The Development, Evaluation, and Implementation of Parenting‐Focused Prevention Programs in Collaboration with Family Court

Abstract

Promoting the well‐being and best interests of children in separated and divorcing families is a shared value among family court professionals and prevention scientists who develop and evaluate intervention programs. This article chronicles the development, evaluation, and implementation of two programs—the New Beginnings Program (NBP), a parenting intervention for separated/divorcing parents, and the Family Transitions Guide (FTG), an intervention designed to motivate high conflict separated/divorcing parents to attend the NBP. The development and evaluation of these programs was facilitated by a long‐standing collaboration with Maricopa Family Court. We discuss the process of developing these programs, their underlying small theories, and the evaluation of their effects in randomized trials. We also describe our collaboration with the family court and ways that the court promoted the development and evaluation of these programs. Finally, we summarize lessons learned and discuss future directions to bolster the public health impact of evidence‐based programs for separated/divorcing families.

Educating for change: A meta‐analysis of education programs for separating and divorcing parents

“…However, there remains a lack of uniformity in implementing these programs and adherence to evidence-informed practices (Morris et al, 2020). Parent education programs vary significantly by jurisdiction because there is no set standard for program implementation, and there remains a lack of consensus regarding best practices (O'Hara et al, 2021;Schramm & Becher, 2020).…”

“…They can be either mandatory or voluntary and may be tailored to specific counties or available on a broader scale, encompassing the state and the entire nation (Blaisure & Geasler, 2000;Fackrell et al, 2011;O'Hara et al, 2021;Mulroy et al, 2013;Sigal et al, 2011).…”

“…However, there remains a lack of uniformity in implementing these programs and adherence to evidence‐informed practices (Morris et al, 2020). Parent education programs vary significantly by jurisdiction because there is no set standard for program implementation, and there remains a lack of consensus regarding best practices (O'Hara et al, 2021; Schramm & Becher, 2020). Parenting programs can be either mandated by the court to proceed with litigation or voluntary for parents who want to know more about the separation and divorce process and want information to help them deal with the aftermath of the family breakdown (Salem et al, 2013).…”

“…To date, program content and delivery have been idiosyncratically determined, contingent on the resources and settings in which they operate, including the experience of the facilitators and the timelines provided for these programs (LaGraff et al, 2015; Whitehurst et al, 2008). The varied approaches in delivery and content suggest a need for greater standardization and more systematic integration of research‐backed methodologies to ensure that parent education programs are consistently effective across different family law jurisdictions (O'Hara et al, 2021).…”

“…Parent education programs exhibit considerable variability, spanning from 1 h (Kopystyunska et al, 2020) to over 18 h (Halford & Bodenmann, 2013) in duration. They can be either mandatory or voluntary and may be tailored to specific counties or available on a broader scale, encompassing the state and the entire nation (Blaisure & Geasler, 2000; Fackrell et al, 2011; O'Hara et al, 2021; Mulroy et al, 2013; Sigal et al, 2011).…”