NCJ Number
228295
Journal
Future of Children Volume: 19 Issue: 2 Dated: Fall 2009 Pages: 95-118
Date Published
2009
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This article describes four parental issues related to child maltreatment (substance abuse, mental illness, domestic violence, and child conduct problems) and examines parental education interventions aimed at preventing child abuse.
Abstract
In the past three decades, researchers have identified four common co-occurring issues related to parenting and that lead to child maltreatment: parental substance abuse, parental mental illness, domestic violence, and child conduct problems. Understanding and responding to these issues is fundamental to designing effective parenting education programs in the fight against abuse and neglect. This paper discusses a multifaceted parenting campaign that has demonstrated substantial promise. The objective of the Triple P-Positive Parenting Program is to help parents deal with the full gamut of children's health and behavioral issues. It includes five levels of intervention, each featuring a different means of delivery and intensity of service. It is suggested that the evidence-based Triple P approach offers a general framework that could be used to guide future parenting programs. With massive evidence showing that child abuse is associated with higher rates of spending on health care, the case for implementing parent training programs to help reduce the high social cost of child abuse and neglect is strong. 92 endnotes