A training programme to facilitate parents' orientation to and definition of problems experienced in parenting young children with moderate to severe communication disabilities

Abstract

Effective, sustainable and versatile Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) requires collaborative problem-solving between parents as help-seekers and professionals as help-givers during assessment, to facilitate treatment planning based on mutual understanding of parents problems and needs. However, international and South African research reflect parent dissatisfaction and poor participation in ECI programmes for young children with disabilities, which indicates a breakdown in the collaborative problem solving process. The field of ECI confronts the problem by training professionals as help-givers, but does not do the same for parents as help-seekers. This study drew from the field of psychology and innovatively used the first two stages of social problem-solving, namely, problem orientation and problem definition to conceptualise help-seeking in Early Childhood Communication Intervention (ECCI). The study developed and tested a parent training programme to facilitate parents orientation to and definition of problems experienced in parenting young children (0-6 years) with moderate to severe communication disabilities. A quasi-experimental non-equivalent groups pre-test-post-test control group design was used to implement 16 hours of training with 34 parents (i.e. 15 in the experimental group and 19 in the control group). Between-group and within-group analyses revealed that training had a statistically significant effect on parents problem orientations regarding initial and maintaining attributions of children s established disabilities, confidence in seeking help from family and friends, and appraising problems as challenges. Training effects were even greater for problem definition with parents showing moderately good skills in providing relevant information in an organized format, thereby facilitating intervention planning. Theoretical and clinical implications of the findings are discussed.