Overview
This project evaluated the effectiveness of the online resource system Parenting 24/7 for supporting the acquisition of developmentally appropriate expectations for children, confidence in parenting skills, and positive parenting behaviors among high-risk parents. It complements a larger longitudinal study being conducted by the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk Project in low-resource communities in Cook County, Illinois, and three rural southern Illinois counties.
The study will focus on the following questions:
- Is Parenting 24/7 a useful way to promote positive parenting among high-risk parents compared to parents from the general population?
- Do high-risk parents who use Parenting 24/7 report more gains in standardized measures of knowledge, attitudes, and behavior compared to those who do not?
- Do high-risk parents who access more content on the Parenting 24/7 website report greater gains in knowledge, competence, and positive parenting strategies compared to those who access less content?
There are very few published studies addressing the effectiveness of online parenting resources and none have assessed actual use of web-based content using objective measures. This project addressed these limitations by enhancing the technical capabilities of the site to better track individual use by participants and to automatically collect survey data. It also examined the effects of the site on a sample of “high-risk parents” who are part of a larger intervention study.
Research Team
- Aaron Ebata, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Human Development and Family Studies
Contact:
Aaron Ebata
217-333-2912; ebata@illinois.edu
Funding
The Pampered Chef Programs Faculty Research Grant 2008-2010 funded this project.