Impact of a Parenting Program in Liberia to Improve Parenting, Education, and Health Outcomes for Children in Liberia

Parenting Behavior Clinical Trial

Official title:

Impact Evaluation of a Parenting Program to Improve Parenting, Education, and Health Outcomes for Young Children in Liberia

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT01829815
• Other study ID #: 5108
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• First received: April 8, 2013
• Last updated: January 22, 2016
• Start date: August 2012
• Est. completion date: March 2013

Study information

• Verified date: January 2016
• Source: International Rescue Committee
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Health authority: United States: Institutional Review Board
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The aim of this study is to assess the impact of an intervention to improve parenting practices, pre-academic and developmental skills, and use of mosquito nets for children in kindergarten in Liberia. A rigorous impact evaluation using a randomized, waitlist controlled design will be conducted to measure the impact of the intervention on three primary outcomes: positive parenting skills, children's cognitive and educational skills, and malaria knowledge and prevention behaviors.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 270
• Est. completion date: March 2013
• Est. primary completion date: March 2013
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: Both
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Parents or primary caregivers (age 18 or above) of children ages 3-7 enrolled in kindergarten

• Resident in one of five study sites

Exclusion Criteria:

• Severe cognitive disability of caregiver affecting ability to provide informed consent

Study Design

Allocation: Randomized, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Open Label, Primary Purpose: Prevention

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Malaria Prevention
• Parenting Behavior
• Pre-academic and Developmental Skills

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Parents Make the Difference
The intervention, entitled "Parents Make the Difference," will include 10 sessions. Parents will attend in a group, and sessions will include didactic information, guided discussion, and modeling and practice of new skills. All sessions focus on positive parenting skills, with specific skills across three domains that have strong links to child outcomes: (a) positive, non-physical behavior management strategies, (b) strategies for promoting children's early learning, and (c) strategies, primarily use of bed nets, for preventing malaria in children.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Liberia	International Rescue Committee	Voinjama	Lofa County

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
International Rescue Committee	Duke University

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Liberia, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Parenting Behavior Assessment (adapted from multiple scales for this context)	This is a caregiver-report survey measures including items on various parenting practices, including: caregiver-child communication; discipline and behavior management practices; caregiver-child affection and shared activities; caregiver involvement in child's school and educational activities. These items will yield several subscores for these different domains. Some items may also be analyzed as single items, as they measure specific and important outcomes (e.g., use of a harsh discipline strategy)	1 month	No
Primary	Parenting Self-Efficacy and Beliefs Assessment (adapted from other scales for this context; includes unique items developed for this context)	These items assess parents' confidence in their parenting abilities and their beliefs about caregiving practices. This measure will yield separate scores for self-efficacy and beliefs about caregiving practices. Some items may also be analyzed as single items, as they measure specific and important outcomes (e.g., parents' belief about an aspect of harsh discipline)	1 month	No
Primary	Child Behavior Assessment (items adapted from the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire)	This tool assess children's behaviors and emotional well-being in the domains of hyperactivity, anger, aggression, mood, and peer relationships. They will be analyzed as an overall score, and single items may be analyzed for certain behaviors or indicators of emotional well-being.	1 month	No
Primary	Parent-Child Interaction Observation	Caregivers and children in the study will be asked to engage in a play interaction for five minutes, and their verbal interactions will be audio-recorded. Recordings will be coded for specific behaviors. The coding system is adapted from the Dyadic Parent Child Interaction Coding System.	1 month	No
Primary	Child Cognitive / Pre-Academic Abilities and Emotional Well-being	Children will be administered activity-based items to assess a range of cognitive and learning skills, including verbal and language skills (as measured by several activities), numeracy, and pattern recognition. Items will be combined into composite scores but may also be analyzed separately to measure outcomes on specific abilities (e.g., counting). Children will also be asked five questions related to their emotional well-being adapted from the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. These items will be analyzed as a sum score, and individual items may be analyzed for specific indicators of emotional well-being.	1 month	No
Secondary	Mosquito net usage	A survey will be used to assess mosquito net usage by household members. Items will be analyzed separately to assess discrete behaviors (e.g., whether child him/herself slept under the net; whether any adult(s) slept under the net)	1 month	No