Adapting a Parenting Intervention to Promote Healthy Screen Time Habits in Young Children With Behavior Problems
Condition: Behavior Problem; Parenting
MeSH terms: Problem Behavior
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      This project is a study funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human
      Development to develop and pilot test an adapted parenting intervention to decrease
      excessive/inappropriate screen media use in young children with externalizing behavior
      problems.
    

Detailed description: 
      The goal of this study is to develop and pilot test an adapted screen time intervention for
      parents of young children with externalizing behavior problems. As young children's access
      and exposure to different types of screen media devices has increased, so has public health
      concern around the links between unhealthy early screen media use (including excessive use
      and exposure to inappropriate content) and poor child outcomes. Research shows that exposure
      to screen media and externalizing behavior problems in young children are linked.
      Externalizing behavior problems also present a significant barrier to parents attempting to
      adhere to screen media use recommendations. Despite these public health concerns, screen
      media use interventions have not yet specifically targeted children with externalizing
      behavior problems. To address this need, the investigators propose to explore a novel
      approach to intervening around screen time, by adapting a behavioral parenting intervention
      designed for parents of children with externalizing behavior problems to integrate content
      around screen time. Leveraging an existing evidence-based parenting intervention will allow
      for the intervention to target parenting generally, as well as screen time specific
      parenting, without requiring additional resources. This study will focus on adapting a
      group-based parenting intervention, the School Readiness Parenting Program (SRPP). The SRPP
      is an 8-week parenting intervention based on a group Parent-Child Interaction Therapy model.
      In total, 55 parents of preschool-aged children with externalizing behavior problems will be
      recruited. Following a development phase, the investigators will conduct a small open trial
      (n = 15) to assess the feasibility of the screen time adapted intervention and families'
      satisfaction and response to treatment. At this phase, the investigators will also pilot a
      multimodal method of tracking child screen use using objective data from mobile devices and
      parent-completed media use logs. Upon making modifications based on results of the open trial
      and feedback from an external advisory panel of experts and community stakeholders, a pilot
      randomized controlled trial (n = 40) will follow. Parents will be randomly assigned to
      receive either the screen time adapted SRPP (n = 20) or the original SRPP (n = 20) program.
      Assessment measures will be completed at prettest, posttest, and at a 1 month follow up. The
      investigators will examine feasibility and acceptability of the screen time adapted
      intervention in the randomized controlled trial. The investigators will also examine
      children's screen use patterns, including overall screen time, proportion of screen time that
      is educational, and frequency of parent-child co-use of screen media. In an exploratory
      fashion, the investigators will examine the effect of the intervention on child externalizing
      behavior problems.
    

Intervention name(s): Screen media adapted School Readiness Parenting Program; School Readiness Parenting Program
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): For the screen time adapted parenting intervention, screen time intervention components will be infused into the SRPP (described below) to address three primary areas shown in research to play an important role in healthy screen media use: (1) reducing and managing screen time use; (2) maximizing benefits of screen time content; and (3) promoting positive parent-child interactions during co-use of screen media. Psychoeducation and practice of these strategies will be incorporated into sessions of the SRPP in which relevant behavioral concepts are addressed.The screen time adapted parenting intervention will utilize the same format (large group, 8 weekly 1.5 hour sessions) as the SRPP.; The SRPP is an 8-week parenting program for parents of preschool aged children with externalizing behavior problems. The SRPP targets child externalizing behavior problems specifically, as well as to help parents promote children's school readiness skills. The SRPP follows a group Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) model and also uses motivational interviewing and modelling problem solving approaches. The SRPP utilizes a large group format (10-15 parents) with weekly sessions lasting 1.5 hours. The SRPP curriculum contains traditional aspects of behavioral management strategies (e.g., improving parenting skills and the parent-child relationship; discipline strategies such as time out). Specific sessions of the SRPP also directly target parental interactions during children's learning activities and setting up homework and household structure and routines. In its original form, SRPP does not address children's screen time.
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single (Outcomes Assessor)
Primary purpose: Treatment
Keywords: child screen media use; behavior; parenting