Fostering parent participation in a longitudinal study, the Los Angeles Legacy for Children experience

Subject retention and participation is a critical component to effectual research. Within the UCLA Legacy for Children intervention model, there were several planned components designed specifically to maintain the participation of the low-income mothers. The first component was the hiring of master's level professionals knowledgeable about group dynamics and child development. We felt that experienced staff would understand the importance of a long-term commitment to the project and to the mothers. The second component was an emphasis on building social ties among the mothers. This was provided by including the Legacy infants at every other week intervention session. Not only did this allow the mothers to get to know each other, it allowed them to invest in each others' children. Further, as time went on, the children became friends with each other. Additionally, we also provided opportunities for socialization after each intervention session that included a hot meal and activities, facilitated by a staff member (different from the group intervention leader). The third component was the provision of transportation to and from each mother's home to the intervention sessions at UCLA. The fourth component involved the financial support for child care that was arranged by each mother so that she could attend the intervention sessions. We chose to use this approach in an effort to foster the self-efficacy of each mother. The two components that proved to be the most difficult to implement on a day-to-day basis were the provision of hot meals after each intervention session and the transportation.