The Effect of the Skillful Parenting Program on Experienced Parental Competence in Rural Western Kenya

Abstract

Parenting programs are widely implemented and studied in Western countries. They have shown to be effective in both improving parenting and reducing child problem behaviour. However, parenting programs in developing countries lack evidence. The current study analyses the effect of the Skillful Parenting program in rural Western Kenya on experienced parental competence. A mixed methods pre- and post-test design, including both quantitative (six-item Likert-scale) and qualitative (interview) data, is used to study the effect. The results show that the parenting concept of the participants shifts from a primarily economic perspective (focussing on food, education and farming) toward a psychological perspective (focussing on parent-child interaction). Moreover, parents show an increased score on experienced parental competence on the quantitative scale. This increase is supported by the interviews in which parents report an increased agency in the development of their children. Adding to the limited, mostly quantitative, research on parenting programs in developing countries, this study gives valuable insight into parents’ parenting ideas and experiences after participating in a parenting program.