The impact of SafeCare® Dads to Kids program on father maltreatment risk and involvement: Outcomes and lessons learned from an efficacy trial.

Child Maltreatment (CM) is a public health problem, and experts recommend parent training programs as a prevention method. Few programs target fathers, even though male caregivers are involved as perpetrators in approximately 45% of substantiated CM cases. This study examines the efficacy of an adapted version of SafeCare (Dad2K) with marginalized fathers. Participants include a convenience sample of fathers with children ages 2-5 years. Fathers (n=99) were randomized to an 1) intervention group (SafeCare Dad2K) or to a 2) comparison group (receiving parenting information in the mail). Quantitative data were collected at baseline, post-intervention (7-weeks post-baseline), and 3-months post-intervention. Qualitative data (semi-structured interviews) were collected from 11 intervention father completers following the second quantitative data collection timepoint. Multi-level modeling results indicated no statistically significant time-by-treatment findings for father involvement (b=0.03, 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.03, 0.08, p=0.38), total corporal punishment (b=-0.03, 95% CI: -0.47, 0.41, p=0.89), or neglect (b=-0.13, 95% CI: -1.93, 1.68, p=0.89). Qualitative findings indicated that Dad2K completers exhibited positive knowledge and behavioral change related to parenting. Study limitations, lessons learned from this formative work, and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Subjective religiosity, church attendance, and depression in the National Survey of American Life.

Studies have consistently indicated that blacks report lower rates of depression than whites. This study examined the association between religion and depression and whether religion explained lower rates of depression among blacks compared to whites. Data were drawn from the National Survey of American Life, a multi-ethnic sample of African Americans, Caribbean Blacks, and non-Hispanic whites (n = 6,082). African Americans and Caribbean Blacks reported higher mean levels of subjective religiosity than whites, but there were no significant differences in levels of church attendance. African Americans (OR 0.54; CI 0.45-0.65) and Caribbean Blacks (OR 0.66; CI 0.48-0.91) reported significantly lower odds of depression than whites. Differences in subjective religiosity and church attendance did not account for the association between major depression and African American and Caribbean Black race/ethnicity relative to whites. More research is needed to examine whether there are other factors that could protect against the development of depression.

Technology-Based Innovations in Child Maltreatment Prevention Programs: Examples from SafeCare®

Each year, hundreds of thousands of children in the U.S. are victims of child maltreatment. Experts recommend behavioral, skill-based parent training programs as a strategy for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. These programs can be enhanced using innovative technology strategies. This paper presents a brief history of the use of technology in SafeCare®, a home visiting program shown to prevent child neglect and physical abuse, and highlights current work that takes a technology-based hybrid approach to SafeCare delivery. With this unique approach, the provider brings a tablet computer to each session, and the parent interacts with the software to receive psychoeducation and modeling of target skills. The provider and parent then work together to practice the targeted skills until mastery is achieved. Initial findings from ongoing research of both of these strategies indicate that they show potential for improving engagement and use of positive parenting skills for parents and ease of implementation for providers. Future directions for technology enhancements in SafeCare are also presented.