Effectiveness of a parental training programme in enhancing the parent–child relationship and reducing harsh parenting practices and parental stress in preparing children for their transition to primary school: a randomised controlled trial

BMC Public Health

Tai Hing Lam¹  Yim Wah Mak²  Sophia SC Chan³  Ho Cheung William Li³ 

[1] School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong;School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong;School of Nursing, The University of Hong Kong, 4/F, William M. W. Mong Block, 21 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong

关键词: Transition;    Parental stress;    Parent–child relationships;    Harsh parenting practices;    Children;   

Others  :  1161548
DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2458-13-1079

 received in 2013-06-02, accepted in 2013-11-12,  发布年份 2013

【 摘 要 】

Background

Entering primary school is an important childhood milestone, marking the beginning of a child’s formal education. Yet the change creates a time of vulnerability for the child, the parents and the parent–child relationship. Failure to adjust to the transition may place the family in a psychologically devastating position. The aims of this study were to test the effectiveness of a parental training programme in enhancing the parent–child relationship and decreasing parental stress by reducing harsh parenting in preparing children for the transition to primary school.

Methods

A randomised controlled trial incorporating a two-group pre-test and repeated post-test was conducted in one of the largest public housing estates in Hong Kong. A total of 142 parents were recruited, with 72 parents randomly assigned to the experimental group and 70 to the control group. Harsh parenting practices, parent–child relationships and parental stress were assessed.

Results

In comparison to parents in the control group, those in the experimental group engaged in less harsh parenting practices and reported better parent–child relationships. However, parental stress scores did not differ significantly between the two groups.

Conclusion

This study addressed a gap in the literature by examining the effectiveness of the training programme for enhancing parent–child relationship and decreasing parental stress at the time of a child’s transition to primary school. The findings from this study provide empirical evidence of the effectiveness of the parental training programme and highlight the significance of parenting in promoting a smooth transition for children from kindergarten to primary 1.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01845948.

【 授权许可】

   
2013 Li et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

Figure 1.

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