NCJ Number
206404
Date Published
2002
Length
0 pages
Annotation
This video presents two segments describing the Parenting Wisely program; the first is a BBC broadcast about a single mother of five children, while the second focuses on the computerized aspect of the program entitled SSTAR.
Abstract
In the first segment, a single mother of five children, whose ages range from 7 to 13, agreed to have cameras in her home to show her struggles with her children. With the assistance of Chris Hoskins, a parent educator, the single mother put the Parenting Wisely program (United Kingdom version) to use in her home. The system shows parents how to break the cycle of yelling and hitting by encouraging the use of star charts for younger children and contracts for older children. This type of praise and reward system engages children in positive behavior by rewarding them for it; targets are set each day or week and, when met, children earn rewards such as treats or pocket money. The system encourages children to seek attention from parents in a positive way by noticing and rewarding good behavior. The second segment describes the computerized parenting skills program SSTAR. The Center for Substance Abuse Prevention researched best practices for parenting and ultimately selected the SSTAR program. SSTAR is a short-term, interactive program contained on a CD-ROM. The program has a set of nine problems that parents watch. After viewing the parenting problems, parents chose between a list of intervention choices; the program then describes the outcome of the intervention they chose. The SSTAR program has several advantages to more traditional, class-based parenting skills approaches, among them are privacy and the ability for clients to work at their own pace. The program can be operated alone, thereby encouraging honesty in parents and providing an environment free from judgment. Clients who have used the system thus far have expressed satisfaction. In addition to the CD-ROM component of the program, a manual is offered to parents that reinforces what was learned on the CD-ROM.