Black or African American
61.00%
Bernard, K., Dozier, M., Bick, J., Lewis-Morrarty, E., Lindhiem, O., & & Carlson, E. (2012). Enhancing attachment organization among maltreated children: Results of a randomized clinical trial. Child Development, 83(2), 623–636.
NIMH grants R01 MH052135, R01 MH074374, and R01 MH084135
Design | Attrition | Baseline equivalence | Confounding factors | Valid, reliable measures? |
---|---|---|---|---|
Randomized controlled trial | High | Established on race/ethnicity and SES; outcome(s) not feasible to assess at baseline | None |
Information on baseline equivalence for race/ethnicity and SES, attrition, and effect size and significance was based on correspondence with the author.
Parents/caregivers of children younger than 2 with protective services involvement were randomly assigned to the treatment and comparison groups. If the parent or caregiver had two children, both were placed in the parent/caregiver's assigned group. Most of the parents belonged to a minority racial/ethnic group (80 percent), were living in poverty (80 percent), and had less than a high school education (88 percent). 58 percent of the children were male, and 93 percent belonged to minority racial/ethnic groups.
The study was conducted in a large city in the Mid-Atlantic.
The intervention, Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-Up (ABC), consisted of 10 hour-long sessions conducted weekly in participants' homes with parents and their children.
Comparison families received Developmental Education for Families (DEF) in home visits that were the same duration (10 hour-long sessions) and frequency (weekly) as ABC. DEF was designed to enhance cognitive and linguistic development.
• Child age (less than 24 months old)
Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Effect size | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Strange Situation Procedure - Disorganized Attachment | Approximately 1 month after program end, or longer if child not yet old enough to measure outcome. | Moderate | 0.67 | Statistically significant, p = 0.012 | 120 children | Full analytic sample |
Strange Situation Procedure - Secure Attachment | Approximately 1 month after program end, or longer if child not yet old enough to measure outcome. | Moderate | 0.46 | Not statistically significant, p = 0.082 | 120 children | Full analytic sample |
This study included participants with the following characteristics at enrollment:
Race/Ethnicity
Maternal Education
Other Characteristics
This study included participants from the following locations: