Parenting Stress, Psychological Flexibility
Conditions
Keywords
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Adults with SENs, Parents of Children with SENs
Brief summary
Parenting children with special health care needs can be stressful and weigh on the caregivers' mental health. For the individuals with special needs, the mismatch between their needs and the normative practice in the world around them can be frustrating and detrimental to their functioning. The demands and concerns to these families can be so real that it may not be sensible to examine the validity or helpfulness of the distressing thoughts or feelings but to promote psychological flexibility, which is a key to value-guided living. This pilot study explores the effects and feasibility of a group-based intervention for families of individuals with special health care needs.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAcceptance and Commitment Therapy
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a well-established and evidence-based psychotherapy for individuals at different ages and with different clinical needs. The protocol used in the current study is adapted from an established local group intervention and tailored to families of individuals with special health care needs.
Sponsors
The University of Hong Kong
The Salvation Army, Hong Kong and Macau Command
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* be at or older than 18 years old * understand Cantonese * read as well as write Chinese
Exclusion criteria
* with borderline or greater intellectual deficits * weak language abilities * severe conditions related to mental, emotional, and/or behavioral functioning
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change from Baseline in Psychological Flexibility as Measured by the Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility Inventory | From baseline (T0) to two (T1), four (T2), and six (T3; post-intervention) weeks into treatment | Score on psychological flexibility is the sum of scores across items |
| Change from Baseline in Psychological Inflexibility as Measured by the Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility Inventory | From baseline (T0) to two (T1), four (T2), and six (T3; post-intervention) weeks into treatment | Score on psychological inflexibility is the sum of scores across items |
| Change from Baseline in Psychological Well-being as Measured by the 5-Item World Health Organization Well-being Index | From baseline (T0) to two (T1), four (T2), and six (T3; post-intervention) weeks into treatment | Score on psychological well-being is the sum of scores across items |
| Change from Baseline in Parenting Stress as Measured by the Parenting Stress Scale | From baseline to six weeks into treatment | Score on parenting stress is the sum of scores across items |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change from Baseline in Child Externalizing as Measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire | From baseline to six weeks into treatment (i.e., post-intervention) | Score on externalizing is the sum of scores across items |
| Change from Baseline in Child Internalizing as Measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire | From baseline to six weeks into treatment (i.e., post-intervention) | Score on externalizing is the sum of scores across items |
| Participants' Satisfaction with the Intervention Program | Six-week into treatment (i.e., post-intervention) | Eight items on a 5-point Likert scale are designed specifically for this study to assess participants' experience with the treatment program. |
| Participants' Personal Narratives on Their Experience with the Intervention Program | Within six weeks after completing the treatment | Both open-ended text items and interviews are utilized to invite participants' sharing of their experiences throughout the treatment |
Countries
Hong Kong
Contacts
CONTACTPui Man Chan
Outcome results
None listed