A Model for Supporting At-Risk Couples during the Transition to Parenthood

Record numbers of children born outside of marriage reflect a dramatic change in U.S. families; this demographic trend concerns policymakers and service providers because of the fragility of parental relationships. Dissolution of these relationships and growing up in a single-parent household leaves...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Families in society 2013-07, Vol.94 (3), p.166-173
Main Authors: Jones, Anne, Charles, Pajarita, Benson, Keesha
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Child Poverty
Children
Children & youth
Community organizations
Community Structure
Couples
Demographics
Dissolution
Flexibility
Marriage
Parents
Parents & parenting
Partnerships
Policy making
Poverty
Program Implementation
Recruitment
Risk
Risk assessment
Single parent family
Underserved populations
Working parents
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Summary:Record numbers of children born outside of marriage reflect a dramatic change in U.S. families; this demographic trend concerns policymakers and service providers because of the fragility of parental relationships. Dissolution of these relationships and growing up in a single-parent household leaves many children at higher risk of living in poverty— initiating a risk chain associated with less favorable academic, social, and cognitive outcomes. This article introduces Strong Couples-Strong Children, an innovative and replicable program designed to support expectant and new parents while their relationships are formative. Lessons learned from program implementation suggest that (a) face-to-face interaction served as the most effective form of recruitment; (b) partnerships with community organizations enabled the program to reach underserved populations; and (c) the family-centered model, working with both parents, required flexibility in programming.
ISSN:1044-3894
1945-1350
DOI:10.1606/1044-3894.4319