Protocol for a Randomized Control Trial of the Caregiver Support Intervention with Syrian Refugees in Lebanon

Abstract

Background There is evidence that chronic stress negatively impacts parenting among refugees and other war-affected communities. Persistent parental stress and distress may lead to unresponsive, anxious, or overly harsh parenting and a corresponding increase in emotional and behaviour problems among children. Most parenting interventions emphasize the acquisition of knowledge and skills; however, this overlooks the deleterious effects of chronic stress on parenting. The Caregiver Support Intervention (CSI) aims to strengthen quality of parenting skills by lowering stress and improving psychosocial wellbeing among refugee caregivers of children aged 3-12, while also increasing knowledge and skills related to positive parenting. The CSI is a 9-session psychosocial group intervention delivered by non-specialist providers. It is intended for all adult primary caregivers of children in high-adversity communities, rather than specifically targeting caregivers already showing signs of elevated distress. Methods The primary objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of the CSI through a parallel group randomized controlled study with Syrian refugee families in North Lebanon. Participants will be primary caregivers of children ages 3-12, with one index child per family. Families will be randomized to the CSI or a waitlist control group. A total of 240 families (480 caregivers) will be recruited into the study. Randomization will be at the family level, and CSI groups will be held separately for women and men. The study will be implemented in two waves. Outcomes for both arms will be assessed at baseline, post-intervention, and at a three-month follow-up. The primary outcome is quality of parenting skills. Secondary outcomes include parental warmth and sensitivity, harsh parenting, parenting knowledge, and child psychosocial wellbeing. Putative mediators of the CSI on parenting are caregiver stress, distress, psychosocial wellbeing, and stress management. Discussion This trial may establish the Caregiver Support Intervention as an effective intervention for strengthening parenting in families living in settings of high adversity, particularly refugee communities. Trial registration: The trial has been registered with the International Society for the Registration of Clinical Trials. Trial Registration: ISRCTN22321773.

Protocol of a feasibility trial for an online group parenting intervention with an integrated mental health component for parent refugees and asylum-seekers in the United Kingdom: (LTP + EMDR G-TEP)

“…39 –41 However, parenting interventions have been recently criticized as most of them focus solely on improving parenting knowledge or skills and do not include any strategy to address parental mental health difficulties. 42 One way of tackling this problem is the use of holistic parenting interventions that not only improve parenting skills and knowledge but also address parental mental health difficulties.…”