The thriving kids and parents schools project: protocol of an incomplete stepped wedged cluster randomised trial evaluating the effectiveness of a Triple P seminar series

Published online: 17 October 2023Background The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the normality of daily life for many children, their families, and schools, resulting in heightened levels of anxiety, depression, social isolation, and loneliness among young people. An integrated public health model of interventions is needed to address the problem and to safeguard the mental health and wellbeing of children. The Triple P – Positive Parenting Program is one system of parenting support with a strong evidence-base and wide international reach. When implemented as a public health approach, Triple P has demonstrated population level positive effects on child wellbeing. This study will be the first large-scale, multi-site randomised controlled trial of a newly developed, low-intensity variant of Triple P, a school-based seminar series, as a response to the impacts of the pandemic. Methods The evaluation will employ an Incomplete Batched Stepped Wedge Cluster Randomised Trial Design. At least 300 Australian primary schools, from South Australia, Queensland, and Victoria will be recruited and randomised in three batches. Within each batch, schools will be randomly assigned to either start the intervention immediately or start in six weeks. Parents will be recruited from participating schools. The Triple P seminar series includes three seminars titled: “The Power of Positive Parenting”, “Helping Your Child to Manage Anxiety”, and “Keeping your Child Safe from Bullying”. Parents will complete measures about child wellbeing, parenting, parenting self-regulation and other key intervention targets at baseline, six weeks after baseline, and 12 weeks after baseline. Intervention effectiveness will be evaluated with a Multilevel Piecewise Latent Growth Curve Modelling approach. Data collection is currently underway, and the current phase of the project is anticipated to be completed in January 2024. Discussion The findings from this study will extend the current knowledge of the effects of evidence-based parenting support delivered through brief, universally offered, low intensity, school-based parenting seminars in a post pandemic world.Christopher Boyle, Matthew R. Sanders, Tianyi Ma, Julie Hodges, Kelly-Ann Allen, Vanessa E. Cobham, Igusti Darmawan, Cassandra K. Dittman, Karyn L. Healy, Stevie-Jae Hepburn, Lynda M. MacLeod, Jiachen Teng, and Madilyn Tromp

Parent-child interactions with anxious children and with their siblings : An observational study

In the present study, parent-child interactions with anxious children were compared to parent-child interactions with the anxious children's nonsymptomatic siblings and parent-child interactions with nonclinic children. Participants included 33 anxious children, their parents and siblings, and 14 nonclinic children and their parents. Parent-child interactions were observed during two discussion tasks related to anxiety-provoking or challenging situations. Parent-child interactions were coded for the following variables: control, warmth, reward of coping behaviour and task involvement. Consistent with previous research, parents in the anxious group showed more control, less paternal warmth and less maternal reward of coping behaviour toward their anxious child compared to parents of nonclinic children. Parent-child interactions with the anxious child were similar to parent-child interactions with the nonsymptomatic sibling, with the exception of fathers who exhibited more control toward their anxious child. Parent-sibling interactions, however, also resembled the nonclinic parent-child interactions, with mothers of anxious children showing more control toward their nonsymptomatic child than mothers of nonclinic children. These findings suggest that the relationships of each parent and their anxious child may be influenced by how the parent and child interact with each other. Suggestions for future research are discussed