in guiding parents about how to talk to their children about their mental illness; this in turn can facilitate family functioning and enable children to access evidence-based interventions. This approach is crucial for mitigating the well-documented intergenerational risk of poorer outcomes and mental illness in children of affected parents. This study aimed to explore adult mental healthcare professionals' beliefs and experiences of talking with patients about: i) their role as parents ii) communication with their children about mental illness. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 19 adult mental healthcare professionals with 4-30 years' experience of working with adult patients under the care of NHS adult mental healthcare services in England. Audio recordings were transcribed verbatim and analysed using an inductive coding approach following the principles of thematic analysis. All participants recognised their responsibility to identify patients' children through routine safeguarding protocols, but supporting patients around telling their children the diagnosis was less common. Many participants expressed concerns that raising the topic of children with patients could conflict with other parts of their professional role or would not be welcomed. Obstacles to these conversations were identified, across individual, environmental and organisational factors. Potential facilitators included specific staff training and resources for clinical teams and families around how to tell children about mental illness. Adult mental healthcare professionals would benefit from enhanced training on the importance and methods of guiding parents to communicate with their children about mental illness. This should include routine identification of which patients are parents and recognition of the impact of an adult's mental illness on the wider family system.

A Seat at the Table: Family Conferences for Infants with Neurological Conditions.

Objective: We aimed to characterize parents' perspectives on the value of and opportunities to improve conferences between parents of critically ill infants and the health care team. Background: The parent perspective on the value of family conferences in the intensive care unit is not well characterized. Methods: In this descriptive qualitative study, parents of infants with neurological conditions in the intensive care unit at a U.S. academic medical center completed longitudinal semi-structured interviews about their experiences making decisions and communicating with clinicians. Parents were included if they had an upcoming family conference to discuss goals of care or neurological prognosis. This secondary data analysis targets interview content about family conferences. Parent responses were characterized using a conventional content analysis approach. Results: Fifty-two parents of 37 infants completed 123 interviews. Parents described valuing when clinicians (1) provided space to process emotions, (2) prioritized "big picture" discussions about serious decisions, (3) dedicated time to parent questions, and (4) responded to parent concerns and made an effort to foster consensus. Parent-identified opportunities for improvement included: (1) having the team assume responsibility for calling regular meetings, (2) prioritizing attendance of consistent and supportive team members, and (3) summarizing meeting content for parents and documenting discussions for clinicians. Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that parents of infants with neurological conditions value family conferences as an important venue for communicating with the health care team. Future studies should explore the feasibility and impact of regularly scheduled family conferences, attendees dedicated to parent support, and accessible meeting summaries on therapeutic alliance, parent well-being, and communication quality.

Past Bullying Experiences and Depression in College Students: A Moderated-Moderation Model of Parental Monitoring and Family Support

This study examined the association between past bullying victimization and college students’ depressive symptoms, which included mediation (self-esteem) and moderated-moderation (parental monitoring and family support) analysis. This study sample ( n = 362) was collected from South Central and Midwest colleges in the United States. Previous K–12 bullying victimization had a positive association with later life depression among college students which was partially explained by lowered self-esteem. Only a moderate or low level of parental monitoring in the context of high family support buffered the negative impact of past bullying victimization on college students’ depression. However, with low family support, parental monitoring rather increased depression. The transitional period to college life may require restructuring family relationships, and parents excessively monitoring their emerging adult child may not be ideal for mental health among college students who experienced bullying victimization.

Parenting Practices and Adolescent Citizen Participation: relationship mediated by parental support for autonomy and life skills

El artículo aborda la relación entre las prácticas de crianza y la participación ciudadana en adolescentes, mediada por el apoyo a la autonomía y las habilidades para la vida, en familias colombianas. Se planteó un estudio mixto, mediante un el modelamiento de ecuaciones estructurales y entrevistas en profundidad. Participaron 298 padres de familia y sus hijos adolescentes, quienes habitaban en tres municipios del departamento de Cundinamarca. Los resultados muestran que existe una relación significativa entre el fomento de las habilidades para la vida (comunicación asertiva, pensamiento crítico y empatía) y las prácticas de crianza (comunicación), con una mayor participación política de los adolescentes, especialmente en acciones de impacto comunitarias. Lo anterior permite señalar la relevancia de las variables familiares en el estudio de los comportamientos cívicos.

The Practice of Teaching English to Children with Hearing Impairment in A School for Students with Special Needs in Central Lombok: Challenges and Opportunities

This study explores the practice of teaching English to children with hearing impairment in specialized schools in Central Lombok. Through observations, interviews, and document analysis at SLBN 1 Loteng and SLBN 2 Loteng, key findings regarding the challenges and opportunities for teachers were identified. The study highlights the need for specialized training, resource availability, and parental support to enhance the educational experience for students with hearing impairments.

Peran Status Sosial Ekonomi dan Dukungan Orang Tua terhadap Performa Akademik Peserta Didik di SMA Negeri 3 Tondano

This study aims to investigate the role of socioeconomic status and parental support on the academic performance of students at SMA Negeri 3 Tondano. In the context of education, both factors are considered crucial in determining student success. A favorable socioeconomic status often provides greater access to learning resources and educational facilities, while parental support plays an important role in building students' motivation and self-confidence. Through surveys and interviews, this research collected data from students, parents, and teachers. The results indicate that students with higher socioeconomic status tend to have better academic performance; however, emotional and academic support from parents also significantly influences learning outcomes. Therefore, this study recommends the need for policies that enhance parental support and efforts to reduce socioeconomic disparities in order to create a better learning environment for all students.

Szülői szerepvállalás pedagógusi percepciók tükrében

Parental support in children’s homework – as one of the most fundamental forms of parental involvement – could be influenced by many factors. This study reports the results of an interview-based research conducted in the village of Praid (Harghita county, Romania), analyzing teachers’ perception on parental support practices prevalent in this region.

Investigating the Relationship Between Social Networks and the Academic Performance of University Students (Case Study: Faryab University Students)

In recent decades, with the increasing expansion of communication technology, the use of social networks has become one of the most important online activities. However, technology has not only had positive effects on human relationships and personal communication, but its negative effects on academic performance are also well-known. This research focuses on evaluating the negative effects of social networks on academic performance, with a focus on students of Faryab University. This research is applied in terms of classification based on the objective, and can be considered a descriptive-correlational research in terms of methodological classification. The total sample size includes all day students, which is 3000, and a sample of 268 individuals has been selected based on Morgan's table. The questionnaire is used as a data collection tool, and the SPSS software is used for descriptive and inferential statistics (relationship and correlation) for data analysis. The findings of the research indicate a pervasive negative relationship between the use of social networks and academic performance among Faryab University students. While positive interactions such as parental support and strategic personal and peer interactions can increase academic results, potential drawbacks such as distraction, stress, and addiction require a comprehensive approach to deal with the challenges arising from social media.

Barriers and Facilitators in Accessing Education in Mainstream Schools for Children with Disabilities in Bangladesh: A Qualitative Secondary Data Analysis

ABSTRACT Promoting access to mainstream schools for children with disabilities has been highlighted in national and international legislative and policy initiatives. However, children with disabilities’ access to mainstream school remains an important challenge, particularly in low and middle-income countries, such as Bangladesh. We explored barriers and facilitators in accessing education for children with disabilities through a secondary analysis of qualitative data. Results indicate that children with disabilities experience challenges in their endeavour to access education, including stigma, discrimination, inaccessible built environment, and teachers’ negative attitudes towards children with disabilities. However, support from different sources, specifically parents’ strong motivation towards their child’s education and peer support, are great facilitators for children with disabilities in accessing education. We conclude with recommendations for support for parents to advocate for the rights of their children with disabilities in mainstream schools. We also recommend that government should invest resources to make mainstream schools disability friendly. In particular, accessible classrooms and washrooms are essential to enable in-class participation of children with disabilities. Further, investment is needed for teachers’ training on teaching disabled children in mainstream schools. A collaborative approach between policymakers, teachers, professionals, and parents is imperative to achieve inclusive education.

Selection and the economic value of education: A barrier to reducing the SES achievement gap?

AbstractDue to the role that schools play in determining the status of the future occupations of their children (i.e., the selection function of education), high socioeconomic status (SES) parents may not always be supportive of interventions that would reduce the SES achievement gap. In four experiments, we measured the support of parents (Ntotal = 1966) for implementing an equalizing (and, in Experiments 2 and 3, an inequality‐maintaining) intervention. In Experiments 1 and 2, a negative association between subjective SES and support for the equalizing intervention was found when the selection function was made salient, an effect that was also observed in Experiment 4 but only for Right‐leaning participants. In Experiment 3, where the salience of selection was held constant, we found a negative association between subjective SES and support for the equalizing intervention, but not the inequality‐maintaining intervention.