Examining of the effect of positive psychology-based parenting program on family functions and mental health

The main objective of this study is to develop a structured parental intervention programme within the framework of positive psychology in order to support parents' mental health and strengthen family functioning. A pre-test-post-test experimental design with experimental and control groups was used in the research process. Data were collected using the Personal Information Form, the Alabama Parenting Behaviour Scale, the PERMA Scale, and the Brief Symptom Inventory for pre-test and post-test measurements. The study group consisted of 44 parents (mothers) whose children were enrolled in a public primary school in Manisa Province during the 2024-2025 academic year, divided into an experimental group (n = 24) and a control group (n = 20). In the study, where participants were selected through non-random assignment using an appropriate sampling method, the experimental group was subjected to a 7-session parent intervention developed for the study process, while no intervention was applied to the control group. To evaluate the effect of the positive parenting intervention programme, repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to analyse changes in the dependent variables (parental behaviour, well-being, and psychological symptoms). Covariance analysis (ANCOVA) was applied to control for any differences that may have existed between the experimental and control groups at the beginning of the study and their potential impact on the analysis results. The results of the study showed that the Positive Psychology-Based Parenting Programme was effective in developing positive parenting behaviours in parents' relationships with their children, increasing their subjective well-being, and reducing their psychological symptoms. However, no significant difference was found between the experimental and control groups over time in the physical punishment sub-dimension. The findings were discussed in light of the literature.