Les programmes parentaux ont-ils leur place dans les pays francophones européens ? Analyse des besoins des parents et du soutien souhaité

Abstract

Cette étude s’intéresse aux besoins des parents pour faire face aux difficultés émotionnelles et comportementales de leur enfant, ainsi qu’à leur intérêt pour des programmes parentaux et leurs préférences pour y accéder. Des parents de Suisse-Romande (n = 375) ont participé à une enquête internationale (IPS, Morawska et al., 2017) en faisant référence à leur plus jeune enfant âgé entre 2 et 12 ans. Près des deux tiers de cet échantillon communautaire présentaient au moins un facteur de risque visé par les programmes parentaux, et 43,7 % avaient parlé des difficultés de leur enfant à un professionnel au cours de l’année précédente. Mais une majorité se disait peu satisfaite par le soutien mis à disposition, et très peu de parents avaient participé à des programmes parentaux. Les raisons principales de cette faible participation étaient, d’une part, le manque d’information sur ces programmes et, d’autre part, le fait de ne pas en ressentir le besoin, suivies par des considérations pratiques. Nous discutons de la pertinence de ces programmes dans ce contexte et des pistes pour améliorer la prévention des troubles mentaux de l’enfant en prenant l’exemple du système multiniveaux développé par Triple P (Prinz et Sanders, 2007). Particulièrement, la prévention universelle semble importante pour déstigmatiser la demande de soutien des parents.

Introduction

International research has shown that parent training programs may help to decrease the prevalence of emotional and behavioral disorders in children (Dretzke et al., 2009). In particular, the Triple P behavioral program (Sanders et al., 2003) has been shown to be effective in many randomized controlled trials and meta-analyzes (Brodard et al., 2016). However, in French-speaking countries, such evidence-based interventions are still scarce and only a small number of parents appear to get involved in these programs. The goal of this study is to assess whether the recipients of such services in Switzerland feel the need to be supported in their parental role and to shed light on the modalities that they would prefer for this support.

Method

This study was part of an international survey of parents (International Parenting Survey [IPS]) conducted in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. The survey contains questions about the use of parental support services, knowledge of parenting programs, barriers to involvement in such programs, and preferences regarding how support should be provided. The participants were 375 parents (87.8% mothers) who completed the online survey by referring to their youngest child, between 2 and 12 years old. Participants were recruited through various schools, pediatric clinics, nurseries, clubs and associations in several Swiss cantons, as well as through a Facebook page. About half of the parents (46.9%) completed the questionnaire by referring to a preschooler (4 years old or younger).

Results

Nearly two-thirds of this community sample presented at least one risk factor targeted by the parenting programs: often using coercive parenting practices such as shouting (37.2%) or spanking the child when s/he misbehaved (3.0%); often using lax practices such as giving up and performing actions instead of the child (9.0%) or threatening the child without carrying out the threat (10.9%); having frequent conflicts in the family (11.5%) and displaying difficulties when trying to work as a parental team (8.9%); feeling tired (21.7%), stressed (21.6%), or nervous (15.1%) most of the time; having low parental self-efficacy (5%). In addition, more than half of the parents (57%) reported at least two behavioral problems as being very common in their child (e.g., loss of temper, getting upset or angry when they did not get their own way). In the sample, 43.7% of the parents reported having consulted a professional about the behavior of their child during the previous 12 months, mostly a pediatrician (29.3%) or a teacher (25.3%). Only 10% of the parents participated in a parenting program, including a fifth in an “evidence-based” program, such as Triple P or Incredible Years. The most common reasons for not participating in such programs were that parents did not feel the need for it (48.5%), and that they were not aware of the existence of such programs (47.7%). The parents also reported that practical considerations held them back from participating (e.g. lack of available time, incompatible schedules). Noticeably, a majority of parents said they were not satisfied with the support they had access to.

Conclusion

Data from this international survey provides important information to guide the prevention of emotional and behavioral disorders in children. The risk factors and the needs of parents in the survey seem to justify the development of a multi-level prevention system like Triple P. In particular, universal prevention seems important to destigmatize the request for parental support. Providing varied access to information about parenting and more easily accessible programs would help reach more parents. It would also seem important to involve and train teachers and pediatricians to support parents with child behavior problems. This study could enable policy makers to become aware of the needs of parents and to better target the resources allocated to prevention and child support structures, in which the skills of cognitive-behavioral therapists are needed.