Nurturing Parenting Programs- Parents & Their Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers – Group Sessions (Tertiary Prevention)
Category
Family Support
Child's Age
0-1 years, 1-2 years, 2-3 years, 3-4 years, 4-5 years
Participant
Children, Parents/Guardian
Languages
English, Spanish
Brief Description
Nurturing Parenting® Program (NPP) Parents & Their Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers is a prevention-treatment program designed for families referred for parenting education by social services for child abuse, neglect, and/or family dysfunction. NPP is designed to prevent recidivism of abuse and neglect in families receiving social services, stop the intergenerational cycle of child abuse by teaching positive parenting behaviors, and lower the rate of multiple teenage pregnancies through intensive group sessions. This is a tertiary prevention program.
Expected Impact
- Improved understanding of positive parenting practices
- Decreased use of parenting practices associated with child maltreatment
- Decreased likelihood of substantiated CPS referrals and child maltreatment referrals
- Improved parenting and child rearing beliefs and practices
Core Components for Model Fidelity
- Group Sessions: Parents and children meet concurrently in separate groups. Families attend 16 weekly group sessions, with each session lasting 2.5 hours. Examples of content/topics covered in the program include:
-
- Developing Empathy in Children
- Ages and Stages
- Recognizing and Handling Feelings
- Helping your Children Handle Their Feeling
- Children's Group: Concurrent groups for children must be provided. These groups have the option of using the Nurturing Parenting Program's curriculum for children's groups or providing general childcare services.
Languages Materials are Available in
English, Spanish
Delivery Mode
In-person or virtual.
Dosage
2.5-hour-long meetings that occur weekly for 16 consecutive weeks.
Infrastructure for Implementation
Materials: Manual for Teaching Children (if using the Nurturing Parenting Program curriculum for children's groups); Parent Handbook and/or Easy Reader Parent Handbook; Resource materials: implementation manual, multicultural parenting guide, other booklets and handbooks; Streaming, Flash drives, DVDs and CDs; Games; Assessments and evaluations: AAPI/NSCS (available online only; for more information, visit NurturingParenting.com; Instructional aids; Certificates of completion
Space: Two meeting spaces are required for this program: one for the parents and one for their children. These rooms must be separate to allow for concurrent yet separate meetings for parents and children.
Staffing Requirements
Group sessions require a ratio of 2 facilitators for 12-15 parents. There should be 3 or more facilitators for the children’s program, depending on their ages (children should be grouped by age and capability and engaged in age-appropriate activities in their groups).
There is no minimum education level, but staff must be experienced in conducting home-based instruction if they are implementing the home-based model and/or conducting adult groups if providing the group-based model.
Staff are required to be knowledgeable of developmental capabilities in children 0-5 years, attend the Nurturing Parenting® Program facilitator training, and regularly be supervised by administrative staff.
NCPC strongly recommends staff receive training in the Standards of Quality for Family Support and Strengthening. Contact Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina (PCANC) or National Family Support Network (NFSN) for more information, training, and certification.
Training for Model Fidelity
Training can be provided on site or at regional area training events and requires 3 days of training, 7 hours each day, for a total of 21 hours. For more information, visit NurturingParenting.com.
Contact Information
https://www.nurturingparenting.com/
Amy Schlieve, PhD: amy.schlieve@nurturingparenting.com, 1-800-688-5822 (email preferred)
Cost Estimates
Nurturing Parenting® Program Parents and Their Infants, Toddlers and Preschoolers program materials range in price from $1,589.85 to $1,814.85, depending on which materials are selected. For more information, visit NurturingParenting.com. Training for Nurturing Parenting® Program facilitators lasts 3-days and costs $250 to $400 per person depending on location and trainer.
Purpose Service Code (PSC)
5505 - Parent Education
Program Identifier (PID)
Nurturing Parenting Programs- Parents & Their Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers – Group Sessions
Minimal Outputs for NCPC Reporting
FY 24-25:
- Number of parents/guardians participating†
†Select Family Support Programs data collection will include basic demographic data for parent/guardian participants including Race, Ethnicity. Data on interpretation and transportation will be collected when appropriate.
Minimal Outcomes for NCPC Reporting
FY 24-25:
- Increase in positive parenting practices
Minimal Measures for NCPC Reporting
FY 24-25:
- Adult Adolescent Parenting Inventory (AAPI-2)
NCPC Evidence Categorization
Evidence Based- 2 pretest-posttest studies, 1 quasi-experimental study, and 2 non-experimental studies. No new publications since 2015.
Research Summary
There have been no new publications on Nurturing Parenting® Programs since 2015. Existing relevant publications which were included in the 2018-2019 evidence review include 2 pretest-posttest studies,1,2 1 quasi-experimental study,3 and 2 other non-experimental studies.4,5 Populations sampled in the research include diverse racial/ethnic groups, diverse marital statuses, primarily low-income/low resource/unemployed parents, and diverse family formations (including teen parents, foster parents, and parents referred by social services). Research measures include AAPI-2.5, CPS data, NQ, FSHQ, and NPP attendance data. Results indicate improved scores across AAPI-2 pre- and post-tests on all domains (see domains listed above in “Research Measures”), as well as a decreased likelihoods of having a substantiated referral for maltreatment and having a CPS referral. In fact, participants receiving 25-34 hours of instruction were 173% less likely to have a substantiated referral than the control group. Families also demonstrate improved scores on the NQ assessment.
- ^ See Montanez, Devall, & VanLeeuwen (2010). This non-experimental study used a pre/post within group. Populations sampled in the study include Mexican-American families, low-income families, and diverse family formations (marital status). Measures include AAPI-2, Nurturing Quiz, and FSHQ. Families were enrolled in NPP and received weekly post cards to thank them for participating that week and encourage them to attend the following week’s session. The average completion rate was 60% and parent responses to research measures indicated significantly greater empathy, decreased belief in corporal punishment, fewer inappropriate expectations of children, less reversal of parent-child roles, and increased knowledge of positive discipline techniques.
- ^ See Maher et al. (2011). This non-experimental study used a pre/post within group. Populations sampled in the study include caregivers enrolled in NPP in Louisiana. Research measures include attendance reports, state welfare records, and AAPI-2. Families were enrolled in 16 weeks of NPP group sessions. Home visits were implemented as make-ups for missed sessions and to compliment group sessions for parents requiring additional assistance or support. Transportation was provided as needed. Results indicated significantly fewer incidences of maltreatment following program completion. Number of sessions attended was associated with a reduction in the likelihood of reported incidences of maltreatment at both 6 months and 2 years after program completion.
- ^ See Americorps (2015). This quasi-experimental study sampled populations such as racial/ethnic minorities, English-language learners, diverse family formations (marital status), and low-income families. Research measures included data from Child Protective Services and AAPI-2 scores. Families enrolled in either a treatment or comparison group. Treatment families completed different levels of NPP lessons depending on their need following 6 initial lessons provided during home visits. Results indicated increases in treatment families’ average scores across all AAPI-2 domains. Treatment families demonstrated a decreased likelihood of having a substantiated referral for maltreatment by 41% and a decreased likelihood of having a CPS referral by 18%. Families who received 25-34 hours of home visitation were 2.73 times less likely to have a substantiated referral for maltreatment.
- ^ See Bavolek et al. (2012). This non-experimental study sampled populations such as racial/ethnic minorities (primarily Hispanic families), diverse family formations (marital status), and low-income families. Research measures included AAPI-2. This study collected data from one county’s implementation of three NPP programs, including NPP Parents and Their Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers. The following results were found among participants in this sub-program: improved AAPI-2 scores with three of five domains demonstrating statistically significant improvements, indicating an increased level of empathy in meeting children’s needs, an increased belief in using positive discipline methods, and a greater understanding of appropriate roles for parents and children.
- ^ See Hodnett et al. (2009). This non-experimental study used a pre/post within group. Populations sampled in the study included low-income families and diverse family formations (marital status). Research measures included AAPI-2 and NSCS. Families completed 16 weeks of NPP lessons, taking the AAPI-2 before and after the program began. Results indicated statistically significant improvement in AAPI-2 scores on all five domains, and participants who attended at least 14 of the 16 sessions reported lower rates of repeated maltreatment.
Researched Population
- Diverse racial/ethnic groups
- Participants with diverse marital statuses
- Primarily low-income/low resource/unemployed parents
- Diverse family formations (including teen parents, foster parents, and parents referred by social services)
- Families at risk for abuse and neglect
Clearinghouse and Compendium References
California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare- Not able to be rated
Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse- Does not currently meet criteria
Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness- Low-rated findings/does not meet criteria
AmeriCorps Impact Evaluation: Sacramento Family Support Collaborative Birth and Beyond Home Visitation Program. (2015). https://www.nurturingparenting.com/images/cmsfiles/americorpsimpactevaluation2013-20151.pdf
Bavolek, S. J., Keene, R. G., Miranda, G., & Radcliff, J. T. (2012). Implementation of the Nurturing Parenting Programs with Latino families in Imperial County, California. Retrieved from: http://nurturingparenting.com/images/cmsfiles/imperialcofinal3yrreport1-23-13.pdf
Hodnett, R. H., Faulk, K., Dellinger, A., & Macher, E. (2009). Evaluation of the Statewide Implementation of a Parent Education Program in Louisiana’s Child Welfare Agency: The Nurturing Parenting Program for Infants, Toddlers, and Pre-School Children. Retrieved from: http://www.casey.org/media/EvaluationParentEdLA_ES.pdf
Maher, R. J., Marcynyszyn, L. A., Corwin, T. W., & Hodnett, R. (2011). Dosage matters: The relationship between participation in the Nurturing Parenting Program for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers and subsequent child maltreatment. Children and Youth Services Review, 33, 1426–1434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2011.04.014
Montanez, M., Devall, E., VanLeeuwen, D. M. (2010). Social Capital: Strengthening Mexican-American families through parenting education. Journal of Family and Consumer Science, 102(3), 27-33.
Please note that the tertiary prevention version of Parents and Their Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers (16 sessions) is approved for Smart Start funding. There is a comprehensive version of this model that has not yet been reviewed for Smart Solutions. Click here to learn more about Parents and Their Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers (16 sessions- tertiary prevention).
Local Partnerships Currently Implementing
Local Partnerships in purple have adopted Nurturing Parenting Programs- Parents & Their Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers – Group Sessions (Tertiary Prevention). Local Partnership contact information can be found here.