A Qualitative Evaluation of the Mechanisms of Action in an Early Childhood Parenting Programme to Prevent Violence Against Children in Jamaica

Background: Violence against children (VAC) is a global public health problem and parenting programmes are a key strategy to reduce VAC at home. We developed and evaluated a preschool-based, early childhood, violence-prevention, parenting programme, (The Irie Homes Toolbox) in Jamaica, and reported significant reductions to parents’ use of VAC (Effect size (ES)=-0.29) and increases in parents’ positive practices (ES=0.30). This study presents qualitative findings on the mechanisms of action of the programme.
Methods: As part of a cluster-randomised trial, 115 parents from nine preschools participated in the Irie Homes Toolbox parenting programme. The programme consisted of eight ninety-minute sessions with groups of six parents and focussed on strengthening parent-child relationships, understanding children’s behaviour, use of appropriate discipline strategies, and understanding and managing emotions. We conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with a stratified random sample of 28 parents (2-4 parents/school) and with 9 preschool teachers (1 teacher/preschool). Topic guides were developed to explore participants’ perspectives of the mechanisms of action of the programme. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed and data were analysed using the framework approach.
Results: The most salient direct pathways to reduced VAC by both parent and teacher reports were through parents use’ of alternative strategies to manage child misbehaviour and through improved parent well-being, especially parents’ self-management skills. Other factors leading to reduced VAC by parents, reported by both parents and teachers, included self-identification as an ‘Irie parent’, using proactive parenting strategies and through improved child behaviour. Parents reported that the main factors leading to continued use of VAC were their inconsistency in using the positive discipline strategies and poor emotional self-regulation.
Conclusion: Reports from participating parents and preschool teachers indicate that content related to parental self-management and how to use positive discipline strategies to manage child misbehaviour were important factors on the pathway to reduced VAC.