Grant: Operating Grant: Population Health Intervention Research

Parenting is an important influence on the mental and physical health of children as well as a determinant of their long term well-being. Yet, parents receive little preparation for the parental role. Triple P is a unique community-based parenting intervention currently being adopted throughout various Canadian provinces. It is offered on a population-wide basis and, rather than being a single program, it is a multilevel system of parenting support that offers service at varying degree of intensity. The purpose of this study is to conduct an evaluation of Triple P using archived, population-based, administrative data sources. Two research questions will be addressed: (1) Is the Triple P Parenting Program associated with benefits to children and parents? (2) What program features and community characteristics are associated with benefits for children and parents? Outcomes measures from administrative data sources will include measures of: (a) school readiness; (b) educational outcomes measuring numeracy, reading, and writing skills (in grades 4 and 7); (c) child behaviour problems; (d) child/parent mental health conditions; and (e) rates of child abuse and neglect, and foster home placements. This will be the first Canadian population-based evaluation of Triple P and it will provide valuable public health information about the efficacy of a universal parenting intervention program. This study also provides an opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of using population-based administrative data in research, which imposes little or no additional burden on participants, organizations, or service providers.