Maternal History of Abuse as a Moderator of Effectiveness in a Parenting Intervention Program

• Main Author: Dyson, Amanda Lee
• Other Authors: Scott, Katreena
• Language: en_ca
• Published: 2013
• Subjects: treatment; maternal; parenting; effectiveness; history; abuse; women; 0622
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/42616

This study examined the effectiveness of a parenting intervention for abused women and their children called Mothers in MindTM. Based on models of cumulative effects of trauma, it was hypothesized that women who experienced continuous abuse (from childhood to adulthood) would have more parenting difficulties initially and be less receptive to treatment than women whose abuse experiences began later in life (in youth and/or adulthood). Fifty-seven women completed the intervention. Overall, parenting intervention significantly increased women’s parenting competence but did not significantly change mothers’ perceptions of their attachment with their children. Contrary to hypotheses, there were no significant differences in initial parenting difficulties between the two groups and timing of abuse (continuous versus late onset) did not significantly differentiate treatment effects. Contributions of other contextual variables, such as poverty and parental psychopathology, to variation in the effectiveness of intervention for this population of multiply disadvantaged women are discussed.