PROGRAMS FOR PROMOTING PARENTING OF RESIDENTIAL PARENTS: 
Moving From Efficacy to Effectiveness

Abstract

This article reviews prevention programs that target primary residential parents as change agents for improving children's postdivorce adjustment. First, we review parental risk and protective factors for children from divorced families, including parenting quality, parental mental health problems, interparental conflict, and contact with the nonresidential parent. Following a discussion of brief informational interventions, we describe the findings of evaluations of three multisession, skill-building interventions for divorced parents. Impressive evidence is presented that parenting is a modifiable protective factor and that improving parenting leads to improvements in children's postdivorce adjustment. We then discuss, in greater detail, the New Beginnings Program, which we highlight because it has shown repeated, immediate effects on children's mental health outcomes as well as long-term effects on a wide array of other meaningful outcomes, such as diagnosis of mental disorder in the past year, externalizing problems, alcohol and drug use, and academic performance. Also, mediational analyses have shown that program-induced changes in parenting accounted for changes in mental health outcomes. The remainder of the article describes a research and action agenda that is needed to successfully implement the New Beginnings Program in domestic relations courts.

Positive parenting during childhood moderates the impact of recent negative events on cortisol activity in parentally bereaved youth

“…Ratings on all questionnaires were based on the past month; measures were coded such that high scores reflected high warmth and high effective discipline. Scores on these questionnaires have been shown to relate to youth mental health problems (e.g., Ayers et al 1998; Kwok et al 2005; Wolchik et al 2005; Schaefer 1965; Wolchik et al 2000). …”

Protecting Children After a Divorce: Efficacy of Egokitzen—An Intervention Program for Parents on Children’s Adjustment

“…This program-Egokitzen-has been recently published following years of development, pilot tests and adaptation (Martínez-Pampliega et al 2014). The program means a contribution to post-divorce preventative programs along the lines of others; such as, Children First (Kramer and Washo 1993), New Beginnings Parenting Program (Sigal et al 2012;Wolchick et al 2005Wolchick et al , 2007 and ACT (Pedro-Carroll et al 2001), albeit adapted to the Spanish population.…”

“…Furthermore, the conclusion to this study will enable to identify the components to which a total adherence to the program should be demanded (Wolchick et al 2005), so that the program can be disseminated on a clinical, community and judicial level, without detracting from its objectives. Such dissemination will allow for a larger sample size, which will enable multiple mediation models to be tested and in doing so, identify the mechanisms by which Egokitzen may promote resources and reduce mental health problems in the long term.…”

“…The programs that are most referred to in the USA are Children First (Kramer and Washo 1993), Children in the Middle (Arbuthnot and Gordon 1996), New Beginnings Parenting Program (Sigal et al 2012;Wolchick et al 2005Wolchick et al , 2007 and Assisting Children through Transition (ACT; Pedro-Carroll et al 2001).…”

“…Children run the risk of becoming triangulated as a way of reducing the stress and tension caused within the family (Buchanan and Heiges 2001). Triangulation and conflicts regarding loyalty have been identified as the main concerns of children in divorced families (Wolchick et al 2005). From this derives the notion that teaching skills to help contain and resolve conflict, manage anger, adopt a business attitude and prevent conflictive interaction may reduce the negative impact of stress factors affecting children's mental health.…”