Saturday 12 October 2013

The Most Proven Parenting Style Out There



The Benefits



The Positive Parenting Program, otherwise known as the Triple P Program, is the most proven and effective parenting style out there. It has been show to decrease nearly every problem behaviour under the sun, including:
  • hitting other children
  • lying
  • bullying
  • suffering anxiety
  • being cruel to animals
  • not being able to concentrate
  • and many other things.


The evidence behind it is also incredibly strong. There have been 57 randomized controlled trials, even more regular studies, and 4 meta-analyses, which are studies of studies, where they summarize all of the data of multiple studies.1,2,3,4


How to Do It



Unfortunately the program is copyrighted and you cannot simply find information on the internet very easily. There is no download. I did however find a few free online resources.
  1. Lecture but aimed at Triple-P professionals rather than a beginner parent: part 1and part 2


It is a large group of multiple methods so is not readily summarized. For example, it recommends capitalizing on teaching children when they’re curious about something, rather than when you want them to be interested in something. It also recommends giving time outs that are never longer than 5 minutes, and paying attention to a child when they’re behaving, not just when they’re misbehaving.


Since it is not based on one overarching principle, it seems the only way to learn the material is to read their materials for sale, or go to one of their classes in your area, which are often free. When you’re done reading this I would Google “Triple P Parenting ______(the area you live)” to see if there are any classes nearby.



(1) For the science geeks, it had quite a large effect size for the social sciences. In one meta-analysis (an analysis of multiple studies, not just one) it showed an effect size of 0.35 and in another it found 0.54. In one meta-analysis they broke it down into parent-reported problems compared to others observing the effects and they were even higher at 0.73, however I’m less inclined to trust these results because parents are overly optimistic about their own children. Nonetheless, it does predict that if you practice their techniques you’ll think your child is doing better than before.
(4) Behavioral Outcomes of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy and Triple P—Positive Parenting Program: A Review and Meta-Analysis

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