NCJ Number
235261
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 35 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2011 Pages: 448-458
Date Published
June 2011
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This study examined changes to symptoms of parental depression during a family's interaction with child welfare services.
Abstract
The study found that over time, families that were involved with child welfare family preservation and parenting services saw an improvement in parental depression symptoms. This study examined three hypotheses regarding families involved with child welfare family preservation and parenting services: 1) that changes in parental depression symptoms are only one facet of broad or global changes to the family; 2) that changes in parental depression symptoms are correlated with aspects of the parent-home visitor relationship; and 3) that changes in parental depression symptoms are correlated with the existence and level of adjunctive services that home visitors make available to the parents. Data for the study were obtained from survey responses received from 2,175 parents who participated in a statewide network of home-based contracted family preservation services as a result of child neglect issues. The parents were surveyed at three intervals: pre-treatment, post-treatment, and at a 6-month follow-up. Analyses of the survey results found that positive improvement was noted in parental depression symptoms along with positive changes in social, economic, familial, and parenting domains. This finding does not suggest that positive improvement in one factor drives any or all others, but rather positive changes in all factors move in concert with one another. Implications for future research are discussed. Table, figure, and references