Study Finds Link Between Coaching Parents on Economic Self-sufficiency and Improved Child Outcomes

A new study has found that coaching low-income parents to achieve the goals necessary for economic self-sufficiency improved child outcomes in one of two comparisons. Such programs may be an effective strategy to better engage parents in family support programs and promote child development, the authors write. The study, “A Coaching Model to Promote Economic Mobility and Child Developmental Outcomes,” which will be published in the January 2022 issue of Pediatrics (published online Dec. 20), looked at a study population drawn from children enrolled in Washington State’s public, income-qualified pre-kindergarten program and their families. Children whose parents received the coaching program showed gains in two of six dimensions compared to children whose parents did not. Building parental executive function may improve child outcomes as well as enhance family progress toward economic self-sufficiency and potentially be more engaging than traditional family support programs, the authors conclude.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.