Abstract
In a randomized controlled trial, we tested the efficacy of Baby Triple P in a community sample of first-time parent couples. The intervention was developed to promote better mental health, a positive couple relationship, positive parenting, and a better parent-infant relationship. One hundred and fifty six couples were randomly allocated to intervention (n = 78) or care as usual (n = 78) conditions. The intervention was delivered in four antenatal face-to-face group sessions followed by four early postnatal individual telephone sessions. Couples completed self-report assessments at baseline, immediately postintervention and at 12 and 24 months. The study had one primary (the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale) and 11 secondary outcomes. Over half of the intervention and care as usual participants remained in the study for the full 24 months. Intention to treat analysis of the full sample yielded positive results in some mental health domains for mothers and fathers, but this was not evident when follow up sensitivity analysis was conducted on a subsample of the data. There was limited support for the intervention in relation to secondary outcomes such as the couple relationship, social support and parenting. However, the parent couples were positive about the intervention and described it as providing the support that they wanted. This trial provides some evidence in support of Baby Triple P as an early intervention for new parent couples. High levels of satisfaction with the intervention are promising, especially in relation to the engagement of fathers.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 2156-2174 |
| Number of pages | 19 |
| Journal | Journal of Child and Family Studies |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| Early online date | 29 Jun 2022 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Aug 2022 |
Keywords
- parenting intervention
- randomized controlled trial
- mother-infant relationship
- postnatal mental health
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Developmental and Educational Psychology
- Life-span and Life-course Studies
Documents and Links
- McPherson, K.E. et al (2022) Baby Triple P: a randomized controlled trial testing the efficacy in first-time parent couples
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