Australia: Parenting In The Early Years - Effectiveness Of Parenting ...

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Published on Sunday, 30 September 2012 13:06

Resource sheet no. 16 produced for the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse

What we know

• Programs that focus on supporting parenting in the early years aim to influence the behaviours of children, parents or families in order to reduce the risk or ameliorate the effect of less than optimal social and physical environments.
• This paper focuses on two types of parenting support programs: ?? parenting programs - short-term interventions aimed at helping parents improve their relationship with their child ?? home visiting programs - which include various programs, supports and services delivered to the family by a person visiting the home.

What works

• There is a body of evidence that demonstrates that parenting programs are key to promoting the wellbeing of children and preventing the development of later problems.
• There is some evidence that parenting programs may improve some outcomes associated with child abuse and neglect, such as poor parent?child interactions.
• Although parenting support programs are often used as secondary or tertiary interventions in high-risk families, they may be more effective as universal primary prevention programs.
• There is little evidence on parenting education programs developed specifically for Indigenous families in Australia. Preliminary evidence suggests early intervention parenting programs may be effective in reducing problem and risk behaviour among Indigenous children at home and school, and in increasing parental confidence.
• Home visiting programs benefit young children by improving socioeconomic and cognitive outcomes and reducing the frequency of and potential for abuse.
• International evaluations of home visiting programs have shown improvements in parents? child care knowledge, and small but positive effects on parenting attitudes and behaviour.
• There is also little information on the effectiveness of home visiting programs developed specifically for Indigenous families in Australia, but preliminary evidence suggests they may be effective in improving outcomes in Indigenous communities.
• Short-term improvements found include more positive parent?child interactions, better quality home environments, reduced postnatal depression scores, and improved perception of the parenting role.
• Effective parenting support programs for Indigenous families generally include the following: ?? Use of cultural consultants in conjunction with professional parent education facilitators and home visitors. ?? Long-term rather than short-term programs. ?? A focus on the needs of both parents/carers and the child. ?? A supportive approach that focuses on family strengths. ?? Use of structured early intervention program content while also responding flexibly to families.

What doesn?t work

• Programs that do not provide quality, structured content or sound delivery methods.
• Adapting ?mainstream? (non-Indigenous specific) programs for Indigenous families without community involvement or consultation.
• Programs that lack a strong focus on communication and relationship building.
• Failing to link families with other services in the community.

What we don?t know

• More rigorous research is needed to determine the effectiveness of parenting education and home visiting programs for Indigenous Australian families, and the factors that are related to program success for these families.

Source: http://indigenouspeoplesissues.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=16351:australia-parenting-in-the-early-years-effectiveness-of-parenting-support-programs-for-indigenous-families&catid=24:australia-indigenous-peoples&Itemid=57

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