Katy Smart

Parenting Programmes: What the Parents Say

A Case Study in Mixed Methods Social Science Research

1st ed. 2020

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Katy Smart

School of Education, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK

ISBN 978-3-030-59501-2e-ISBN 978-3-030-59502-9

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59502-9

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I would like to dedicate this book to my husband Chris who has always believed in me and encouraged me to follow my passion to try and make a difference to the lives of children, young people and their families.

I am so grateful for all the hours Chris has patiently listened to me as I have talked about every other aspect surrounding my Ph.D. research and then this book. I am so appreciative for all the time he has given up to spend with me over the years as I have worked on my research. When you undertake a Ph.D. and then decide to write a book about it, it is all encompassing and permeates most aspects of your life.

It is especially thanks to Chris’ constant support, love and encouragement that I am now in a position to share my research with you.

Acknowledgements

There are so many people that I want to thank for helping me complete the research that has led to this book

Firstly, I must thank the participants, the parents, all of whom were so generous with their time completing questionnaires and taking part in the interviews; without them there would have been no research. Although I do not discuss the data from the trainers, they do deserve a thank you for the time they gave me. This provided triangulation of data sources and promoted the trustworthiness of the data.

I must also thank the local authorities, children’s centres and schools who acted as gatekeepers and gave me permission to invite their parents to take part in my research. Without their support I would not have been so successful in recruiting so many parents.

I would also like to thank my supervisors at the University of Bristol, Professor Anthony Feiler and Dr. Sara Meadows, for their ongoing support and encouragement throughout my Ph.D. The time and guidance they gave me was invaluable.

Although sadly no longer with us I would like to thank Professor Roy Bhaskar for encouraging me to attend his fortnightly reading group sessions, annual conference and webinars at the Institute of Education in London, to help me better understand his multi-faceted philosophy of Critical Realism. He very sadly passed away on the 19 November 2014 however his philosophy lives on.

Finally, I must thank my family, my husband Chris and children Nathan, Francis and Eleanor, for all their love and continual support throughout my research and the writing of this book. When you take on a Ph.D. so does your family and for this I am most grateful.

I thank you all.

About This Book

This book captures the key findings from my Ph.D. research at the University of Bristol looking at parenting programmes.

The first two chapters address the reasons why I considered it necessary to undertake this research and highlight some key elements of my methodology. Chapter 2 also introduces the parents who took part in the study, in particular the eight interviewed parents.

The following five chapters are each framed around one of the five key themes that developed from my analysis of the parents’ questionnaire and interview data. I make extensive use of direct quotations so that the parents’ voices can be heard.

The final chapter summarises my key findings regarding the parents’ perspectives of the parenting programmes. It further demonstrates how parenting programmes are a real-world example of the Transplant model of parent-professional practice in action. Finally, I discuss how elements of my methodological approach might be more widely applicable within social science research.

Abbreviations

1M: First Moment in DCR
2E: Second Edge in DCR
3L: Third Level in DCR
4D: Fourth Dimension in DCR
ALSPAC: Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children
ASD: Autistic Spectrum Disorder
BPP: Better Parenting Programme
CR: Critical Realism
DCR: Dialectical Critical Realism
DCSF: Department for Children, Schools and Families
DfES: Department for Education and Skills
EYFS: Early Years Foundation Stage
LA: Local Authority
NICE: National Institute for Clinical Excellence
PALS: Parents Altogether Lending Support
PEEP: Peers Early Education Partnership
PEIP: Parenting Early Intervention Programme
PRU: Pupil Referral Unit
PSA: Parent Support Advisor
SES: Socio-Economic Status

Contents

1 Introduction 1

Introduction to Key Terms 3

Parents 4

Parenting Styles 4

Parenting Skills 4

Parental Involvement and Parental Engagement 4

Introduction to Parenting Programmes 5

Research Aims 7

A Critical Realist Research Approach 9

Summary 13

References 14

2 The Parents 17

Targeted Groups 18

Fathers and Parenting Programmes 18

Teenage Mothers and Parenting Programmes 19

Poverty and Parenting 21

Research Design 22

The Parents for Interview 27

The Interviews 28

Summary 30

References 32

3 The Importance of Learning and Using Parenting Strategies 35

Theory of Good Parenting 36

Developing Parenting Skills 39

The Importance of Parental Confidence 42

The Parenting Programmes in This Research 44

Triple-P 44

Webster Stratton’s The Incredible Years 45

PEEP 45

What the Parents Say 46

What This Tells Us 57

References 59

4 The Value of Spending Quality Time with Their Child 63

The Impact of Attachment on Parenting 64

The Impact of Parenting on Children’s Behaviour 66

What the Parents Say 67

What This Tells Us 72

References 74

5 How Children Benefit from Opportunities That Promote Their Development 77

Assuring Confidentiality and Anonymity 77

Confidentiality 78

Anonymity 78

The Impact of Parenting on Children’s Development and Attainment 80

What the Parents Say 85

Speech and Language Development 86

Social Development 87

Behavioural Development 89

Improved Confidence 90

School Readiness and Education 92

What This Tells Us 93

References 95

6 The Significance of the Family Working Together 97

Parenting Programme Critique 98

What the Parents Say 102

What This Tells Us 104

References 106

7 The Importance of the Right Environment to Share Parenting Experiences with Other Parents 109

What the Parents Say 111

What This Tells Us 114

References 118

8 Discussion and Conclusion 119

What Parents Thought About the Impact of Parenting Programmes 120

Research Question 2: Parents’ Views Regarding Parental Changes 120

Research Question 3: Parents’ Views on the Impact to the Children 122

Parenting Programmes as a Real-World Example of a Transplant Model in Practice 124

Research Question 1: Parents’ Views on Parenting Programmes 124

How My Methodology Can Serve as an Example for General Social Science Research 126

Critical Realism as a Philosophy 126

Maximising Participation Through Anonymity and Confidentiality 127

Engaging to Maximise Participation 128

Respecting the Data 129

Current Parenting Programme Availability 130

Conclusion 133

References 134

Index 137

List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 Ontological layers in Critical Realism 10

Fig. 2.1 Research timeline 25

Fig. 2.2 Initial groupings of nodes 30

Fig. 2.3 Analysis process from transcript to themes 31

Fig. 3.1 Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems model 37

List of Tables

Table 2.1 Parents recruited per programme 23

Table 2.2 Parents selected for interview 26

About the Author

Katy Smart

has Ph.D. research interest, which forms the basis of this book, that came about through over 30 years of working with children, young people and parents. This included being a parent programme designer and facilitator, NVQ lecturer and assessor in childcare and education, Educational Psychologist Assistant, preschool leader and primary school teacher. She was also the Parent Support, Extended Services and Children’s Centre Advisor for 78 primary, secondary and special schools and 14 children’s centres for a local authority in the south-west of the UK for over six years.

Her interest in parenting and parental engagement has also been influenced by 31 years of being a mother. As a mother she always treasured the time she spent with her three children from reading stories and playing with them as they discovered the world through encouraging them to develop and explore their imaginations and creativity, to supporting their learning with field trips and helping with homework, to embracing their passions and helping them achieve their dreams.

Katy is currently a Post-doctoral Researcher at the University of Oxford; prior to that she was a Senior Teaching Associate at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Bristol. Since 2013 she has been the editor of the Psychology of Education Review, the journal of the Psychology of Education Section of the British Psychological Society.

Previous publications by Katy include a chapter in Psychology Applications and Developments III entitled Parenting Programmes: A Transplant Model in Practice. She also was the co-editor of The Role of Competence Beliefs in Teaching and Learning, part of the Current Trends monograph series from the British Journal of Educational Psychology.