“I Would Be There the Next Day” Versus “It’s Not Their Business”: Parent Perceptions of School-Based PCIT

Abstract

Schools need innovative early interventions to treat severe student behaviors. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) may fill this gap due to its strong efficacy in reducing behaviors, the maintenance and generalization of treatment effects, and its focus on early ages (i.e., 2–7 years or below third grade). However, standard PCIT has not been widely examined in schools, and implementing school-based PCIT may be affected by factors beyond the intervention itself. Therefore, we interviewed 13 parents with PCIT expertise to explore potential feasibility issues, as parents would be intervention participants and PCIT is rarely known to schools. Five key themes of barriers and facilitators emerged: logistics (e.g., scheduling), PCIT (e.g., PCIT is rarely known), family (e.g., different philosophy), school (e.g., intrinsic motivation to help), and culture and community (e.g., community awareness). Furthermore, six parents were enthusiastic about school-based PCIT, three expressed mixed feelings, and four shared negative views. Together, the findings alert to the potential complexity of implementing school-based PCIT while offering hope. Careful planning, such as readiness assessments and motivational interviewing, would be essential to facilitate early implementation.