The effects of parenting stress on child maltreatment or abuse are well known. According to a study published by the National Institute of Health, “the intersection of parenting stress and maltreatment underscores the importance of understanding the factors associated with parenting stress among child welfare involved families.” For both families receiving in-home supervision or children in out-of-home care, “parenting stress was predicted by child mental health, a finding with critical implications for intervention to this vulnerable group of families.”
Parenting stress became more evident during the COVID pandemic. Before it, parents who exhibited signs of depression, anxiety, or stress were seen in medical clinics, schools, or community organizations. At these crisis points, they received services critical to improving their well-being and child management. But with COVID, these resources shrunk due to social distancing and isolation. According to research conducted by Drs. Wu and Xu, the Family Stress Model is one theory about how the pandemic affected parents. When parents had a positive perception of the stressor (COVID), plus strengths and resources, their parenting skills were stable. However, for many parents already without these skills or resources, COVID exacerbated their previous capabilities and created higher levels of abuse and child maltreatment.
Additionally with school closures and therefore lack of childcare, increased parenting stress levels and potential child maltreatment occurred. Dr. Kurata and their colleagues in their cross-national study indicated, “These results indicate the need to improve the mental health of caregivers who are at risk for higher levels of parenting stress during the COVID-19 pandemic in Asian countries as well as Western countries. These results indicate that there is a need to improve the mental health of caregivers who are at risk for higher levels of parenting stress during the COVID-19 pandemic globally.”
One approach for reducing parenting stress is to combine their well-being and self-care with the parenting approach. Many parenting programs tend to focus solely on the parenting approach. But with parents as indicated above who are too stressed to concentrate on how to structure their child, these programs may fall short. Parents who receive education about themselves and how to manage their stress can then be successful with their children. Integrating a strategy of learning parental coping skills along with knowledge about the child’s needs provides a comprehensive plan. This approach, similar to the Family Stress Model, offers additional strengths and resources to the parent. They perceive stressors as COVID with feelings of empowerment rather than failure and step up to life’s pressures. Through these approaches, parenting stress and child maltreatment are reduced.
With April being National Child Abuse Prevention Month, organizations need to find positive solutions to reduce the connection between parenting stress and child maltreatment.
Praxes offers its Intensive Parent Model for parents to reduce their stress and improve their child’s behavior. For more information about training for your organization, please contact us.
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PRAXES is a nationwide behavioral health software, consulting, and training company. No one in the behavioral health industry has a better reputation, and if you give us the chance, we’ll show you why! At PRAXES, our services improve the efficiency and structure of behavioral health agencies serving children and families nationwide. PRAXES brings over 45 years of administrative and clinical expertise. With more than 100 client companies nationwide, we offer the expertise to advance the quality of behavioral health services. We accomplish these goals through our new clinical decision software, our training of best practices, and helping companies meet regulatory standards. At PRAXES, we believe in being creative and fostering new ways to serve children and their families. Our vision is to empower the families our agencies serve with skills that not only improve their functioning, but help them to thrive in their everyday lives. When you give us the chance, you’ll be connected directly to our friendly staff, so you can expect immediate attention to your inquiry. So, don’t wait, call now!
Dan Thorne has unique perspectives on the field of mental health. As a clinician, he has had over 40 years of experience working with clients in the Southern California area. After obtaining his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Irvine, he worked with children in the Orange County Juvenile Hall. Here he honed his earliest techniques on at-risk children. After that, he obtained his Master’s degree in Counseling from California State University, Fullerton.
In the 1990’s, Dan turned his attention to the clinical and administrative side of behavioral health organizations. For three years, he was the Assistant Administrator of Starting Point, a chemical dependency facility in Costa Mesa, CA. In 2001, he took an opportunity to be the Director of Harbor View Community Services Center in Long Beach. When he arrived, the Center had only 80 clients and 13 staff. When he left, there were over 400 clients and 75 staff. Dan created several programs through their contract with the Los Angeles County Departments of Mental Health and Child and Family Services. Under his guidance, Harbor View became one of the leading providers of children’s services in Los Angeles County.
While improving the results of the client’s parents at the Center, Dan reflected on his experiences as a parent. His children themselves had special needs such as mental and intellectual challenges, and Dan knew the toll it takes on the parent. In order to help the child, the parent has to be healthy. From this concept, he created his parenting program. After years of refining it, teaching it to his staff at the Center, and then taking the results and comments from these efforts, he became the developer of the current PRAXES program. It is a culmination of Dan’s personal trials and tribulations as a parent along with empirical results and research of over 40 parenting programs.
Our vision at PRAXES is to advance the strength of parents and caregivers of children with special needs (mental health, intellectual, or physical) through education, support, and empowerment. Thus, they can live healthy and functional lives while caring for the child.
Apogee is a clinical decision software designed to help behavioral health practitioners with their treatment and patient engagement. It provides evidence-based and research-based components. Not only do they consist of elements from such practices as Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Seeking Safety, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Functional Behavior Analysis, but also the Intensive Models for Parents, Youth, and Children.
PRAXES has over 30 years of accreditation experience. We know what it takes to get your organization accredited. Whether it’s Joint Commission, CARF, or COA, our team can provide an evaluation of your current status and review the standards which need improvements. We will assist you with the policies, documentation, and training required to be accredited.
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