Exploring Therapist Influence on Father Representation in Parent Child Interaction Therapy

Abstract

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT; Eyberg, 1988) is a dyadic, evidence-based treatment for children with disruptive behavior disorders. It focuses on changing child symptoms through coaching parents to change their interactions with children. Even though both parents are encouraged to participate in treatment, previous studies highlight the discrepancy between mother and father attrition (Budd & O'Brien, 1982). This study will explore therapists' approach to treatment when fathers are present for coaching, compared with mothers, in a randomized controlled trial of an adaptation of PCIT for young children with depression (Luby et al., 2018). This will be done by assessing therapists' use of two primary coaching techniques using the Therapist-Parent Interaction Coding System (Barnett et al., 2014). Directive coaching strategies are used to coach skills in a future-oriented way (e.g., suggesting, telling or modeling what a parent should say), while responsive coaching strategies focus on reinforcing parenting skills (e.g., praising or describing a parent's past behavior). Previous research has shown that greater frequency of responsive coaching has been associated with lower likelihood of PCIT attrition and greater acquisition of parent skills (Legere et. al., 2020). It is hypothesized that the use of directive coaching will be significantly higher with fathers than with mothers. This study is paramount in furthering our understanding of PCIT, refining PCIT guidelines to promote inclusivity, and the ability to maximize treatment efficacy.

Matthew Legere | Psychological Sciences | Faculty Sponsor Christopher Adams