Black or African American
63.00%
Source
Bernard, K., Frost, A., Jelinek, C., & Dozier, M. (2019). Secure attachment predicts lower body mass index in young children with histories of child protective services involvement. Pediatric Obesity, 14(7), e12510. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijpo.12510
Model(s) Reviewed
Study Registration
Funding Sources
This research was supported in part by Award Numbers R01MH052135, R01MH074374, and R01MH084135 from the National Institute of Mental Health.
Study Design
| Design | Attrition | Baseline equivalence | Confounding factors | Valid, reliable measures? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Randomized controlled trial | High | Established on race/ethnicity and SES; outcome not feasible to assess at baseline | None |
Notes
The study authors used a linear growth mediation model to examine the effect of ABC-Infant on changes in body mass index (BMI) from ages 2 to 4 as mediated through secure attachment, as well as the direct effect on secure attachment itself. The indirect effects on BMI are ineligible for review by HomVEE. Information on baseline equivalence was based on correspondence with the author.
Study Participants
Participants were recruited through referrals by Child Protective Service agencies. After receiving parental consent, children were randomized to either ABC-Infant or the comparison condition, which also provided home visits. Sixty-three percent of children in the analytic sample identified as African American, 20 percent as biracial or multiracial, 9 percent as Hispanic, and 8 percent as Caucasian. Among parents reporting income data, 93 percent reported incomes below the poverty level. The average maternal age at the child’s birth was 28, and children were younger than 24 months at the time of referral.
Setting
Newark, Delaware
Home Visiting Services
ABC-Infant consisted of 10 weekly hour-long home visits. The sessions focused on five topic areas: providing nurturance, following the child’s lead, refraining from frightening behavior, parents recognizing the effect of their own childhood experiences on their parenting behavior, and learning the importance of touch and children’s emotions. Across all sessions, parent trainers engaged parents in structured activities with their children and then provided feedback on observations of participants’ parenting behavior, both in real-time and by playing back video recordings from the sessions.
Comparison Conditions
Comparison families received Developmental Education for Families (DEF) in home visits that were of the same duration (10 hour-long sessions) and frequency (weekly) as ABC-Infant. DEF was designed to enhance cognitive and linguistic development. For this study, components related to parental sensitivity were excluded.
Were any subgroups examined?
No
Subgroups examined
• Attachment style (secure or insecure)
Findings that rate moderate or high in this manuscript
| Outcome measure | Timing of follow-up | Rating | Direction of Effect | Effect size | Stastical significance | Sample size | Sample description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Strange Situation Procedure - Secure attachment |
First post-intervention visit where child was at least 1-year old (range 11.8 to 31.9 months old) |
Moderate | 0.43 | Statistically significant, p= 0.03 |
105 children | ABC-Infant vs. DEF; Delaware |
This study included participants with the following characteristics at enrollment:
Race/Ethnicity
Maternal Education
Other Characteristics
This study included participants from the following locations:
- Delaware