Researchers at the University of Minnesota and the Minneapolis VA received a $3.2 million grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to develop and test a web-enhanced parenting program for families with parents returning from deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan.
The program, “After Deployment, Adaptive Parenting Tools/ADAPT” is based on Oregon Parent Management Training, a well-validated parenting intervention. Over the 5-year grant period, researchers will work closely with MN Army National Guard (MNARNG) personnel, to develop and test the parenting program among 400 MNARNG families in which at least one parent has been deployed. Earlier research led by one of the project’s co-investigators, Dr. Melissa Polusny, showed that worries about family were an important predictor of soldier wellbeing during deployment, and that effective parenting during the period of reintegration was diminished among soldiers suffering from symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Dr. Abigail Gewirtz, assistant professor of Family Social Science and the project’s Principal Investigator notes that, “This program builds on the considerable strengths of military families, the success of prior research among our investigative team, and our strong collaboration with the MN ARNG and its nationally recognized Beyond the Yellow Ribbon reintegration campaign. This is the first National Institutes of Health-funded study that we know of to specifically address deployment-related parenting challenges and child resilience among National Guard families. We are very pleased to have the opportunity to work to support the families of our nation’s military.”