Better start to better future? Long-term follow-up of a parenting intervention for mothers being released from incarceration

Abstract

Objectives This study examined the long-term effects of the Better Start program, an adaptation of Incredible Years parent training enhanced with home visits, for families with mothers being released from incarceration. Methods Participants in this quasi-experimental longitudinal study were 224 mothers, of whom 145 (64.7%) received intervention and the other mothers constituted a no intervention group. Official criminal justice records and mother reports of parenting behaviors and child behavior were collected up to 10 years after intervention. Mixed effects models, Cox regression analyses, and latent linear growth models were used to test potential intervention effects on adolescent delinquency, maternal recidivism, parenting behaviors, and disruptive child behaviors. Results Outcomes favoring participants in the intervention condition were found for adolescent delinquency, maternal recidivism, and the number of disruptive child behaviors. Conclusions Effects on maternal recidivism and delinquency in their children indicate that the Better Start program contributes to preventing the intergenerational transmission of delinquency.