Research Review: Harnessing the power of individual participant data in a meta‐analysis of the benefits and harms of the Incredible Years parenting program

Abstract

Background: Parenting programs aim to reduce children's conduct problems through

The Earlier the Better? Individual Participant Data and Traditional Meta‐analysis of Age Effects of Parenting Interventions

“…There was a significant overall effect of the intervention ( z = 10.08, p < .001), reported in Leijten, Gardner, et al. (), estimated to be a reduction of 13.5 points (95% CI [10.9, 16.1]) on the ECBI‐I. Most trials found that the IY intervention reduced child conduct problems, with standardized effect sizes varying across trials from very small (−0.12) to large (−0.76), with overall a moderate effect size (−0.43).…”

Training teachers in classroom management to improve mental health in primary school children: the STARS cluster RCT

“…30 Similarly, a recent meta-analysis based on study-level summary data of three TCM trials 29 also reported a significantly larger effect on children with worse behaviour, and a similar pattern was reported in a meta-analysis based on individual participants of trials of the parallel IY parent training intervention. 6 That the STARS trial has produced a similar pattern of effects adds weight to the argument that the small but statistically significant improvement is more than a chance finding, and suggests that TCM is worth further investigation as a universal intervention in the UK context. Finally, a UK-based cluster RCT of the Good Behaviour Game in 77 primary schools also suggested that boys' risk of developing conduct disorder demonstrated the most improvement, although the intervention demonstrated little effect on academic attainment or behaviour overall.…”

“…4 This means that in each classroom in the UK there is likely to be at least one child with a diagnosable conduct disorder, as well as several others who are disruptive to their classmates and teachers at lower levels. 5 Parent training is the evidence-based treatment for childhood behaviour problems 6 but this has limited impact on school-based problems. 7 A recent systematic review of teacher-led interventions for internalising and externalising symptoms reported weak evidence for the effectiveness of interventions on internalising problems (Cohen's d = 0.13) and no evidence for programmes on externalising problems.…”

Optimising Evidence-Based Psychological Treatment for the Mental Health Needs of Children with Epilepsy: Principles and Methods

“…Regardless of whether a mental health specialist is embedded in the epilepsy team or whether existing epilepsy clinicians are trained to deliver psychological interventions, the question arises as to the optimal psychological intervention for children with epilepsy and mental health needs. There are established, evidence-based treatments for the most common mental health disorders that arise in conjunction with epilepsy including depression (Klein et al 2007), anxiety (Higa-McMillan et al 2016) and disruptive behaviour disorders (Leijten et al 2018). Although clinical trials of the effectiveness of these treatments in children who also have epilepsy are sparse, the evidence that does exist suggests similar effectiveness of interventions for children with chronic illness as those without (Bennett et al 2015;Corrigan et al 2016;Law et al 2019;Moore et al, 2019) and therefore existing interventions should be the starting point for addressing mental health needs in young people with epilepsy.…”