Effect of Attachment and Child Health (ATTACH^TM) Parenting Program on Parent-Infant Attachment, Parental Reflective...

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Clinical Psychology
• Family Studies

Background:

• High-risk families face challenges like violence, addiction, and poverty, impacting parenting effectiveness.
• Parenting difficulties in these families can negatively affect child development and attachment.
• Parental Reflective Function (RF) is crucial for understanding and responding to a child's mental states.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the ATTACHTM program for high-risk families.
• To assess the program's impact on parent-child attachment and parental RF.
• To investigate ATTACHTM's protective role against parental depression.

Main Methods:

• A manualized, 10-12 session, one-on-one parental RF-based parenting program (ATTACHTM).
• Assessment of parent-child attachment using the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP).
• Measurement of parental RF using the Reflective Function Scale (RFS).
• Data from 40 caregivers and children < 6 years in pilot RCTs and QES.

Main Results:

• ATTACHTM significantly increased secure parent-child attachment in RCTs (p=0.004).
• Parental RF (self, child, overall) significantly improved in RCTs (p≤0.004).
• Significant improvement in parental RF was observed in QES within the ATTACHTM group (p=0.000).

Conclusions:

• ATTACHTM is effective in enhancing parent-child attachment and parental RF in high-risk populations.
• The program demonstrates potential as a protective factor for depressed caregivers.
• ATTACHTM shows promise as a valuable intervention for high-risk parents and young children.