1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«[P]arenting support programs designed to prevent CM [child maltreatment] should be implemented in such a way as to attract and engage young and disadvantaged families, single-parent or stepfamilies, and families in which the parents lack confidence or experience higher levels of stress and the children are more difficult or demanding. The aim of the present study was to determine whether Triple P [Positive Parenting Program], as implemented in Quebec, succeeded in doing so. Its goals were twofold: [...] to describe the socio-demographic and parental characteristics of mothers who participated in level 3 or 4 of Triple P at the time they enrolled in the program, and [...] to determine the extent to which these characteristics distinguished them from a normative group of mothers randomly selected from the general population in their neighborhoods.» (p. 1009)

Questions/Hypothèses :
«Given the efforts made to promote Triple P and de-stigmatize participation in the program, it was hypothesized that socio-demographic risk factors, such as younger age of the mother and child, lower household income, lower mother’s education, mother’s unemployment, and being a single parent or part of a stepfamily, would predict participation in Triple P. Because the program focuses on parenting and child behavior, it was also expected that a lower parenting sense of competence, the use of fewer positive parenting practices, the perception of having a difficult child, and the presence of emotional and behavioral difficulties in the child would significantly add to this prediction, without eliminating the influence of socio-demographic risk factors.» (p. 1009)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
«The participants were biological or adoptive mothers or any other mother figure, such as stepmothers or legal guardians. A “normative” group was composed of 834 mothers from the general population living in two health care catchment areas, one in Montreal (n = 417) and one in a Quebec City suburb (n = 417).» (p. 1009) «The “clinical” group was composed of 240 parents who had enrolled in Triple P (level 3 or 4) for the first time, mostly at the suggestion of a service provider (n = 164) or on their own initiative (n = 75). For the purposes of comparability with the normative group, only mothers of children aged 6 months to 8 years were included. These mothers lived in the same areas as those in the normative group (n = 112, in Montreal; n = 128, in a Quebec City suburb).» (p. 1009)

Instruments :
Questionnaires

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

«This study’s findings provide support for the hypothesis that Triple P, as implemented in Quebec, succeeded in engaging families at risk for CM. […] The central theme of the program’s promotional campaign was to normalize parental struggles caused by children’s difficult behavior (Charest et al. 2017). This positive and non-stigmatizing approach likely encouraged mothers to enroll in the program, as they could come and address their child’s difficulties without fear of being judged. […] The results [of this study] suggest that, in addition to recruiting the corresponding clientele in terms of parenting difficulties and child behavior, Triple P also succeeded in attracting families presenting a risk profile with regard to several socio-demographic variables. […] Contrary to our hypothesis, the results show that Triple P did not specifically engage younger families[:] the child’s age did not emerge as a predictor of membership in the clinical group [and] the mother’s older age predicted membership in this group […].» (p. 1012-1013) «To sum up, [this study’s] findings indicate that Triple P succeeded in attracting families presenting a certain risk profile with regard to parental, behavioral, and socio-economic characteristics, generally thought to be resistant to using such resources (Keller and McDade 2000).» (p. 1013)