Clinical trial NCT03058549: Impact Evaluation of Family Expectations: A Program to Strengthen the Relationships of Disadvantaged Expectant Couples
Official title: Family Expectations: Impact Evaluation of Program for Expectant Couples
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Committed Couple Expecting a Child
Parenting
Family Relations
Keywords: Expectant parents
Relationship education
Lead sponsor: Public Strategies
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Children's Bureau - Administration for Children and Families
name: University of Denver
First posted: 2017-02-23
Enrollment: 2640
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 100
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: This study investigates the effectiveness of a program to strengthen the relationships of disadvantaged expectant couples, and to increase co-parenting, father involvement, and economic stability. Couples are randomly assigned to Family Expectations or a control group, and assessed at baseline and one year.

Detailed description: The birth of a child can trigger relationship distress and dissolution. Family Expectations (FE) targets the transition to parenthood as a critical time to help couples focus on family success. Regardless of whether couples are married or unmarried, the goal of FE is to strengthen relationships and advance the well-being of economically disadvantaged couples who are expecting a baby or who are new parents, and to improve the lives of their children. The FE program, including the Becoming Parents (BP) curriculum and supplemental services, is designed to address specific risk factors that affect individual family members and the relationships among them, and to build protective factors that help families avoid, minimize, or manage risks (e.g., individual maladaptation \[mother, father, child\], couple relationship difficulties, parenting difficulties, and economic insufficiency).

A total of 1,355 couples will be randomly assigned to either Family Expectations (n = 813; 60%) or an untreated control group (n = 542; 40%). Once assigned, participants in the study will complete baseline questions by survey. Those assigned to the FE track will be scheduled for services with the FE intervention team and the control group will not receive the FE intervention. Members of the intervention and control groups will be surveyed both before they are randomly assigned and 12 months later. The study will examine if the Family Expectations program is associated with improved outcomes on relationship quality, stability, parenting quality, father involvement, child wellbeing, and hopefulness about employment.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

1. Both partners are willing to participate
2. Partners have a commitment to be together as a couple
3. Both partners are the biological parents of a child in a current pregnancy or of a child born within the past 3 months
4. Fluent in English (study and intervention materials are in English)

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Either or both partners have taken part in Family Expectations services before

Primary outcomes:
measure: Relationship adjustment
timeFrame: Baseline and 1 year post baseline (to assess change over time). Change (or maintenance) relative to control group will be assessed across the two time points.
measure: Relationship stability
timeFrame: 1 year post baseline
measure: Individual wellbeing
timeFrame: Baseline and 1 year post baseline. Change (or maintenance) relative to control group will be assessed across the two time points.
measure: Co-parenting quality
timeFrame: 1 year post baseline.
measure: Child outcomes
timeFrame: 1 year post baseline.
measure: Interaction quality
timeFrame: Baseline and 1 year post baseline. Change (or maintenance) relative to control group will be assessed across the two time points.
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Changes in Income
timeFrame: Baseline and 1 year post baseline. Change relative to control group will be assessed across the two time points.
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Oklahoma City
country: United States
facility: Public Strategies
state: Oklahoma
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Denver
name: Galena K Rhoades, Ph.D.
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: