Top 5 parenting programmes improve mental health

A new University of Washington (UW) study has identified five parenting programmes (including the Triple P – Positive Parenting Program) that are especially effective at reducing aggression, depression and anxiety in children, and result in better mental health and reduced substance abuse in adolescents.

Twenty programmes were evaluated, with Triple P one of five deemed particularly effective and confirmed to work with a wide variety of families in diverse settings.

"You see the impact of when parents get on the same page and work together to provide an environment that promotes wellbeing. You can make long-term impacts,” says Kevin Haggerty, study co-author and assistant director of the UW’s Social Development Research Group in the School of Social Work. 

The study, published in the Journal of Children's Services, and announced in a UW media release, was partly funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Read the full University of Washington media release here.

The published research paper (abstract only – full article available to buy or for registered institutions).