Black or African American
19%
Jacobs, F., Easterbrooks, A., & Mistry, J. (2015). The Massachusetts Healthy Families evaluation-2 (MHFE-2): A randomized, controlled trial of a statewide home visiting program for young parents: Final report to the Children's Trust of Massachusetts. Medford, MA: Tufts Interdisciplinary Evaluation Research.
Model(s) Reviewed
Navigate to model page for more information about the home visiting model.
Study Registration
Funding Sources
The evaluation was funded by the Children's Trust of Massachusetts.
Study Design
| Design | Attrition | Baseline equivalence | Confounding factors | Valid, reliable measures? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Randomized controlled trial | Low | Established on race and ethnicity; not established on SES or baseline measures of the outcomes; some outcomes not feasible to assess at baseline. |
None |
Not assessed in manuscripts reviewed under Handbook of Procedures and Standards, Version 1 |
Four outcomes from this report were also reported in Jacobs et al. (2015), and those findings are reported elsewhere on the website. Those outcomes include: (1) at least one substantiated report of maltreatment, through 27 months post-enrollment; (2) mother finished one year of college, two years post-enrollment; (3) mother finished high school/GED, two years post-enrollment; and (4) repeat birth (self-report), two years post-enrollment. There were slight differences in the odds ratios reported for the four outcomes between this report and the journal article, but in both cases the statistical significance and favorability of the outcomes were the same within both reports. Information on attrition and baseline equivalence was based on correspondence with the author.
Findings that rate moderate or high in this manuscript
Maternal health
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Repeat pregnancy (self report), time 3 | 2 years post enrollment | Moderate | 0.04 | Not statistically significant, p = 0.72 | 612 mothers | MA sample |
Linkages and referrals
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size (absolute value) | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mother received mental health services after pregnancy (self report), time 3 | 2 years post enrollment | Moderate | 0.13 | Not statistically significant, p = 0.26 | 611 mothers | MA sample |
Study Participants
Among the 837 women who were recruited for the study, 517 were randomly assigned to receive home visiting services and 320 were randomly assigned to a control group that received referral and information only. Eligible participants were female, first-time parents between the ages of 16 and 20 and spoke either English or Spanish. The ethnicity of the full sample was as follows: 37 percent white non-Hispanic, 19 percent black non-Hispanic, 36 percent Hispanic, and 8 percent of other race/ethnicities. On average, mothers were 18.8 years old upon the birth of the child. Eighteen percent received cash assistance and 17 percent received food assistance prior to enrollment in the study.
Setting
The study took place within 18 sites in Massachusetts.
Home Visiting Services
Home visiting services were offered from pregnancy through the child's third birthday. On average, mothers received 24 home visits over 14.7 months. In addition to home visiting, the program included goal-setting and group-based activities and linkages and referrals to additional resources.
Model(s) Reviewed
Navigate to model page for more information about the home visiting model.
Comparison Conditions
Mothers in the comparison condition received information about child development and were referred to other services but they did not receive home visits.
Were any subgroups examined?
No
Subgroups examined
• Race/ethnicity (White, Black, or Hispanic) • Cohabitation status (lived together or did not live together) • Maternal depression (present based on screening) • Intimate partner violence (low, moderate, or high based on Conflict Tactics Scale) • Mother reports being victim of maltreatment during own childhood (yes or no) • Adequacy of basic resources (low or moderate/high) • Level of financial difficulty (low or moderate/high) • Relationship status (in committed relationship with father of child) • Mother has post-traumatic stress disorder (yes or no) • Mother has trauma exposure (yes or no)
This study included participants from the following locations:
- Massachusetts