Effects of the ADAPT Military Parenting Program on Parenting Behaviors in a Subsample of Deployed Mothers

Abstract: The current study examined the effects of the After Deployment, Adaptive Parenting Tools (ADAPT program), a parenting program for military families, in a subsample of deployed mothers from a larger randomized control trial. Multiple regression was used to examine both observed and self-reported parenting outcomes between intervention and control groups at 1-year follow-up. Drawn from a randomized controlled trial with 336 military families with 5–12-year-old children, the current sample included 56 deployed mothers (Mean age = 34.57 years old; 64.3% were married; 87.5% Caucasians). Results indicated that deployed mothers showed improvement in observed positive parenting (β =.31, p =.01, SE =.32, d =.55) but no significant improvement in overall observed parenting, (β =.24, p =.08, SE =.13, d =.43), no significant reductions in observed harsh discipline (β =.19, p =.18, SE =.14, d =.08) and no significant increases in self-report of parental locus of control (β = −.05, p =.49, SE =.08, d =.25). These findings present the first evidence for the effectiveness of a parenting program for deployed mothers with school-aged children. Improvements in positive parenting are consistent with prior findings from the GenPMTO intervention framework. The lack of intervention effects on harsh discipline suggests that future interventions should consider the cultural meanings and functions of discipline within military contexts and how they may spill over into the home. Clinical Trial Registration: This study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, study NCT03522610 on 02/16/2018.