Lasting Effects of an Interdisciplinary Home Visiting Program on Child Behavior: Preliminary Follow-Up Results of a Randomized Trial1
Section snippets
Reflective Functioning
Parental reflective functioning (RF) is defined as a parent's capacity to envision the mental states of herself and her child (Slade, 2005) and refers to the awareness that an individual's behavior is a reflection of mental states (thoughts, feelings, intentions, desires) (Ordway et al., in review, Slade, 2002). According to Fonagy and colleagues (2002), one's capacity for RF is central to self-organization and affect regulation. They further suggest that the quality of a person's RF capacity
Design
This pilot study is a prospective longitudinal follow-up study of the MTB home visiting program. In the original design, the MTB primary study used a nested two group experimental design with random assignment of prenatal care groups at a community health center to test the effects of the MTB program with young families (Sadler et al., under review, November 2012). The hypotheses for this follow up study were tested through analyses of data previously collected during the MTB primary study and
Descriptive Findings
The intervention and control group mothers who participated in this follow-up study of the MTB home visiting intervention were similar with regard to most background demographic characteristics (Table 1, Table 2). In this cohort, 25 (11 intervention and 14 control) of the mothers were teenagers (less than 20 years old) at the time of their child's birth, which was not a statistically significant difference between the two groups. Among the children, there was not a significant difference found
Discussion
The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the intermediate effects of the MTB on child behavior and parental RF. This was the first follow-up study of the MTB program and therefore potential challenges to the re-recruitment of the mother–child dyads and selection of outcome measures had not previously been examined. Overall the study was successful in locating the mother–child dyads. The choice of child behavior measures was effective for use with the mothers, but not as effective when we
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank Dr. Kris Fennie and Dr. Tony Ma for their statistical assistance and database development throughout this research project.
This first author was supported by NIH/NINR 1F31NR011263-01; NIH 5T32NR008346-06; Evelyn Anderson Scholarship; Dr. Lorraine G. Spranzo Memorial Scholarship; Sigma Theta Tau-Delta Mu Grant; Nurse Practitioner Health Care Foundation/Community Innovations Award; Jonas Nurse Leaders Scholar Program.
References (46)
- et al.
The impact of physical or sexual abuse on chronic depression in adolescent mothers
Journal of Pediatric Nursing
(2000) - et al.
Dose–response effect of mother–infant clinical home visiting on aggressive behavior problems in kindergarten
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
(2004) - et al.
Rethinking parenting interventions for drug-dependent mothers: From behavior management to fostering emotional bonds
Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment
(2004) - et al.
Stability and change in mothers' representations of their relationship with their toddlers
Developmental Psychology
(1999) - et al.
The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
(1986) Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences
(1988)- et al.
Symptoms of depression in two communities
Psychological Medicine
(1976) Long-term effects of prenatal and infancy nurse home visitation on the life course of youths: 19-Year follow-up of a randomized trial
Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
(2010)- et al.
Randomised controlled trial of parenting intervention in the voluntary sector for reducing child conduct problems: Outcomes and mechanisms of change
Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
(2006)
Early childhood adversity, toxic stress, and the role of the pediatrician: Translating developmental science into lifelong health
Pediatrics
Maternal reflective functioning, mother-infant affective communication, and infant attachment: Exploring the link between mental states and observed caregiving behavior in the intergenerational transmission of attachment
Attachment & Human Development
The equivalence of the Child Behavior Checklist/ 1 1/2-5 across parent race/ethinicity, income level, and language
Psychological Assessment
The role of home-visiting programs in preventing child abuse and neglect
The Future of Children
The impact of prenatal cocaine use on maternal reflective functioning
Longitudinal data analysis using generalized linear models
Biometrika
Disorganized infant attachment classification and maternal psychosocial problems as predictors of hostile–aggressive behavior in the preschool classroom
Child Development
Developmental cascade effects of the new beginnings program on adolescent adaptation outcomes
Development and Psychopathology
Generalized linear mixed models Encyclopedia of Biostatistics
Programs for parents of infants and toddlers: Recent evidence from randomized trials
Journal off Child Psychology and Psychiatry
Depressed mothers as informants on child behavior: Methodological issues
Research in Nursing & Health
Cited by (69)
School age effects of Minding the Baby - An attachment-based home-visiting intervention - On parenting and child behaviors
2022, Development and PsychopathologyWhat’s on your mind? The effects of an attachment-based intervention on residential youth workers’ reflexive functioning
2024, Journal of Public Child WelfareParental mentalising among mothers with intellectual disability or ADHD: Links with experiences of abuse, neglect and psychosocial risk
2023, Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual DisabilitiesParticipation in an Attachment-Based Home Visiting Program Is Associated with Lower Child Salivary C-Reactive Protein Levels at Follow-Up
2023, Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics
- 1
Data previously presented: Ordway, M.R., Sadler, LS, Slade, A, Dixon, J, Close, N, Mayes, L. (2012). The Effects of a Parenting Intervention on Parental Reflective Functioning and Early Child Behaviors. Oral presentation delivered at the 24th Annual Eastern Nursing Research Society Scientific Sessions, New Haven, CT, March, 2012.