D: A randomized controlled trial of a mother-infant or toddler parenting program: demonstrating effectiveness in practice

Objective Describes outcomes of an intervention aimed to improve infant or toddler care and reduce parental distress. Methods A randomized controlled trial method was used with 118 mothers. Participants were allocated to an intervention group (n 65) or an enhanced waitlist group (n 53). Measures were taken at pre-, post-, and 6-weeks follow-up. Results Results demonstrated that mothers who attended the program reported improvement in depression, anxiety, stress, parental satisfaction, and decreases in problematic child behavior. Improvements were maintained at the 6-week follow up. Intention-to-treat analysis replicated the results, although with smaller effect sizes. Conclusions The results of this study demonstrate that delivery of a 1 day intervention for distressed mothers can contribute to lower levels of parental distress and child problem behavior. Given the importance of early mother–child relationships and the limited number of well-controlled studies on brief interventions this result is of significance to researchers and the service community. Key words infant development; maternal distress; maternal psychoeducation; mother–infant relationships; parent-training. A weight of evidence has demonstrated that parent-training programs for parents of children over 4 years of age have positive outcomes for the well-being of children and their parents. Recent reviews have demonstrated that these parenting programs can achieve positive long-term outcomes for parents and children (Lundahl, Risser, &amp