Enhancing Positive Adaptation, Well-being, and Psychosocial Functioning in Children by Promoting Positive Parenting

This chapter provides an overview of prevention and treatment interventions to promote positive parenting as a way to enhance children’s psychosocial functioning. Decades of research on parenting have shed light on its role in children’s development, and in particular, the influence of parenting on risk of (or protection from) children’s behavior difficulties. We begin with an empirical and conceptual rationale for parenting as a crucial influence on children’s healthy development and functioning. We discuss the mediating role of parenting in the relationship of contextual stressors to child adjustment. We review four key parent training interventions to improve parenting among populations at risk, with a focus on three broadly disseminated programs with strong bodies of empirical evidence for their efficacy and effectiveness. We conclude by discussing the accomplishments, challenges, and opportunities for parent training programs with regard to research and clinical practice.