Evaluating Parent Gym: a community implemented universal parenting programme
| Date | 18 March 2019 |
| Pages | 1-15 |
| Published date | 18 March 2019 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JCS-09-2018-0017 |
| Author | Geoff Lindsay,Vaso Totsika,Ruth Thomas |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Vulnerable groups,Children's services,Sociology,Sociology of the family,Children/youth,Parents,Education,Early childhood education,Home culture,Social/physical development |
Evaluating Parent Gym:
a community implemented universal
parenting programme
Geoff Lindsay, Vaso Totsika and Ruth Thomas
Abstract
Purpose –There is growing evidence of the efficacy and effectiveness of targeted parenting
programmes but the evide nce for universal parenti ng programmes is much less d eveloped. The
purpose of this paper is to eva luate the effectivene ss of Parent Gym, a parenting pr ogramme delivered
in schools.
Design/methodology/approach –In this paper a quasi-experimental design was utilised. Parents were
recruited to the Parent Gy m programme comprising s ix two-hour weekly sessi ons. Parents complete d
measures of their parenting efficacy, parenting satisfaction, interest in parenting and mental well-being at
pre- and post-course. Comparative data were derived from a retrospectively-defined randomly
selected group of non-pa rticipant parents at two ti me points, equivalen t to the length of the Parent
Gym course.
Findings –Changes in the Parent Gym group were compared with the comparison group using repeated
measures mixed 2×2 ANOVAs, which accounted for the potential effect of demographic characteristics
(parent gender, ethnicity, parent age, parent education level and single parent status), and their potential
interaction with group membership. Parenting satisfaction showed a significantly greater increase for the
Parent Gym group with a large effect size (d¼0.80). Regarding parenting efficacy, there was a significant
time × group interaction indicating efficacy scores increased in the Parent Gym group but decreased in
the comparison group(d ¼1 .93). Mental well-being also improved for th e Parent Gym group from below
the national norm before the course (d¼−0.2 6) to significantly g reater than the natio nal norm at
post-course (d¼0.29).
Research limitations/implications –A limitation of the present st udy is the absence of data on outcomes
for children. Second, the administration of the research at local level, primarily the distribution and collection
of the measures and retur n to the research team fo r analysis, is a potenti al source of data loss: both
pre- and post-programme data were available on 55 per cent of Parent Gym parents, similar to other
community studies. Thi rd, the present study did not include a longer term fol low-up after the programme
ended. Future research is required to examine the sustainability of effects produced from community
implemented programmes.
Practical implications –Findings fromthe present study indicate that a universal programme,Parent Gym,
was effective in aiding the positive development of aspects of parenting behaviour, namely parents’self-
efficacy, parenting satisfaction and mental well-being, when delivered in community settings. This
demonstrates its potential as part of a regular servicedelivery option of evidence-based supportfor parents.
Social implications –Successful parenting requires both the development of parenting skills
and a positive relation ship between parent and c hild. Parents vary in the resources (e.g. family )
available to develop positively. Evidence-based parenting programmes have an important role in aiding
parenting development, both those targeted at parents with most challenges and those (universal) aimed
across the population. This study demonstrated that the universal Parent Gym programme is
effective across a wide r ange of parents and has the p otential to be a positiv e social resource for
community delivery.
Originality/value –This is the first rigorous study of Parent Gym. It adds to the limited evidence about
parenting programmes delivered outside of trials, as part of normal service delivery. With this evidence,
parent choice of a suitable evidence-based programme is increased.
Keywords Effectiveness, Community, Quasi-experimental design, Parent Gym,
Sustained implementation, Universal parenting programme
Paper type Research paper
Received 5 September 2018
Revised 1 November 2018
23 January 2019
1 February 2019
Accepted 4 February 2019
The authors wish to thank all the
parents who took part in this
study, the schools where the
programmes were run and the
staff who facilitated data collection.
The research was funded by
Parent Gym. As a requirement for
the authors’full independence as
researchers, it was made clear,
and agreed by Parent Gym, that
the authors’research would be
totally independent and that Patent
Gym would have no control over
the research design,
implementation or the reporting
through this paper.
Geoff Lindsay is based at the
Centre for Educational
Development, Appraisal and
Research (CEDAR), University
of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Vaso Totsika is based at the
Centre for Educational
Development, Appraisal and
Research (CEDAR), University
of Warwick, Coventry, UK;
Centre for Education Studies
(CES), University of Warwick,
Coventry, UK and Centre for
Developmental Psychiatryand
Psychology,Monash University,
Melbourne,Australia.
Ruth Thomas is based at the
Centre for Educational
Development, Appraisal and
Research, University of
Warwick, Coventry, UK.
DOI 10.1108/JCS-09-2018-0017 VOL. 14 NO. 1 2019, pp. 1-15, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 1746-6660
j
JOURNAL OF CHILDREN'S SERVICES
j
PAG E 1
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