Kacir, C., & Gordon, D. A. (1999). Parenting Adolescents Wisely: The effectiveness of an interactive videodisk parent training program in Appalachia. Child and Family Behavior Therapy, 21(4), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1300/J019v21n04_01

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 38 Mothers

Population:

• Age — Mean=40 years
• Race/Ethnicity — 100% Caucasian
• Gender — 100% Female
• Status — Participants were mothers recruited by direct mail or through public schools.

Location/Institution: Southeastern Ohio

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of Parenting Adolescents Wisely (PAW) [now called Parenting Wisely], a brief interactive laserdisc parent training program, in rural Appalachia. Participants were randomly assigned to PAW or to a control group that received no intervention. Measures utilized include the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory, the Parent Behavior Questionnaire, and the Parenting Knowledge Test. Results indicate that, at the postintervention assessments, the children’s behavior measures were better for the PAW families than for the control families. No significant difference was found for the Parent Behavior Questionnaire, but PAW parents scored higher on the Parenting Knowledge Test one month after completion of the intervention. Limitations include the small sample size, reliance on self-report measures, and the use of unstandardized measures.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 1 month and between 3 and 5 months.

O'Neill, H., & Woodward, R. (2002). Evaluation of the Parenting Wisely CD-ROM parent training programme: An Irish replication. Irish Journal of Psychology, 23(1), 62–72.

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 15 families

Population:

• Age — Not specified
• Race/Ethnicity — Not specified
• Gender — Not specified
• Status — Participants were parents of children 9–18 years old who were referred to a psychology service for child behavior problems.

Location/Institution: Ireland

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of Parenting Wisely, a relatively new interactive CD-ROM parent-training program, in terms of reducing behavior problems in children and increasing parents’ knowledge and use of effective parenting skills. Participants were randomly assigned to early treatment or delayed treatment groups of Parenting Wisely. Measures utilized include the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI), the Parent Behavior Questionnaire (PBQ), and the Parent Knowledge Test (PKT). Results indicate that Parenting Wisely had positive treatment effects on reported child behaviors. Scores on the PBQ showed significant improvement over baseline at both 2 and 4 weeks. Scores on the PKT showed significant improvement at two weeks. Limitations include the small sample size and lack of established psychometrics for the PBQ and PKT.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 2 and 4 weeks.

Segal, D., Chen, P. Y., Gordon, D. A., Kacir, C. D., & Gylys, J. (2003). Development and evaluation of a parenting intervention program: Integration of scientific and practical approaches. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, 15(3), 453–467. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327590IJHC1503_09

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 42 parents

Population:

• Age — Mean=42 years
• Race/Ethnicity — Not specified
• Gender — 90% Female
• Status — Participants were parents with children 11–18 years old who were recruited through community and outpatient mental health clinics.

Location/Institution: Not specified

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of two formats of the Parenting Wisely program: a noninteractive video (NV) or an interactive multimedia (IM) version. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either the noninteractive video version or the interactive multimedia version of the Parenting Wisely program. Measures utilized include the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI), the Parent Daily Report (PDR), the Daily Discipline Interview (DDI), and the Parent Behavior Questionnaire (PBQ). Results indicate that there was no significant difference in overall outcomes between the NV and IM intervention groups. Both groups showed improved scores on the ECBI, PBQ, PKT, and on parent responses to negative behaviors on the PDR. Improvements in children’s problem behaviors were clinically significant for 33% to 48% of the children whose parents used the program. Limitations include the small sample size and lack of a no-treatment control group that would help determine if the improvements were due to attention or the passage of time.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 3 weeks.

Cefai, J., Smith, D., & Pushak, R. E. (2010). Parenting Wisely: Parent training via CD-ROM with an Australian sample. Child & Family Behavior Therapy, 32, 17–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/07317100903539709

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 116

Population:

• Age — Adults: 24–55 years; Children: 9–15 years
• Race/Ethnicity — Families: 76 Australian, 14 Italian, and 9 Maltese
• Gender — Adults: 92 Female and 24 Male; Children: 57 Female and 59 Male
• Status — Participants were one parent and one child from families with children with disruptive behaviors.

Location/Institution: Australia

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to address the effectiveness of the Parenting Wisely program on improving parenting knowledge, parental sense of competence, and child behavior, as well as the impact of a group versus individual treatment format. Participants were randomly assigned to either a two-session group-based intervention, a two-session individual intervention, or to a waitlist control group. Measures utilized include the Parenting Sense of Competence (PSOC), the Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory (ECBI), and the Parenting Knowledge Questionnaire (PKQ). Results indicate that there was a significant increase in parental satisfaction, efficacy, and parenting knowledge and a reduction in child problem behavior for both the group and individual formats of the Parenting Wisely program. Limitations include the significant differences between the groups at baseline on the child behavior measures, indicating that the randomization process may have been flawed.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 3 months.

Cotter, K. L., Bacallao, M., Smokowski, P. R., & Robertson, C. I. B. (2013). Parenting interventions implementation science: How delivery format impacts the Parenting Wisely program. Research on Social Work Practice, 23(6), 639–650. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731513490811

Type of Study: Pretest–posttest study with a nonequivalent control group (Quasi-experimental)
Number of Participants: 144

Population:

• Age — Mean=40 years
• Race/Ethnicity — 53% Native American, 27% African American, 10% Hispanic, 8% White, and 2% Multiracial
• Gender — 78% Female
• Status — Participants were parents residing in a low-income, rural county who had an adolescent between the ages of 11 and 15.

Location/Institution: Southeastern United States

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to examine the implementation and effectiveness of Parenting Wisely, an internet-based parenting skills intervention, including whether parents benefit from Parenting Wisely participation and whether the delivery format influences program effectiveness. Participants were assigned to one of four formats based on their preference and availability: a parents-only intensive workshop, parents-only 5-week group, parent and adolescent 5-week group, or parent and adolescent online format. Measures utilized include the McMaster Family Assessment Device, the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale, the Parenting Self-efficacy Scale, the Conflict Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ), the Consumer Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ), the NC-ACE Violent Behavior Checklist, and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Results indicate that there is an association between Parenting Wisely participation and improvements in family problem solving, family roles, family involvement, parenting self-efficacy, parenting sense of competence, and decreased adolescent violent behavior, with program effects varying by delivery format and outcome. In general, group delivery over 5 weeks was more effective than either online delivery or delivery via a group workshop. Limitations include the nonrandom assignment of participants, possible selection bias, the lack of postintervention follow-up, and the small sample size.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: None.

Stalker , K. C., Rose, R. A., Bacallao, M., & Smokowski, P. R. (2018). Parenting Wisely six months later: How implementation delivery impacts program effects at follow-up. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 39(2), 129–153. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-017-0495-2

Type of Study: Pretest–posttest study with a nonequivalent control group (Quasi-experimental)
Number of Participants: 364

Population:

• Age — Not specified
• Race/Ethnicity — 42% African American, 39% American Indian, 9% Hispanic, 6% White, 3% Multiracial, and 1% Other
• Gender — 80% Female
• Status — Participants were parents residing in a low-income, rural county who were experiencing problem behavior in their adolescent children between the ages of 11 and 15.

Location/Institution: North Carolina

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of Parenting Wisely on family functioning, parenting, and adolescent behavior six months postintervention and assess differences based on delivery format. Participants were allowed to choose one of the five formats of Parenting Wisely: a parents-only intensive workshop, parents-only 5-week group, parents and adolescents 5-week group, parent and adolescent online, and parent-only online. Measures utilized include the McMaster Family Assessment Device, the NC-ACE Violent Behavior Checklist, and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Results indicate that parents who participated in Parenting Wisely reported increases in confidence in their parenting skills, decreases in conflicts with their adolescents, and decreases in adolescent externalizing and violent behavior relative to the comparison group at 6-month follow-up. Parenting Wisely effectiveness did not vary substantially by delivery format, except for the intensive workshop format, which was less effective than other formats. Limitations include the nonrandom assignment of participants, possible selection bias, concerns about generalizability due to the narrow population studied, and the reliance on parent reports of adolescent behavior.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: 6 months.