Meta-Analyses of the Relationships between Family Systems Practices, Parents' Psychological Health, and Parenting Quality.

(1) Background: Family systems theories include assertations that both personal and environmental factors are determinants of parents' psychological health, well-being, and parenting quality. Applied family systems theories focus on determinants that can be operationalized as intervention practices. The analyses described in this paper focused on the direct and indirect effects of four family systems practices (family needs, resources, supports, and strengths), parents' psychological health (depression, well-being, etc.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic and Governmental Policies on Rehabilitation Services and Physical Medicine in Jordan: A Retrospective Study.

: Although the COVID-19 pandemic led to a series of governmental policies and regulations around the world, the effect of these policies on access to and provision of rehabilitation services has not been examined, especially in low and middle- income countries. : The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of governmental policies and procedures on the number of patients who accessed rehabilitation services in the public sector in Jordan during the pandemic and to examine the combined effect of sociodemographic factors (age and gender) and the governmental procedures on this number of patients. : A retrospective cohort study was conducted based on records of 32,503 patients who visited the rehabilitation center between January 2020 and February 2021.

Family Hardiness and Parent and Family Functioning in Households with Children Experiencing Adverse Life Conditions: a Meta-Analysis.

Objective: The purposes of the meta-analysis were to evaluate the relationship between family hardiness and different dimensions of parent and family functioning in households experiencing adverse child or family life events and circumstances and determine if family hardiness had either or both stress-buffering and healthenhancing effects on parent and family functioning.

Method: Studies were included if the correlations between family hardiness and different dimensions of parental or family functioning were reported. The synthesis included 53 studies (N = 4418 participants) conducted in nine countries between 1992 and 2017.

Development and Psychometric Properties of the Arabic Parent Nutritional Assessment Scale (A-PNAS) for Children with Developmental Disabilities.

To describe the development of the Arabic-Parent Nutritional Assessment Scale (A-PNAS), and to examine construct and known-group discriminant validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability of the A-PNAS. A cross-sectional design was used. Participants were 130-children with CP (mean age = 4.

Family-centered practices and the parental well-being of young children with disabilities and developmental delay.

Background: Research evidence from studies in North America on the relationships between family-centered practices, parents' self-efficacy beliefs, parenting confidence and competence beliefs, and parents' psychological well-being was used to confirm or disconfirm the same relationships in two studies in Spain.

Aims: The aim of Study 1 was to determine if results from studies in North America could be replicated in Spain and the aim of Study 2 was to determine if results from Study 1 could be replicated with a second sample of families in Spain.

Methods And Procedures: A survey including the study measures was used to obtain data needed to evaluate the relationships among the variables of interest.

Effects of a Collaborative Intervention Process on Parent-Therapist Interaction: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

: To determine whether a collaborative intervention process facilitates parent-therapist interactions. : Participants were 18 children with physical disabilities, their mothers, and 16 physical therapists. Therapists randomized to the experimental group were instructed in strategies for collaboration (working together) with parents in goal setting, planning, and implementing interventions.

Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the family-centred practices scale for use with families of young children receiving early childhood intervention.

Background: Early childhood intervention (ECI) centres in Spain recently initiated a process of change towards the adoption of family-centred practices (FCPs). Knowledge about the extent to which practitioners' use FCPs is needed. The psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the FCPs scale were examined.

Multilevel linear modelling of the response-contingent learning of young children with significant developmental delays.

Aim: The purpose of the study was to isolate the sources of variations in the rates of response-contingent learning among young children with multiple disabilities and significant developmental delays randomly assigned to contrasting types of early childhood intervention.

Method: Multilevel, hierarchical linear growth curve modelling was used to analyze four different measures of child response-contingent learning where repeated child learning measures were nested within individual children (Level-1), children were nested within practitioners (Level-2), and practitioners were nested within the contrasting types of intervention (Level-3).

Results: Findings showed that sources of variations in rates of child response-contingent learning were associated almost entirely with type of intervention after the variance associated with differences in practitioners nested within groups were accounted for.

Effects of a Collaborative Intervention Process on Parent Empowerment and Child Performance: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Aims: To examine the effects of a four-step collaborative intervention process on parent and child outcomes and describe parents' and therapists' experiences.

Methods: Eighteen children with physical disabilities, their mothers, and 16 physical therapists participated. Therapists randomized to the experimental group were instructed in the collaborative intervention process.

Contrasting approaches to the response-contingent learning of young children with significant delays and their social-emotional consequences.

Aims: The purpose of the analyses described in this paper was to evaluate the direct and indirect effects of two different approaches to child response-contingent learning on rates of child learning and both concomitant and collateral child social-emotional behaviour.

Method: The participants were 71 children with significant developmental delays or multiple disabilities randomly assigned to either of the two contrasting approaches to interventions.

Results: Findings showed that an intervention which employed practices that built on existing child behaviour (asset-based practices) was more effective than an intervention focusing on teaching children missing skills (needs-based practices) for influencing changes in the rates of child learning as well as rates of child social-emotional behaviour mediated by differences in rates of child learning.

Strategies to promote family-professional collaboration: two case reports.

Purpose: Although research supports family-professional collaboration, challenges to implementation have been reported. The case reports describe the implementation of a 4-step practice model that incorporates specific strategies to facilitate family-professional collaboration.

Method: The participants were two mothers of children with physical disabilities and two physical therapists.

Meta-analysis of studies incorporating the interests of young children with autism spectrum disorders into early intervention practices.

Incorporating the interests and preferences of young children with autism spectrum disorders into interventions to promote prosocial behavior and decrease behavior excesses has emerged as a promising practice for addressing the core features of autism. The efficacy of interest-based early intervention practices was examined in a meta-analysis of 24 studies including 78 children 2 to 6 years of age diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders. Effect size analyses of intervention versus nonintervention conditions and high-interest versus low-interest contrasts indicated that interest-based intervention practices were effective in terms of increasing prosocial and decreasing aberrant child behavior.

Guide for calculating and interpreting effect sizes and confidence intervals in intellectual and developmental disability research studies.

This paper includes a nontechnical description of methods for calculating effect sizes in intellectual and developmental disability studies. Different hypothetical studies are used to illustrate how null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) and effect size findings can result in quite different outcomes and therefore conflicting results. Whereas NHST uses probability levels (e.

Exploratory investigation of the effects of interest-based learning on the development of young children with autism.

The influences of child participation in interest-based learning activities on the development of 17 preschoolers with autism was the focus of this brief report. The children's mothers identified their children's interests and the everyday family and community activities that provided opportunities for interest-based learning. Parents then implemented intervention procedures for 14 to 16 weeks to increase child participation in the selected activities.

Influence of the interests of children with autism on everyday learning opportunities.

Findings from a pilot study investigating the influence of the interests of young children with autism on parents' provision of everyday informal child learning opportunities are described. 17 children (13 boys, 4 girls) were divided into two groups that received everyday learning opportunities of Low interest and High interest, based on parents' bi-weekly ratings of the interestingness of the opportunities to the children, using an investigator-developed measure. A brief intervention of 12 to 14 weeks showed that the children in the High interest-based group were provided more learning opportunities than were the Low interest-based group, and that the parents indicated that their children benefited more from the learning opportunities.

Extended child and caregiver benefits of behavior-based child contingency learning games.

Findings from 2 studies of the relationship between response-contingent child behavior and child, caregiver-child, and caregiver behavior not directly associated with child contingency learning are described. The participants were 19 children with significant developmental delays and their mothers in 1 study and 22 children with significant developmental delays and their teachers in the second study. Caregivers engaged the children in learning games characterized by behavior-based contingencies for 15 weeks.

Meta-analytic structural equation modeling of the influences of family-centered care on parent and child psychological health.

Background. Family-centered care is now practiced throughout the world by physicians, nurses, and allied health care professionals. The call for adoption of family-centered care is based on the contention that the physical and psychological health of a child is influenced by parents' psychological health where family-centered care enhances parent well-being which in turn influences child well-being.

Meta-analysis of family-centered helpgiving practices research.

A meta-analysis of 47 studies investigating the relationship between family-centered helpgiving practices and parent, family, and child behavior and functioning is reported. The studies included more than 11,000 participants from seven different countries. Data analysis was guided by a practice-based theory of family-centered helpgiving that hypothesized direct effects of relational and participatory helpgiving practices on self-efficacy beliefs and parent, family, and child outcomes.

University faculty preparation of students in using natural environment practices with young children.

155 university faculty teaching students in physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language pathology, early childhood special education, or multidisciplinary studies programs were surveyed to assess how the students were taught how to use everyday family and community activities as natural learning opportunities for young children. Analysis showed that the faculty provided very little training in using community activity settings as contexts for children's learning and that physical therapy faculty provided less training in using natural environments as sources of children's learning opportunities than faculty in the other disciplines.

Young children's natural learning environments: contrasting approaches to early childhood intervention indicate differential learning opportunities.

1,000 parents of infants and toddlers enrolled in early childhood intervention programs were surveyed about the number of learning opportunities provided their preschool children using different approaches to early intervention. Findings showed that more learning opportunities were reported when participation in everyday activity settings was conceptualized as a type of intervention rather than as settings for professionals to conduct their interventions.

Parents' and practitioners' perspectives of young children's everyday natural learning environments.

Parents' views of natural learning environments were compared to those of practitioners having either considerable or little experience with the characteristics of everyday natural learning opportunities. 8 experienced practitioners' views were congruent with those of the parents, whereas the 8 inexperienced practitioners' views were incongruent with those of both parents and their experienced peers.

Young children's participation in everyday family and community activity.

Patterns of participation in everyday family and community activities are described for children from birth to 6 years of age. Parents or other primary caregivers completed a survey of either family life or community life as sources of children's learning opportunities and experiences. Rates of children's participation in 50 family activities and 50 community activities at different ages were identified and analyzed in terms of similarities and differences in participation patterns.