The effect of the mother support training program on parenting knowledge and task self-efficacy of mothers with 24-36 month-old children and their children's development

Aim of this study is to examine the effect of the Mother Support Training Program on parenting knowledge and task self-efficacy of mothers with 24-36-month-old children and their children's development. The study was designed in the quantitative model using a quasi-experimental design model with pretest-posttest paired control group. 22 mothers and children (11 in the experimental group, 11 in the control group) enrolled in Kecioren Incirli Family Health Center affiliated with Ankara Public Health Directorate, were included in the sample group. While the Mother Support Training Program, prepared within the scope of the study was applied to mothers in the experimental group for 12 weeks, no application was performed on mothers in the control group. Quantitative data of the study were collected using the Knowledge of Effective Parenting Scale (KEPS), Short Form of the Self-efficacy for Parenting Tasks Index-Toddler Scale (SEPTI-TS), Parenting Tasks Checklist, and the Denver Developmental Screening Test-II. The qualitative data for assessing the program were obtained via the Mother Support Training Program semi-structured interview form and the researcher's diary. The data were assessed using both quantitative and qualitative methods. In the data analysis, the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used for the statistical significance between pretest-posttest scores of mothers in the experimental and control groups. In order to determine the effectiveness of the experimental procedure and to determine on behalf of which group it ended up significantly, the pretest-posttest difference scores were calculated and the Mann Whitney U analyses were conducted on these difference scores. The qualitative data acquired were analyzed via descriptive analysis. As a result of the study, it was determined that there was a significant difference between the pretest-posttest mean scores of mothers in the experimental group regarding the Knowledge of Effective Parenting Scale, nurturance, discipline and play subscales of the Self-efficacy for Parenting Tasks Index and behavioral self-efficacy subscale of the Parenting Tasks Checklist and these differences were on behalf of the posttests. On the other hand, it was found that there was no significant difference the pretest-posttest mean scores of mothers in the experimental group regarding discipline subscale of the Self-efficacy for Parenting Tasks Index and setting self-efficacy subscale of the Parenting Tasks Checklist. It was determined that there was a significant difference between the pretest-posttest mean scores of children in the experimental and control groups regarding personal-social development, language and gross motor subscales of the Denver Developmental Screening Test; whereas, there was no significant difference between the pretest-posttest mean scores of fine motor development subscale. According to the results of the interviews conducted with mothers in the experimental group; it was determined that their views on the contributions of the Mother Support Training Program were mainly collected under the category of "contribution to mother". Their views on greatest contributions of the training program were collected under the category of "plays and toys".