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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Ruth Perou, PhD¹, Susanna Visser, MS¹, Michelle Gross, PhD², and Judy Howard, MD³. (1) Division of Human Development and Disability, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, 1600 Clifton Road, MS E-88, Atlanta, GA 30333, 404-498-3005, rperou@cdc.gov, (2) The Debbie School, University of Miami School of Medicine, P.O. Box 014621, Miami, FL 33101, (3) Department of Pediatrics, UCLA, 300 UCLA Medical Plaza, Suite 3300, Los Angeles, CA 90095

Parents play a critical role in children's health and development. Legacy for Children^TM is a community-based longitudinal randomized controlled trial of a parenting intervention to promote optimal developmental outcomes for children in low-income families. Legacy is currently being implemented in two sites, Miami and Los Angeles, with approximately 615 mother-child dyads from prescribed low-income neighborhoods. The study sample is predominantly minority. The Legacy intervention Logic Model focuses on the parent as the change agent. Specifically, we hypothesize that there is a relationship between parenting characteristics (self-efficacy, parental investment, sense of community), parenting practices (parent-child interaction), and child outcomes (cognitive, linguistic, socio-emotional, behavioral). Legacy emphasizes the quality of the parent-child relationship and the resources needed for effective parenting. To develop and maintain positive parenting behaviors, Legacy attempts to build self-efficacy and a sense of community within weekly groups that run from before the birth of the child through age 5 years. Weekly groups provide a forum for mothers to share information and build a community of parents. Data are being collected from before birth through age 5 years and include assessment, process, and cost components. Process data reveal parental satisfaction with the program, sense of community, and an assessment completion rate of 75% or higher. The comprehensive analytic plan includes quantitative (regression, structural equation modeling, factor analysis) and qualitative (focus groups, ethnographies, case studies) components. Results from the Legacy study will help to inform public policy on promoting child development and well-being in at-risk children.

Learning Objectives:

• 1)Articulate the Legacy philosophy on behavioral change.
• 2)Describe the components of the Legacy intervention.
• 3)Describe the relationship between parenting factors and child development, as hypothesized by the Legacy for Children^TM logic model.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No