Parent Management Training

Parent Management Training (PMT) is a programme that trains parents to manage their children's behavioural problems at home and at school. PMT works to correct maladaptive parent-child interactions especially as they apply to discipline. PMT utilizes social learning techniques based upon behaviour analysis and operant conditioning to alter both the parents' and the child’s behaviour to decrease the child’s oppositional or antisocial behavioural patterns. PMT has been used as an adjunct therapy in Autism Spectrum Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Down syndrome, Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD).

The Oregon Social Learning Group developed and conducted most of the early research on parent management training in the late 1960s.[1]. Off shoots of the model were similarly developed by Conne Hamf and such models led to the development of a hybrid model known as Parent–child interaction therapy [2]. PMT was first developed in the 1960s by Alan E. Kazdin, PhD., director of the Yale Parenting Center and Child Conduct Clinic at Yale University.[3] The model follows a Behaviour analysis of child development in which moment to moment reinforcement chooses conflict tactics in fights over time as well as what is commonly termed personality.

Treatment sessions include instruction in social learning principles and techniques.[4] The therapist instruct the parents on how to define, observe, and record their children's behaviour such as fighting and having temper tantrums and then how to apply appropriate methods of positive reinforcement and punishment.

Positive reinforcement, the key element of PMT, is given to the child via various techniques such as giving the child increased attention and praise and awarding points for positive behaviour. Punishment for negative behaviour is meted out via methods such as giving time outs, verbal reprimands and loss of privileges such as watching television or playing video games.

Contingencies are indirectly affected as well by training parents to communicate better about contingencies and problem solve troubled situations [5]

Contents

Research

Parent management training has been very successful in treating children with conduct problems.[6][7] The programs have been found to generalize.[8] and to be maintained for several years post the program being discontinued.[9] Meta analytic studies of children with ADHD have found the effect size to be large (.87) for parent management training [10]. Parent management training in the treatment of conduct disorder can be enhanced by simultaneously training the child in problem solving skills with the combined treatment even showing continued and greater improvement one year after the treatment occurred.[11] This success occurs even if children and parents are trained in a group format [12]

Currently, efforts are underway to make the programs more effective with cultural tailtoring [13] and improving cost effectiveness [14]

Professional Training

The World Association for Behaviour Analysis offers a certification in behaviour therapy, which has considerable emphasis on behavioural parent training [8]

References

  1. ^ Patterson, G.R. (2002) Etiology and Treatment of Child and Adolescent Antisocial Behaviour. The Behaviour Analyst Today, 3 (2), 133 -143 [1]
  2. ^ McNeil, C. B., Filcheck, H. A., Greco, L. A., Ware, L. M. & Bernard, R. S. (2001) Parent-Child Interaction Therapy: Can a Manualised Treatment Be Functional? The Behaviour Analyst Today, 2 (2), 106 -125
  3. ^ Yale Parenting Center and Child Conduct Clinic.
  4. ^ Patterson, G.R. (2002) Etiology and Treatment of Child and Adolescent Antisocial Behaviour. The Behaviour Analyst Today, 3 (2), 133 -143 [2]
  5. ^ Robert G. Wahler (2004): Direct and Indirect Reinforcement Processes in Parent Training, - JEIBI 1 (2), Pg. 120 -128 [3]
  6. ^ Cautilli, J.D., & Tillman, T.C. (2004): Evidence Based Practice in the Home and School to Help Educate the Socially Maladjusted Child . JEIBI 1 (1), Pg. 28 -48 [4]
  7. ^ Patterson, G.R. (2002) Etiology and Treatment of Child and Adolescent Antisocial Behaviour. The Behaviour Analyst Today, 3 (2), 133 -143 [5]
  8. ^ Cautilli, J.D., Tillman, T.C. (2004): Evidence Based Practice in the Home and School to Help Educate the Socially Maladjusted Child . JEIBI 1 (1), Pg. 28 -48 [6]
  9. ^ Cautilli, J.D. & Tillman, T.C. (2004): Evidence Based Practice in the Home and School to Help Educate the Socially Maladjusted Child . JEIBI 1 (1), Pg. 28 -48 [7]
  10. ^ Chronis, A. M., Jones, H. A., & Raggi, V. L. (2006). Evidence-based psychosocial treatments for children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Clinical Psychology Review, 26, 486-502.
  11. ^ Kazdin, A.E., Siegal, T., & Bass, D.(1992). Cognitive problem solving skills training and parent management training in the treatment of antisocial behaviour in children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 60, 733-747.
  12. ^ Listug-Lunde, L., Bredemeier, K. & Tynan, W.D. (2005). Concurrent Parent and Child Group Outcomes for Child Externalizing Disorders: Generalizability to Typical Clinical Settings. IJBCT, 1(2), Page 124-129 BAO
  13. ^ Shaffer, A Kotchick, B. A. Dorsey, St & Forehand R. (2001) The Past, Present and Future of Behavioural Parent Training: Interventions for Child and Adolescent Problem Behaviour. The Behaviour Analyst Today, 2 (2), 91 -105 BAO
  14. ^ Olchowski, A.E., Foster, E.M. and Webster-Stratton, C.H. (2007). Implementing Behavioural Intervention Components in a Cost-Effective Manner: Analysis of the Incredible Years Program. Journal of Early and Intensive Behavioural Intervention, 3(4)-4(1), 284-304 BAO

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