Evaluation of a parent education program emphasizing responsive parenting, executive function, and mindfulness

Abstract

Parental well-being and mental health are two aspects of parent education that are beginning to receive increased attention in recently developed parenting interventions. This study presents findings from a national evaluation of the Active Parenting First Five Years program, a parent education program designed to promote responsive parenting and healthy development in young children, with a unique emphasis on the mental states and well-being of parents. Using an innovative Inclusive Randomized Control Trial method to establish treatment and comparison study groups, group differences indicative of program effects were detected for parenting outcomes of mindfulness, parenting efficacy, and parenting stress. Findings from this study also suggest that parents who incorporate mindfulness practices into their parenting may see associated changes in their child's behavior, specifically in areas related to conduct problems. Further, considering parents' mental states, enhanced developmental knowledge and parenting efficacy were shown to predict perceived lower levels of parenting stress across the program. Taken together, these findings emphasize the need for parental well-being and mental health to receive increased consideration in parenting intervention designs and curricula.