A contribution to the Italian validation of the Parenting Interaction with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcome (PICCOLO).

Introduction: PICCOLO (Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes) is an observational instrument designed to assess four domains of parenting interactions that promote early child development (Affection, Responsiveness, Encouragement, and Teaching). Although PICCOLO has been validated in the United States for children as young as 4 months of age, the current focus is on parents with children aged between 10 and 47 months. This study contributes to the validation of the Italian translation of the PICCOLO by testing its psychometric properties and examining whether factors such as the child's age and child's sex are related to the four domains of parenting interactions. Methods: To these aims, 152 mothers of children aged 10-47 months from three Italian regions participated in the study. Results: Results indicate that the PICCOLO Italian version has acceptable inter-rater agreement, split-half reliability, and stability over time. Furthermore, the Italian version confirmed the robustness of the factor structure proposed in the original version. While there were no significant differences by child gender on the domains of parenting interactions, the Affection scores decreased with age. Discussion: Overall, these results demonstrate that the Italian version of the PICCOLO is a reliable measure of maternal interactions with children. The psychometric properties of the instrument make it appropriate for general research purposes and for assessment of parenting before and after support interventions.

Severity of developmental delay and parenting behavior in toddlers with neurodevelopmental disabilities.

Introduction: The presence of a neurodevelopmental disability (ND) represents an adverse condition for child's development and parent-child relationship, and it is reasonable to assume that the severity of delay may influence parenting behavior. Previous research, however, did not specifically address this issue. Methods: This cross-sectional study compared parental behaviors of mothers of toddlers with moderate/severe or mild/borderline developmental delay and mothers of toddlers with typical development, while considering maternal emotional states. A total of 88 dyads with children aged between 12 and 47 months participated in a 10-min video-recorded interaction then coded with the PICCOLO, a validated observation checklist that assesses four dimensions of parenting: affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching. The mothers also fulfilled two standardized questionnaires assessing parental stress and presence of depressive symptoms. MANOVA and MANCOVA models were used to explore between-group differences in specific parenting dimensions, also considering parental stress. Results: Mothers of toddlers with ND were less responsive than the comparison group, while the presence of a moderate/severe developmental delay specifically affected teaching behaviors. No differences emerged for affection and encouragement behaviors. Importantly, although mothers of toddlers with moderate/severe ND reported higher child-related dysfunctional interaction stress, this did not directly affect parenting behaviors. Discussion: These findings highlight how the presence of a disability and the severity of developmental delay can affect specific dimensions of parenting (i.e., responsiveness, teaching) and might inform clinical practice and research on early parental interventions.

Coaching home visitors: A thematic review with an emphasis on research and practice needs.

There is wide recognition in early childhood fields that coaching is important to a professional's development and growth in general, but little is known about coaching home visiting professionals in particular. An early childhood home visiting professional works with families to encourage positive parent-child interactions, family goal setting, and family well-being and health. Determining the essential components of coaching home visitors will help advance this field. Because coaching in the home visiting field is emergent, this article draws on literature from the early childhood field with an emphasis on applications for home visiting. We gleaned six themes that may represent common features of coaching. This article presents a compilation of common themes identified in literature reviews on coaching professionals across the early childhood field that warrant further development and evaluation by home visiting practitioners and researchers regardless of the home visiting model. The discussion concludes with recommendations to stimulate research and practice on coaching home visitors.

Se reconoce ampliamente en los campos de la temprana niñez que el entrenamiento es importante para el desarrollo y crecimiento en general de todo profesional, pero poco se conoce acerca del entrenamiento de profesionales que hacen visitas a casa, en particular. Un profesional del campo de visitas a casa en la temprana niñez trabaja con familias para motivar las positivas interacciones entre progenitores y niños, el proceso de establecer metas familiares, así como el bienestar y salud de la familia. Determinar los componentes esenciales del entrenamiento a visitantes a casa ayudará en el progreso de este campo profesional. Dado que el entrenamiento en el campo de visitas a casa es algo que está surgiendo, este artículo toma aspectos de la literatura en el campo de la temprana niñez con énfasis en lo que es aplicable a las visitas a casa. Recogimos seis temas que pudieran representar características comunes del entrenamiento. Este artículo presenta una compilación de temas comunes identificados en las revisiones de la literatura sobre el entrenamiento de profesionales en todo el campo de la temprana niñez que garantizan el fomento del desarrollo y la evaluación por parte de quienes practican e investigan sobre el campo de las visitas a casa, independientemente del modelo de visitas a casa. La discusión concluye con recomendaciones para estimular la investigación y la práctica acerca del entrenamiento a quienes hacen las visitas a casa.

On reconnaît dans les domaines de la petite enfance que le coaching est très important pour le développement d'un professionnel et sa progression en général, mais on sait peu de choses sur les professionnels qui font du coaching en visite à domicile. Un professionnel visiteur à domicile de l'enfance travaille avec des familles afin d'encourager des interactions parent-enfant positives, la fixation d'objectifs pour la famille, et le bien-être et la santé de la famille. Déterminer les composantes essentielles des visiteurs à domiciles qui coachent nous aidera à faire avancer le domaine. Parce que le coaching dans le domaine de la visite à domicile est émergent cet article s'appuie sur des recherches ayant trait au domaine de la petite enfance mettant l'accent sur les applications pour la visite à domicile. Nous avons glané six thèmes qui pourraient représenter les traits principaux du coaching. Cet article présente une compilation de thèmes communs identifiés dans des analyses documentaires sur les professionnels du coaching au travers du domaine de la petite enfance qui méritent des développements ultérieurs et une évaluation par les professionnels de la visite à domicile et les chercheurs, quel que soit le modèle de visite à domicile. La discussion se termine avec des recommandations afin de stimuler les recherches et la pratique sur les visiteurs à domicile qui font du coaching.

Spanish Validation of the PICCOLO (Parenting Interactions With Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes).

Background/Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO; Roggman et al., 2013a). This observational measure is composed of 29 items that assess the quality of four domains of parenting interactions that promote child development: affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching. Methods: The sample included 203 mother-child dyads who had been video-recorded playing together. Fifty-six percent of the children were male, and 44% were female, aged from 10 to 47 months. Video-recorded observations were rated using PICCOLO items. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis supported that the instrument has four first-order factors corresponding to the hypothesized domains of parenting behaviors, and a second-order factor corresponding to a general factor of positive parenting. Construct validation evidence was compiled by examining the relationship between PICCOLO scores and child age. As expected, teaching domain and total PICCOLO scores were positively correlated with child age. The Spanish PICCOLO also demonstrated good inter-rater reliability (ranging from 0.69 to 0.84) and internal consistency reliability (ranging from 0.59 to 0.88) for the four domain scores and the total parenting score. Concurrent criterion-related validity was examined via correlations between parenting scores and child cognitive, language and motor skills outcomes, measured using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Conclusion: The Spanish version of the PICCOLO meets the criteria for a reliable and valid observational measurement of parenting interactions with children. The psychometric properties of the instrument make it appropriate for general research purposes, but also for program evaluation of Early Intervention and other parenting-support interventions. This measure, focused on parent strengths, could be used to facilitate family-centered practices in early intervention and other programs that have parenting as an outcome.

The Home Visit Rating Scales: Revised, restructured, and revalidated.

The Home Visit Rating Scales (HOVRS) were initially developed from field-based descriptions of successful home visits and are supported by home-visiting research in multiple disciplines. Four home-visiting practices scales include indicators of relationship building with families, responsiveness to family strengths, facilitation of parent-child interaction, and collaboration with parents. Three family engagement scales include indicators of parent-child interaction, parent engagement, and child engagement in the visit. The original version, the HOVRS-1, was validated using video and data from two Early Head Start home-visiting programs. Conceptual and structural changes for the HOVRS-3 were designed to improve readability, usability, and clarity. Newly trained observers used the HOVRS-3 to observe archived videos from the original measurement sample. The HOVRS-3 showed good interrater reliability, scale internal consistency, convergent validity, predictive validity, practical significance, and version stability. When the HOVRS-3 home-visit quality scores were higher, it was twice as likely for parenting scores to be average or better and for child language to be at age level or better at age 3 years, over and above parenting and child language at age 1 year. The HOVRS can guide observations of home-visit quality in infant-toddler and early childhood programs to improve home-visiting practices and family engagement.

Las Escalas de Evaluación de Visitas a Casa inicialmente se desarrollaron a partir de las descripciones sobre el campo de exitosas visitas a casa y las mismas están apoyadas por la investigación sobre la visita a casa en múltiples disciplinas. Las escalas de prácticas de cuatro visitas a casa incluyen indicadores de relaciones establecidas con familias, sensibilidad hacia los puntos fuertes de la familia, el facilitar la interacción entre progenitor y niño, y la colaboración con los progenitores. Las escalas de participación de tres familias incluyen indicadores sobre la interacción entre progenitor y niño, la participación del progenitor, y la participación del niño en la visita. Se validó la versión original, HOVRS-1, usando un video e información de dos programas de visitas a casa de Un Comienzo Temprano (Early Head Start). Se diseñaron cambios conceptuales y estructurales para HOVRS-3 para mejorar la legibilidad, la disponibilidad para el uso y la claridad. Nuevos observadores entrenados usaron HOVRS-3 para observar videos archivados acerca de las medidas de la muestra original - HOVRS-3 mostró buena confiabilidad entre los evaluadores, consistencia interna de la escala, validez convergente, validez de predicción, importancia práctica y estabilidad de la versión. Cuando los puntajes de calidad de HOVRS-3 sobre la visita a casa fueron más altos, la inclinación de los puntajes de crianza de ser promedio o mejores fue dos veces mayor, así como también fue el lenguaje del niño de estar al nivel de la edad o mejor a los 3 años, muy por encima del lenguaje de crianza y del niño a la edad de un año. Las Escalas de Evaluación de Visitas a Casa pueden guiar las observaciones de la calidad de la visita a casa en programas para infantes y niños pequeñitos y en la temprana niñez para mejorar las prácticas de visitas a casa y la participación de la familia.

Les Echelles d'Evaluation de la Visite à Domicile ont été initialement développées à partir de descriptions sur le terrain de visites à domicile réussies et sont soutenues par les recherches sur les visites à domicile dans de multiples disciplines. Quatre échelles de pratique de visites à domicile incluent des indicateurs de développement de la relation avec les familles, la réaction aux forces familiales, la facilitation de l'interaction parent-enfant, et la collaboration avec les parents. Trois échelles d'engagement de la famille incluent des indicateurs d'interaction parent-enfant, d'engagement parental, et d'engagement de l'enfant durant la visite. La version originale, abrégée en anglais HOVRS-1, a été validée en utilisant des vidéos et des données de deux programmes de visites à domiciles américains dans le cadre du programme d'aide aux enfants défavorisés de Early Head Start. Les changements conceptuels et structurels du HOVRS-3 ont été faits afin d'améliorer sa lisibilité, sa facilité d'utilisation et sa clarté. De nouveaux observateurs fraîchement formés ont utilisé les afin d'observer des vidéos mises en archive de l'échantillon original de mesure. Les HOVRS-3 ont fait preuve d'une bonne fiabilité d'inter-évaluateur, d'une bonne cohérence interne à l'échelle, de validité convergente et de stabilité de version. Lorsque les scores de qualité de la visite à domicile HOVRS-3 étaient plus élevés il était deux fois plus probable que les scores de parentage soient moyens ou mieux et pour le langage de l'enfant qu'il soit au niveau de l'âge ou mieux à l'âge de 3 ans, bien au dessus du parentage et du langage de l'enfant à l'âge de 1 ans. Les Echelles d'Evaluation de la Visite à Domicile peuvent guider des observations de la qualité de la visite à domicile chez les nourrissons-petits-enfants et de programmes de la petite enfance afin d'améliorer les pratiques de visites à domicile et d'engagement de la famille.

The National Children's Study: Early Recruitment Outcomes Using the Direct Outreach Approach.

OBJECTIVE: In 2009, the National Children's Study (NCS) Vanguard Study tested the feasibility of household-based recruitment and participant enrollment by using a birth rate probability sample. In 2010, the NCS Program Office launched 3 alternative recruitment methods. We tested whether direct outreach (DO) recruitment could be a more efficient strategy to recruit women of child-bearing age. METHODS: The NCS DO recruitment approach recruited women, 18 to 49 years, who were pregnant or trying to conceive using passive recruitment methods emphasizing broad community outreach and engagement to create study awareness. Study mailings to listed households included a pregnancy screening questionnaire to identify potentially eligible women from selected neighborhoods to contact the study center. Unique features of this recruitment approach included the following: (1) expansion of selected neighborhoods to maximize potential participant recruitment and enrollment while minimizing in-person participant contact and (2) offering 2 levels of study participation distinguished by data collection intensity. RESULTS: Ten study centers listed 255 475 geographically eligible households for contact representing, on average, 3.3% of households per Primary Sampling Unit. A total of 19 354 women were identified for screening, and 17 421 completed a pregnancy screener representing 6.8% of eligible households. Study-eligible pregnant women were older, more educated, and less likely to be Hispanic than the general population. Only 16% (2786) of 17 421 screened women were study-eligible, and 81.1% of these 2786 women consented to participate. CONCLUSIONS: Although feasible, the DO approach recruited a sample of study-eligible pregnant women significantly different from the population. This recruitment approach was labor intensive for the yield of enrolled women.

HOME VISIT QUALITY VARIATIONS IN TWO EARLY HEAD START PROGRAMS IN RELATION TO PARENTING AND CHILD VOCABULARY OUTCOMES.

Home-visiting programs aiming to improve early child development have demonstrated positive outcomes, but processes within home visits to individual families are rarely documented. We examined family-level variations in the home-visiting process (N = 71) from extant video recordings of home visits in two Early Head Start programs, using an observational measure of research-based quality indicators of home-visiting practices and family engagement, the Home Visit Rating Scales (HOVRS). HOVRS scores, showing good interrater agreement and internal consistency, were significantly associated with parent- and staff-reported positive characteristics of home visiting as well as with parenting and child language outcomes tested at program exit. When home-visiting processes were higher quality during the program, home visit content was more focused on child development, families were more involved in the overall program, and most important, scores on measures of the parenting environment and children's vocabulary were higher at the end of the program. Results showed that home visit quality was indirectly associated with child language outcomes through parenting outcomes. Observation ratings of home visit quality could be useful for guiding program improvement, supporting professional development, and increasing our understanding of the links between home-visiting processes and outcomes.