An Integrative Parenting Program for Adoptive Families: A Mixed-method Study

This study develops an integrative parenting program for adoptive families. 

Qualitative and quantitative elements were combined using a mixed-method design. The parenting program for adoptive families was developed through a common elements approach. It took three main steps: Identifying interventions with high efficacy, assessing supporting materials, and surveying experts to reach an agreement. Next, a single-subject, multiple baseline design was used to determine the effectiveness of the developed program on parenting self-efficacy and stress. The research instruments included parenting stress index-short form (PSI-SF) and parental self-agency measure. The participants were two adoptive mothers and one adoptive father chosen through convenience sampling. The parents participated in nine sessions and completed the questionnaires three times before the sessions, five times during the sessions, and three times after the sessions. Visual analysis was performed at two levels, including within-condition and between-condition levels. 

In the qualitative phase, 44 concepts and nine categories were obtained by examining 15 parenting programs. The leading nine categories were as follows: Rebuilding attachments, enhancing the spouse subsystem, rebuilding the family structure, improving parenting self-efficacy, emotional-cognitive regulation, managing children’s behavior, laying the groundwork for integrated child development, promoting the child’s social health, and improving the child’s self-esteem. The results showed that this program was highly effective in reducing the parenting stress of the first and second participants and increasing the self-efficacy of all participants.

Families with adopted children experience unique parenting circumstances due to their different structures. This study identified the common elements of the interventions proposed in previous studies and integrated them into a comprehensive protocol to improve adoptive parents’ parenting. Based on this integrated view, all cognitive processes, behavioral, emotional, and systemic in parenting are considered. This program could help adoptive parents maintain or increase their parenting competency and stress management.