This proposal requests continued support for an NINR funded study on the effectiveness of parent training in community based day care centers serving low-income urban families of color. The purposes of this project are to: (1) develop and test an innovative parent training program for promoting healthy relationships between parents and young children (2-4 years) from low-income, multi-racial backgrounds and (2) describe the child-rearing contexts and mental health intervention needs of low-income families and their young children at heightened risk for developing serious behavioral disorders. In Phase 1, parents from the target population will collaborate with the research team in the development of a new 12-week video-based parent training program called the Chicago Parent Program (CPP). In Phase 2, the CPP will be tested among 320 families of young children (approx. 97 percent minority) from 9 urban day care centers serving low-income families (160 intervention families and 160 controls). Participants will be assessed a pre-intervention, post-intervention, and 6-months post-intervention using self-report, teacher-report, and observational methods. Dependent variables include child behavior problems at home and day care, parent self-efficacy, parent discipline strategies, parent stress, depression, and quality of parent-child interaction. Parents and teachers of children with persistent elevated behavior problems at home and day care (est. n=26) will also be interviewed to understand child-rearing contexts and mental health intervention needs of families and children who do not benefit from parent training and whose continued behavior problems place them at heightened risk for disabling behavior problems. This proposal builds on our prior research by (1) refining a well tested, highly acclaimed parent-training model so it has enhanced social and contextual validity for low-income urban families of color and (2) delineating the intervention needs of low-income families with very young children who may need more intensive services. The study is consistent with the NINR's goal for the 21st century to address cultural and ethnic disparities in health promotion activities.
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