Development and Effectiveness of the Respected Parents & Respected Children Program for First-Time Expectant Parents

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to develop the Respected Parents & Respected Children program for first-time expectant parents, and to investigate the effectiveness of the program. Methods: The program aims to help participants adjust to the transition to parenthood. The weekly program, composed of three phases-introduction, development, and closing-consists of a total of six two-hour sessions. In order to verify the effectiveness of the program, a pretest-posttest control group design was used. The participants in this study were 78 first-time expectant parents in Seoul, Gyeonggi province, and Daegu Metropolitan City. Sixteen couples were assigned to an intervention group and 23 to a control group. The data were analyzed by independent two-sample t-tests and repeated measures ANOVA using SPSS 21.0. Results: The couples in the intervention group showed positive changes in parenting beliefs, as well as increases in life satisfaction and marital intimacy as compared to those in the control group. Regarding the changing patterns, life satisfaction and marital intimacy increased in the intervention group, but decreased in the control group. In addition, child-centered views in the intervention group were little changed, while those in the control group were weakened. Parenting beliefs became more personality centric in the intervention group and more intellect centric in the control group. Stress during pregnancy was decreased in both groups. Conclusions: This study confirmed the effectiveness of the program and emphasized the need for preventive intervention for first-time expectant parents.