Adding Structured Components to Home Visitation to Reduce Mothers’ Risk for Child Maltreatment: a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Trudy van der Stouwe*, Patty Leijten, Jessica Asscher, Maja Dekovic, C.E. van der Put

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Purpose: Home visitation program effects are generally small, which may be caused by flexible intervention content leading to inconsistent outcomes. In this study we therefore examined whether the effectiveness of a Dutch home visitation program (i.e., Supportive Parenting) can be improved by adding structured intervention components targeting key risk factors for child maltreatment: parental sense of competence, perceived stress, parental anger, and PTSD symptoms. Method: Participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 74) that received four additional intervention components in two home visits, or a control group (n = 60) that received regular Supportive Parenting. Outcomes were assessed before (T1) and after (T2) the first, and before (T3) and after (T4) the second home visit. Effects were examined using ANCOVA for primary outcomes: parental sense of competence, perceived stress, parental anger, and PTSD symptoms, and secondary outcomes: risk of child maltreatment, parental warmth, and negative parenting. Moderation effects were examined for T1 scores, child temperament and life events. Results: Mothers who received the intervention components showed less stress compared to the control group at T3 and T4. There were no differences between groups on other outcomes and no moderation effects, although parental sense of competence reduced and anger increased within the experimental group specifically. Conclusion: The structured components may enhance the effectiveness of Supportive Parenting to reduce parenting stress. Future research into how other outcomes can be improved is needed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)483–496
Number of pages14
JournalJournal of Family Violence
Volume39
Issue number3
Early online date2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Keywords

  • Child maltreatment prevention
  • Home visitation program
  • Increased effect
  • PTSD symptoms
  • Parental anger
  • Parental sense of competence
  • Perceived stress

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