Trauma-Informed Parenting Classes Delivered to Rural Kinship Parents: A Pilot Study

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Without an informed approach, kinship parents, often grandparents, may struggle to effectively interact with their children who have experienced trauma. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this pilot study was to describe the overall impact and acceptability of a trauma-informed parenting curriculum delivered to 16 rural-dwelling kinship parents. Nursing faculty partnered with Cooperative Extension Educators to deliver this curriculum, developed by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Semistructured interviews, an acceptability survey, and measures of parent, child, and family environment were used. DESIGN: This pilot, multisite, mixed-methods, intervention study employed a pre–post, paired test design. RESULTS: Significant differences were revealed on select items that measured parent–child nurturing and the families’ cultural, political, and intellectual activities with posttest scores lower than pretest scores. Themes revealed processing the aftermath of child trauma and being a kinship parent. CONCLUSIONS: Although quantitative measures failed to demonstrate the impact of the curriculum, qualitative and satisfaction data provide preliminary evidence to support this intervention.