Suchergebnisse

Purpose
Digitally delivered, parent-focused interventions (DD-PFIs) are viewed as an important method for supporting child well-being. Few DD-PFIs include health-promotion and general-parenting content, and only some are intended for a universal audience. The purpose of this paper is to focus on a preliminary evaluation of Grow Online, which was designed to address this gap.


Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-methods design, including pretests and posttests and semi-structured interviews, was employed to evaluate program feasibility and demonstrate proof of concept.


Findings
Feasibility findings were favorable, which indicates participants were satisfied with the program, liked the main program features, found the content helpful and had a positive experience using the website. Initial recruitment was strong, and engagement with the sessions was high; however, retention was poor with a 73.5 percent attrition rate. Significant pre- to post-changes were found on measures of over-reactive discipline, parenting efficacy, emotion coaching, coping socialization, child physical activity support, rewarding eating and child externalizing and internalizing behaviors.


Research limitations/implications
Study design and high attrition limit the ability to infer causality and generalize beyond the sample.


Practical implications
Providing support to parents through a universal health-promoting DD-PFI is viable, though issues involving retention need to be given full consideration.


Originality/value
Parents use of technology to access child care information is increasing, but most information online is not evidence-informed. Grow Online fills an important gap in the research and practice of DD-PFIs, and this study's findings suggest a more rigorous evaluation is merited.

To optimize public health in the next decade, prevention of childhood obesity will remain a central focus. To impact behavioral change, data must be linked to continuous quality improvements within existing nutrition and physical activity programming. The Children, Youth, and Families At-Risk Professional Development and Technical Assistance Center has developed a picture-based, online survey tool, the CYFAR Health Assessment Tool (CHAT), to assess health behaviors in youth ages 6 to18 years of age. Used for continuous program improvement, aggregate data results are coupled with tailored health recommendations in 4 domains (behavior and environmental modifications, education, and direct strategies) and evidence-informed resources for dissemination to youth and parents. Program implementers use the data and resources for targeted programmatic improvements that more effectively promote health and well-being. CHAT also informs our collective understanding of youth's perceptions of health in comparison to their actual behaviors.