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## Breadcrumb

            -  Evidence and Innovation 
            -  Teen Pregnancy Prevention Evidence Review 
            -  Programs 
            -           Families Talking Together      

# Families Talking Together

- Program Information
- Program Overview
- Program Description
- Program Component Table
- Program Implementation

- Research Evidence
- Reviewed Studies
- Study Characteristics
- Study Findings

Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Ph.D., MPH, LCSW, RN; James Jaccard, Ph.D.; and Patricia Dittus, Ph.D.

Families Talking Together is a parent-based intervention to prevent and/or reduce sexual risk behavior among Latino and African American adolescents. The main components of the intervention are parent discussions with an interventionist and a family workbook designed to teach parents effective communication skills, build parent-adolescent relationships, help parents develop successful monitoring strategies, and teach adolescents assertiveness and refusal skills. The program can be delivered to parents either individually or in small group sessions, in a range of settings.

The program was designed for and tested with African American and Latino parents of youth ages 10 to 14 years old.

The program is designed for and evaluated in various comunity-based settings, including health clinics, after school, or in the home.

For curriculum, materials, and pricing information, please contact:Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Ph.D., M.P.H., L.C.S.W., R.N., ANP-BC, PMHNP-BC, FAANEmail: Vmg243@nyu.eduPhone: 917-565-1244

For training and support, please contact:Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Ph.D., M.P.H., L.C.S.W., R.N., ANP-BC, PMHNP-BC, FAANEmail: Vmg243@nyu.eduPhone: 917-565-1244

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The program seeks to prevent and/or reduce sexual risk behavior by: 1) increasing effective communication skills; 2) building parent-adolescent relationships; 3) helping parents develop successful monitoring strategies; and 4) teaching adolescents assertiveness and refusal skills.

Families Talking Together (FTT) consists of four components: (1) individual or group face-to-face sessions with FTT trained interventionist; (2) a family workbook and discussion guide entitled “The Basics;” (3) a health care provider’s endorsement of the intervention to adolescents and parents, conveying the importance of parent-adolescent communication about sexual health and the utility of the FTT program; and (4) one phone booster session one month after the face-to-face session(s) to reinforce the FTT messages and ascertain whether additional support with parent-adolescent communication is indicated.

**Program Manual:**Every parent receives a family workbook that includes nine parent modules about how to talk to your adolescent teen about sex, and two teen modules about teen relationships and birth control and protection from STIs. In addition, each parent receives a communication guide entitled “The Basics,” which is used during the intervention sessions(s) to guide implementation. The family workbook is intended to provide parents with specific evidence-based strategies for communicating with their teen about sexual health. Parents can decide whether to share the teen materials with their adolescent children. The first nine modules focus on topics for parents, such as adolescent development and self-esteem, parenting strategies and communication skills, and adolescent sexual behavior. The teen modules cover teen relationships and birth control and protection. The modules are intended to promote communication about adolescent development and sexual health between adolescents and their parents. The materials are available in English and Spanish. Three versions of FTT are available, with one tailored to African American parents, one tailored to Latino parents, and an alternative version that can be used with families that are not African American or Latino. 

**Individual or Group Sessions:**The family workbook is distributed to parents in face-to-face individual or small group sessions facilitated by trained FTT interventionists. The sessions primarily focus on teaching parents how to use the program manual and how to structure conversations with their adolescent children. In addition, parents and FTT interventionists discuss the topics covered in the program manual, such as communication strategies and parental monitoring.

Families Talking Together is based on two theoretical frameworks, a Theory of Adolescent Sexual Risk Behavior and a Theory of Parent-Adolescent Influence. The program specifically links the theories on adolescent sexual behavior with parental influence. A program logic model is available from the developer.

The program is delivered through the interventionist targeting parents through individual or small group discussions. Parents implement the program through the use of the family workbook and individual discussions with their teen.

The number and length of sessions may vary according to the delivery setting. Typically, parents receive one or two sessions, each lasting around 30-45 minutes. The program has been delivered to individuals by trained interventionists (e.g. community health workers, health professionals) in clinics and community-based settings such as schools. Additional booster sessions may be delivered to parents after the end of the program.

The program should be delivered by trained facilitators.

Core intervention materials include a family workbook (parent and teen modules) and supplementary videos. All program materials can be accessed by contacting the developers at clafh@nyu.edu. Formal use of Families Talking Together requires training by the program developers.

None specified

The program has a logic model, and fidelity checklist (available in English and Spanish) for practitioners or researchers to monitor fidelity. The fidelity checklist outlines the key components that should be covered with the parent to ensure program fidelity. Evaluation tools are also available from the developer for assessing program outcomes.

Staff delivering the Families Talking Together intervention are required to complete, at minimum, a 40 hour approved training from the program developers that covers the essential components of the intervention. Upon successful completion of the Families Talking Together training, interventionists will receive a certificate stating that they can effectively use the program within their own setting or organization. Those interested in training can contact clafh@nyu.edu for details.

Programs requiring technical assistance resources or guidance on implementing Families Talking Together can contact clafh@nyu.edu with specific questions.

The Families Talking Together intervention allows adaptations provided they obtain the developers’ approval. Families Talking Together is designed to work in both individual and small group contexts. Specifically, the program can be delivered one-on-one with the interventionist and the parent (or primary adult care-giver) or in small group contexts. The developer should be contacted for formal approval of potential adaptations of the program.

### Evidence by Outcome Domain and Study

#### Notes

*Some study entries may include more than one citation because each citation examines a different follow-up period from the same study sample, or because each citation examines a different set of outcome measures on the same study sample. A blank cell indicates the study did not examine any outcome measures within the particular outcome domain or the findings for the outcome measures within that domain did not meet the review evidence standards.*

*Information on evidence of effectiveness is available only for studies that received a high or moderate rating. Read the description of the review process for more information on how these programs are identified.*