Impact of Challenging Behavior Online Modules on Korean Parents of Children With Developmental Disabilities: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Challenging behavior exhibited by young children with neurodevelopmental disabilities is known to negatively affect their optimal development and families’ quality of life. Although some support exists for English-speaking parents of children with autism who live in high-resource countries, it is scarce for others. Such disparity may also be heightened during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with various societal restrictions. To mitigate the treatment gap, we developed and adapted a series of online training modules on behavioral principles and examined its effectiveness with 88 Korean parents using a randomized controlled trial. We found significant interaction effects on increasing parents’ knowledge of behavioral principles, increasing positive parenting practices, and decreasing parental stress. Qualitative social validity data also indicated that parents were highly satisfied with the goals, procedures, and outcomes and that the program positively affected their parenting styles.

Online training for parents of children with developmental disabilities in a low‐resource community: A pilot feasibility study

“…This confirms the extant research on online training as an appropriate option for LRCs (Heitzman-Powel et al, 2014;. Furthermore, consistent with previous literature, when considering the ecological validity model and implementing the necessary cultural adaptations, EBPs and existing interventions can be implemented to support LRC without the need to reinvent the wheel (Bernal et al, 1995;Lee, Meadan, & Xia, 2022;Magaña et al, 2021;Sengupta et al 2020 Despite the positive findings, there were some notable limitations given the exploratory nature of this study. First, the sample size was small (N = 15), and the participants may have higher levels of education than the general population.…”

“…This indicates that overall, the CBOM was well accepted by participants in this cultural context after appropriate adaptations. This confirms the extant research on online training as an appropriate option for LRCs (Heitzman‐Powel et al, 2014; Lee et al, 2022). Furthermore, consistent with previous literature, when considering the ecological validity model and implementing the necessary cultural adaptations, EBPs and existing interventions can be implemented to support LRC without the need to reinvent the wheel (Bernal et al, 1995; Lee, Meadan, & Xia, 2022; Magaña et al, 2021; Sengupta et al 2020.…”

“…It contained 30 multiple‐choice questions related to behavioral principles covered in the CBOM and was translated to Spanish to be used in this study. The Cronbach's α for the assessment in another study with Korean parents of children with autism was .73 (Lee, Meadan, & Xia, 2022).…”

“…These benefits include: (a) providing services to parents who live in low‐resourced communities (LRC); (b) reducing costs related to professionals' or families' long‐distance travel; and (c) greater flexibility in intervention delivery. Online training has been found to be helpful to diverse populations, including immigrant families in the United States (Buzhardt et al, 2016) and families who live outside the United States (Lee, Meadan, & Xia, 2022; Marleau et al, 2019). Researchers also reported that online training for parents may increase their knowledge and use of behavioral interventions (Ferguson et al, 2019; Turgeon et al, 2020).…”

Evaluation of the effects of the Online and Applied System for Intervention Skills (OASIS) with parents of children with ASD using a randomized waitlist control trial.

“…Given recent technological advances and expanding access to broadband via smartphones and tablets, recent studies report improved access and feasibility of parent training that uses telehealth technology (e.g., Fisher et al, 2020; Lee et al, 2022; Lindgren et al, 2020; Meadan et al, 2014; Neely et al, 2017). This approach allows traditionally underserved populations, particularly families living in remote areas, to access intervention services (Ferguson et al, 2019; Hersh et al, 2006; Unholz-Bowden et al, 2020).…”