Caregivers perceptions of the effectiveness of the Helping Our Toddlers, Developing Our Children\u27s Skills parent training program: A pilot study

This study was designed to evaluate a parent training curriculum: Helping Our Toddlers Developing Our Children\u27s Skills (HOT DOCS© ) using archival data collected between August 2006 and April 2007. The evaluation studied the impact of specific components of the parent training program on both participants\u27 knowledge and attitudes and their perceptions of targeted children\u27s behavior. One-hundred-forty-six caregivers of children between the ages of 14 months and ten years of age participated in the parent training program and were included in the analyses. Measures included a pre/post knowledge test, rating scales of child problem behavior, weekly progress monitoring forms for caregiver behavior at home, and a program evaluation survey. Results indicated significant increases in caregiver knowledge following participation in the program. Prior to participation, caregivers\u27 perceptions of the severity of child problem behaviors and deficits in adaptive behaviors were significantly different from a normative sample. Following participation in the program, results showed significant decreases in caregiver perceptions of the severity of child problem behaviors, but no significant differences in child adaptive behaviors. Caregiver feedback indicated high levels of satisfaction with the program