Men’s Involvement in a Parenting Programme to Reduce Child Maltreatment and Gender-Based Violence: Formative Evaluation in Uganda

Parenting programmes involving fathers can reduce child maltreatment and gender-based violence. However, most parenting programmes find it difficult to recruit fathers. We piloted a 21 session parenting intervention, ‘Parenting for Respectability’, with fathers and mothers near Kampala, Uganda. Sixt...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of development research 2017-11, Vol.29 (5), p.1017-1037
Main Authors: Siu, Godfrey E., Wight, Daniel, Seeley, Janet, Namutebi, Carolyn, Sekiwunga, Richard, Zalwango, Flavia, Kasule, Sarah
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Child abuse & neglect
Children
Couples
Development and Social Change
Development Economics
Development Policy
Development Studies
Domestic violence
Fathers
Gender-based violence
Intervention
Masculinity
Men
Mixed gender
Mothers
Motivation
Parenthood education
Parents & parenting
Social pressure
Social programs
Social Sciences
Special Issue Article
Values
Violence
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Summary:Parenting programmes involving fathers can reduce child maltreatment and gender-based violence. However, most parenting programmes find it difficult to recruit fathers. We piloted a 21 session parenting intervention, ‘Parenting for Respectability’, with fathers and mothers near Kampala, Uganda. Sixty-one fathers and 83 mothers were recruited initially and 52 fathers and 76 mothers retained to the end. We interviewed with 24 fathers and 16 mothers. Data were analysed thematically. Success in involving fathers was probably due to (a) the first 10 sessions being father-only, allowing them to share experiences before participating in mixed-sex sessions; (b) exploiting men’s pre-existing motivation to improve their children’s behaviour, thereby enhancing family respectability; and (c) the interactive, participatory delivery. Mixed sessions enabled couples to clarify conflicting perspectives regarding spousal relationships and gendered norms. However, men experienced social pressure to conform to conventional masculinity, suggesting the need to instil intervention values at community level.
ISSN:0957-8811
1743-9728
DOI:10.1057/s41287-017-0103-6