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'Growing-Up Together' Workshops With Parents of Young Children

Parenting support program for parents of young children 'Growing-up together' was developed by UNICEF Office for Croatia following the concept of positive parenting and the principles for parenting support interventions promoted by the Council of Europe's Recommendation (2006)19 on policy to support positive parenting. The program aims to strengthen parenting goals, attitudes and behaviors which support the rights of the child in general population of parents. It's theoretical foundations are eclectic (Pecnik, 2007 ; Grolnick, Deci and Ryan, 1997 ; Hundeide, 1996 ; Juul, 2004). The program consists of 11 highly structured workshops with parents, published in a manual. Workshops were developed in partnership with parents and professionals during two pilot-projects. Internal outcome evaluation demonstrated that after completing the program parents (N=200) reported higher parental efficacy (Gibaud-Wallston and Wandersman, 1978), lower parenting stress (Gottlieb, 1997), less hiting and yelling on the child, and less authoritarian beliefs than before the program. Also, after the program parents were more likely to encourage child's emotional expression and problem-solving, and less likely to minimize child's distress, react punitively or react to child's 'difficult' emotions with own distress than before the program (Fabes et al, 1990). Workshops are facilitated by interdisciplinary team of 2-3 professionals (psychologist, social worker, pedagogue, ki ndergarten-teacher). In 3 years the program has spread to 80 kindergartens and 7 family centers throughout Croatia. It is adopted by the Education and Teacher Training Agency and the Ministary of Family. Program's growth is made possible by multiprofessional cooperation, within the program network as well as with authorities.

Parenting support program; outcome evaluation; early child development; positive parenting

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