Parents' experiences of parent training after reported child abuse: A qualitative study

Abstract

Background: Parenting programs can be effective for preventing child maltreatment, though effects are often modest, and motivating parents reported for abuse to participate in programs remains a challenge. Understanding parents' experiences can provide valuable insights into fostering parental motivation and improving programs.

Objective: This study aimed to gain a deeper understanding of parents' experiences of participating in Safer Kids, a parenting program routinely delivered in Sweden to parents reported for child abuse.

Participants and setting: Fifteen parents from a randomized controlled trial of Safer Kids were interviewed. The participants had children aged 2-12 years old and had been reported to Swedish child welfare services for physical or emotional child abuse.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Results: Four key-themes were generated: mindful parenting, which describes that parents reported improved presence in daily life and perspective-taking; confidence facing challenges, describing participants' capacity to remain calm and to regulate their children's emotions; enjoying the relationship, describing parents' experiences of a stronger, more enjoyable parent-child relationship; and a desire to improve parenting competence, highlighting parents' motivation to enhance their parenting skills, which appeared to be a reason for participation.

Conclusions: Parents reflected positively on their experiences with Safer Kids and described several improvements to their parenting after the program. A central finding was that enhancing the ability to focus on the present moment seemed crucial for improving emotional regulation and the parent-child relationship quality.

Keywords: Child abuse; Child maltreatment; Family conflict; Parent training; Parenting; Qualitative research.