The Effectiveness and Underlying Mechanisms of Parent Management Training and Mindful Parenting Program

Summary

Project Objective:

Parent management training (PMT), which focuses on teaching parents about effective discipline technique using a behavioral approach, has strong evidence base for promoting parent-child relationship, and reducing parental stress and children behavioural problem. Many PMTs, such as the Incredible Years and Triple P program, have been rated as well-established interventions for behavior problems in children.

In recent years, the application of mindfulness in the parenting context is emerging. Parental mindfulness was found to have positive effects on parent-child relationship quality and parenting stress. In particular, preliminary evidence of the eight-week mindfulness based intervention for parents, the Mindful Parenting (MP) program was found to reduce parental stress, and to decrease externalizing and internalizing problems in children.

The two lines of parenting intervention have different theoretical background but they yield similar positive effect in parents and children. The current study has the following objectives:

1. To explore the similarities and differences of PMT and MP in terms treatment outcome. Outcome measures include parenting knowledge, parent's mindful awareness, parents' emotional competence, positive and negative parenting practice, parental stress,parent-child relationship, and parents' mental health, including parental stress, parents' sense of competence, as well as child behavioural problem
2. To explore the underlying mechanisms for the effectiveness of PMT and MP, including their similarities and differences, and
3. To examine for whom are PMT and MP more effective.

Hypotheses

In terms of treatment outcome, it is hypothesized that:

H1a) When compared to the waitlist control group, both PMT and MP programmes are similarly effective in reducing negative parenting behaviours and behavioural problems in children, promoting positive parenting behaviours, and enhancing parent-child relationship and parents' mental health.

H1b) Looking into the different aspects of parenting behaviours, however, PMT has stronger effects than the MP programme on increasing proactive parenting and the use of positive reinforcement, and reducing lax control. By contrast, the MP programme has stronger effects than the PMT on enhancing warmth and supportiveness and reducing parental hostility.

In terms of mechanisms of change, it is hypothesized that:

H2a) The PMT and MP programmes both have positive effects on parents' mental health by way of improved parenting practices, and such effect is mediated by the reduction in child behavioural problems and improvement in parent-child relationship.

H2b) The PMT and MP programmes are different in how they bring about improved parenting practices. Parenting knowledge is the mediator between the PMT programme and improved parenting practices, whereas parent's emotional competence is the mediator between MP programme and improved parenting practices.

Lastly, in terms of the effectiveness for particular target participants, it is hypothesized that:

H3) PMT is less effective for parents with low emotional competence whereas the MP programme is more effective for parents with low emotional competence.

Conditions

• Parent Management Training
• Mindfulness
• Mindful Parenting Training

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Positive Parenting Program, Mindful Parenting

The Positive Parenting Program (Triple P) consists of 5 weekly group sessions (each lasting for 2 hours) plus three weekly individual telephone interview sessions (each lasting for around 20 minutes). Program materials is available in Chinese. The Mindful Parenting program consists of 8 weekly group sessions, each lasting for 2 hours. Programme materials have already been translated into Chinese by local partners of the programme developer.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The University of Hong Kong

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Hong Wang Denis Kwan, Master · The University of Hong Kong

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2021-09-01

Primary Completion

2023-08-31

Completion

2023-10-31

Countries

• Hong Kong

Study Locations