Implementing parenting programs in real-world community settings is fundamental to making effective programs widely available and consequently improving the lives of children and their families. Despite the literature acknowledging that the high-quality implementation of parenting programs is particularly challenging in real-world community settings, little is known about how the programs are implemented in these settings. This scoping review followed the methodological framework described by the Joanna Briggs Institute to map evidence on how evidence-based parenting programs have been implemented under real-world conditions. A systematic search of 12 scientific databases, gray literature, and the reference lists of the included studies identified 1918 records, of which 145 were included in the review. Fifty-three parenting programs were identified in studies documenting implementation in real-world community settings worldwide. Most studies included families in psychosocial risk engaged with family-support agencies. The qualitative synthesis identified several implementation outcomes, adaptations, barriers, and facilitators. Most studies reported a maximum of two implementation outcomes, mainly fidelity and acceptability. Providers frequently made adaptations, mainly to bring down barriers and to tailor the program to improve its fit. Findings highlight the need for a more detailed description of the implementation of programs, with greater consistency in terminology, operationalization, and measurement of implementation outcomes across studies. This will promote a more transparent, consistent, and accurate evaluation and reporting of implementation and increase the public health impact of parenting programs. Future studies should also assess the impact of adaptations and the cost-effectiveness and sustainability of programs in real-world community settings.

Supporting parents through the delivery of evidence-based parenting interventions (EBPI) is a way of promoting children’s rights, given the known benefits to child development and family wellbeing. Group Triple P (GTP) is an EBPI suitable for parents of children aged 2–12 years, who experience parenting difficulties, and/or child behavior problems. Even though GTP has been intensively studied, information lacks on the magnitude of its effects, considering the risk of bias within and across prior research. To address this, a systematic review and meta-analysis (PROSPERO registration CRD42019085360) to evaluate the effects of GTP on child and parent outcomes at short- and longer-term was performed. Through a systematic search of a set of databases, 737 research papers were identified, and 11 trials were selected. The risk of bias within and across studies was evaluated. Significant positive effects of GTP were found immediately after the intervention for child behavior problems, dysfunctional parenting practices, parenting sense of competence, psychological adjustment, parental stress levels, conflict, and relationship quality. Six months after the intervention, positive effects were found only for child behavior problems. Data suggest that GTP might be an effective EBPI leading to positive family outcomes. Substantial risk of bias was found, highlighting the importance of improving the quality of research.

Parenting education programmes are becoming widespread practices and are being recognized by the scientific community as promising interventions for preventing child maltreatment. However, a diversity of programme objectives and implementation conditions can be related to different outcomes in parental competencies and child adjustment. In this paper we present data concerning the effects of different parent education interventions developed in Portugal. Five hundred one participants participating in 56 interventions were evaluated using a pre- and post-test design. Analyses were designed to determine the participant and programme characteristics that were associated with intervention outcomes, as indicated by univariate and covariate test results and respective effect sizes. After controlling for pre-test results, significant and positive intervention effects were found for parental stress, effective parenting attitudes (i.e., empathic responding, use of punitive discipline, and endorsement of parental roles), perception of the informal social support network and child behavioural and emotional difficulties. These positive outcomes are associated with some parental characteristics (educational level and child protection referrals) as well as with a number of programme characteristics (e.g., length of programme, existence of a manual, transportation, specific training in the programme). Discussion is focused on the positive effects of interventions and the role of the identified moderating factors as well as their implications for the development of parent education programmes.

Background: Adopting a healthy lifestyle, including regular physical activity, is often part of interventions targeting childhood overweight and obesity. However, to properly inform the objectives of the intervention, reliable psychometric measures are needed to better understand children’s and their families necessities and characteristics. Objectives: To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Physical Activity Parenting Practices questionnaire in a community sample of Portuguese parents of children aged 5–10, assess measurement invariance across children’s weight status, and construct validity. Methods: Five hundred three parents completed the Portuguese version of the Physical Activity Parenting Practices (PAPP) questionnaire, a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire, and the Lifestyle Behavior Checklist. A subsample (n = 125) completed the PAPP questionnaire 1 month later. Data analyses were performed using R’s lavaan (version 0.6–12) and psych (version 2.2.9) packages. Results: Confirmatory factor analyses revealed good psychometric properties for the PAPP’s single-factor Encouragement scale and the three-factor Discouragement scale. Configural, metric, and scalar invariance were found across parents of children with different weight statuses for both scales’ factor structures. Internal reliability ranged from α = .64 to α = .89, and test-retest reliability ranged from r = .57 to r = .74. Conclusions: The constructs evaluated by PAPP questionnaire revealed adequate validity. The Portuguese version of the PAPP questionnaire is a reliable measure to assess relevant physical activity parenting practices, capable of differentiating the practices of parents with children of different weight statuses, and useful for both research and intervention purposes.

The purpose of this research was to analyze the psychometric characteristics of the short-form UCLA Loneliness Scale (ULS-6) among Palestinian university students. The sample consisted of 288 university students (56% women and 44% men), aged 18-22 years. The psychometric characteristics of the ULS-6 were examined using confirmatory factor analysis, reliability analysis, and criterion-related validity methods. The unidimensionality of the ULS-6 was supported among Palestinian university students. The ULS-6 showed good psychometric characteristics, with adequate internal consistency. In addition, the ULS-6 was negatively correlated with significant others support, family support, friends support, self-esteem and satisfaction with life. The results of the present study suggested that the Arabic version of the ULS-6 constitutes a concise psychometrically sound tool to assess loneliness.

The purpose of this study was to examine the predictive role of life satisfaction, perceived social support, and psychological problems on loneliness among Palestinian university students in the West Bank. Participants were 254 volunteer undergraduate students (50.4% males and 49.6% females), ranging from 18 to 26 years of age. Data was collected using the Loneliness Scale (UCLA), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Psychological Problems Scale and a Demographic Information Form. There was a significant gender bias towards loneliness, male students being lonelier than female students. Results showed that students who had higher loneliness, felt less satisfied with their life and perceived less support from friends, family and significant others. Furthermore, students who had high loneliness also presented more psychological problems. These results also indicated that, after accounting for psychological problems, life satisfaction, and social support from friends and significant others are negative predictors of loneliness. These findings suggest that universities should create strategies to improve well-being and social support to protect students from the negative effects of loneliness.