Parenting Partnership

Parenting Partnership is a collaborative initiative between corporate worksites and human service providers that concentrates on enhancing parenting skills, knowledge, and attitudes while at the same time facilitating the creation of support networks within the worksite. The program targets employed parents. Recruitment efforts concentrate on broad participation from mothers and fathers, and from employees of varied occupations and rank. The delivery strategy was designed to overcome common barriers to participation. Parent training courses are held during the lunch or dinner break so parents do not have to take time away from their family. To avoid stereotypes of being in a substance abuse program, the program is presented as a parenting enhancement program. Supervisors in the workplace encourage their employees to attend the sessions, thus increasing the acceptability of the program among peers.

The primary goals of the program are to reduce family risk and enhance family protective factors that predispose children and youth to substance abuse and related social and emotional difficulties.

The evaluation found that program dosage was significantly related to program impact. Parents in the program who received high dosage levels (attendance in 80 percent or more of the classes) showed significant short-term and long-term improvements in child behavior problems and strengths, parenting practices and knowledge, and substance abuse resistance-related knowledge and attitudes; reduced parental stress, depression, and irritability; reduced levels of parental punishment; declines in work-family conflicts; and increased use of social support. By contrast, parents who received a low program dosage (attendance in fewer than 80 percent of the classes) exhibited a more restricted set of short-term gains. These parents reported reduced levels of parenting stress and work-family conflict and increased social networking. Notably, only 16 percent of the parents dropped out of Parenting Partnership, which is low for parent programs.