This study focuses on severe insensitive or neglectful mothering, the most prevalent type of chil... more This study focuses on severe insensitive or neglectful mothering, the most prevalent type of child maltreatment, to examine cortical surface feature alterations underlying maternal functioning and their impact on mother-child interactive bonding. High-resolution 3D volumetric images were obtained on 24 neglectful (NM) and 21 non-neglectful control (CM) mothers. Using surface-based morphometry, we compared differences in cortical thickness and surface area. Mothers completed alexithymia and cortical integrity measures and participated with their children in a play task (Emotional Availability Scale). We found cortical thinning for NM in the right rostral middle frontal gyrus and the right anterior/medial cingulate cortex, and also increased surface area in the right occipital lingual and fusiform areas and the caudal middle frontal area. Mediation analyses showed that cognitive integrity and alexithymia mediated, respectively, the positive and negative effect of the rostral middle fr...
Electronic Journal of Research in Education Psychology
Introduction. The increasing use of online parenting resources offers the opportunity to improve ... more Introduction. The increasing use of online parenting resources offers the opportunity to improve the parenting role through Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). However, there is no evidence concerning the effectiveness of the learning process that takes place in a PLE space. Method. We evaluated the “Positive Parent” program through the self-assignment of: (a) 143 Spanish-speaking parents to the program modules, following a fixed learning itinerary based on the experiential methodology (Program Group), and (b) 139 parents to complementary multimedia material, following a self-guided, flexible learning itinerary (Visitor Group). For the first goal, both groups were automatically monitored for their pre-posttest completion of the Positive Parenting Scale, resulting in significant improvements in Family involvement, Affection and recognition for the child, Family communication and stress management, and Shared activities in the Program Group only. For the second goal, the Program Gr...
While positive parenting programs are an initiative aligned with the Family-Centered Care model a... more While positive parenting programs are an initiative aligned with the Family-Centered Care model and the Council of Europe’s Recommendation on Positive Parenting, implementation in healthcare centers remains a challenge. The aims of this study were to (1) investigate how the hybrid version (online course plus face-to-face activities) of the program “Gain Health & Wellbeing From 0 to 3” was implemented in Spain from professionals’ perspective, and (2) explore the perceived impact of this hybrid version of the program on the implementers’ professional development. We used a qualitative mixed-methods design that included focus groups and surveys. Fifty professionals from 17 centers completed the survey on professional development. Thirty-one of these also participated in the focus groups to address the first aim. The key themes identified from the focus group were professional training, parent recruitment, program features, organizational issues, parental responses, and program sustaina...
International Journal of Developmental and Educational Psychology. Revista INFAD de Psicología., 2019
La Guía de Buenas Prácticas en Parentalidad Positiva está dirigida a los servicios y a los y las ... more La Guía de Buenas Prácticas en Parentalidad Positiva está dirigida a los servicios y a los y las profesionales que desarrollan su tarea en las áreas de Servicio Social, Educación, Salud, Justicia, o en alguna otra área donde se trabaje desarrollando labores de asesoramiento, orientación, intervención o apoyo a las familias. Contiene como instrumento principal un Protocolo de Buenas Prácticas que recoge aquellos aspectos que caracterizan el quehacer profesional y el servicio de apoyo a las familias que son relevantes desde el enfoque de la parentalidad positiva y que pueden ser objeto de mejora. Las posibilidades de mejora de la práctica profesional y del servicio se exploran en tres ámbitos de contenido claramente interconectados: A) Características de los servicios de apoyo a las familias y cultura organizacional; B) Proceso del trabajo profesional con las familias, y C) Uso de programas basados en evidencias dirigidos a las familias. Se señala el proceso de elaboración y aplicació...
Revista de Estudios e Investigación en Psicología y Educación, 2016
Este artículo describe la validación de una escala para evaluar el apoyo social online que percib... more Este artículo describe la validación de una escala para evaluar el apoyo social online que perciben los usuarios de recursos web en español para padres y madres. Responde así a la necesidad de crear un instrumento específico que permita captar la complejidad de este nuevo constructo. Para la validación de la Escala de Apoyo Parental Online (EAPO) se contó con 301 padres y madres españoles y latinoamericanos, que se matricularon en el programa online 'Educar en Positivo' (http://educarenpositivo.es), quedando registradas automáticamente las respuestas al cuestionario en una base de datos al comienzo de su participación. La estructura factorial se obtuvo a través de la técnica de modelo de ecuaciones estructurales exploratorio (MESE) con rotación oblimin y el método de estimación de ponderación de mínimos cuadrados ajustado por la media y la varianza (WLSMW) para su confirmación. Los resultados principales muestran una factorización óptima en el constructo de un modelo de cinc...
The maternal brain undergoes functional and structural adaptations to sensitive caregiving that a... more The maternal brain undergoes functional and structural adaptations to sensitive caregiving that are critical for ensuring infant wellbeing. This study investigates brain structural alterations in neglectful caregiving and their impact on mother-child interactive behavior. High-resolution 3D volumetric images were obtained on 25 neglectful (NM) and 23 non-neglectful control (CM) mothers. Using Voxel-Based Morphometry, we compared gray and white matter volume (GMV/WMV) between the two groups. Mothers also completed an empathy scale and participated with their children in a standardized play task (Emotional Availability Scale, EA). NM, as compared to CM, showed GMV reductions in right insula, anterior/middle cingulate, and right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), as well as WMV reductions in bilateral frontal regions. A GMV increase was observed in the right fusiform and cerebellum. Regression analyses showed a negative effect of fusiform GMV and a positive effect of right frontal WMV on EA...
Objective: To examine the effects of individual and group factors on the changes in child-rearing... more Objective: To examine the effects of individual and group factors on the changes in child-rearing practices in a parenting program. Method: At risk and non at-risk parents (N 496), who varied by sociodemographic factors, participated in 94 groups that differed by size and composition. Latent growth curve modeling was used to examine the impact of individual and group variables on pre–post changes in inductive, coercive, and permissive-neglecting practices. Results: Inductive parenting increased and coercive and permissive-neglecting parenting decreased over the intervention and the proportion of change was influenced by family structure, parents ’ gender and group composition. Low-risk groups and mixed (at-risk and non at-risk) groups did better than medium/high-risk groups in changing inductive and coercive practices whereas all groups did well in changing permissive-neglecting practices. Conclusion: To test the effectiveness of a group-based intervention requires taking into accou...
The quality of the online resources for parents offering access to open knowledge has hardly rece... more The quality of the online resources for parents offering access to open knowledge has hardly received attention despite their increasing number. This paper provides a framework to examine the ethical and content quality of parenting resources. The ethical criteria were based on “the Health on the Net” (HON) framework whereas the content criteria were based on the Positive Parenting framework and the effectiveness of the learning materials used. The criteria were applied to a survey of international websites (n=100) for Spanishspeaking parents. Chisquare analyses showed that websites from Spain, official companies sites and information sites, as compared to South American, parents’ and interactive sites, scored higher in the ethical criteria of privacy, authority, justifiability and financial disclosure. Hierarchical cluster analysis applied to content criteria showed that the High quality websites, unlike the Low quality ones, valued gender equality, a positive parental role, modele...
This study focuses on severe insensitive or neglectful mothering, the most prevalent type of chil... more This study focuses on severe insensitive or neglectful mothering, the most prevalent type of child maltreatment, to examine cortical surface feature alterations underlying maternal functioning and their impact on mother-child interactive bonding. High-resolution 3D volumetric images were obtained on 24 neglectful (NM) and 21 non-neglectful control (CM) mothers. Using surface-based morphometry, we compared differences in cortical thickness and surface area. Mothers completed alexithymia and cortical integrity measures and participated with their children in a play task (Emotional Availability Scale). We found cortical thinning for NM in the right rostral middle frontal gyrus and the right anterior/medial cingulate cortex, and also increased surface area in the right occipital lingual and fusiform areas and the caudal middle frontal area. Mediation analyses showed that cognitive integrity and alexithymia mediated, respectively, the positive and negative effect of the rostral middle fr...
Electronic Journal of Research in Education Psychology
Introduction. The increasing use of online parenting resources offers the opportunity to improve ... more Introduction. The increasing use of online parenting resources offers the opportunity to improve the parenting role through Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). However, there is no evidence concerning the effectiveness of the learning process that takes place in a PLE space. Method. We evaluated the “Positive Parent” program through the self-assignment of: (a) 143 Spanish-speaking parents to the program modules, following a fixed learning itinerary based on the experiential methodology (Program Group), and (b) 139 parents to complementary multimedia material, following a self-guided, flexible learning itinerary (Visitor Group). For the first goal, both groups were automatically monitored for their pre-posttest completion of the Positive Parenting Scale, resulting in significant improvements in Family involvement, Affection and recognition for the child, Family communication and stress management, and Shared activities in the Program Group only. For the second goal, the Program Gr...
While positive parenting programs are an initiative aligned with the Family-Centered Care model a... more While positive parenting programs are an initiative aligned with the Family-Centered Care model and the Council of Europe’s Recommendation on Positive Parenting, implementation in healthcare centers remains a challenge. The aims of this study were to (1) investigate how the hybrid version (online course plus face-to-face activities) of the program “Gain Health & Wellbeing From 0 to 3” was implemented in Spain from professionals’ perspective, and (2) explore the perceived impact of this hybrid version of the program on the implementers’ professional development. We used a qualitative mixed-methods design that included focus groups and surveys. Fifty professionals from 17 centers completed the survey on professional development. Thirty-one of these also participated in the focus groups to address the first aim. The key themes identified from the focus group were professional training, parent recruitment, program features, organizational issues, parental responses, and program sustaina...
International Journal of Developmental and Educational Psychology. Revista INFAD de Psicología., 2019
La Guía de Buenas Prácticas en Parentalidad Positiva está dirigida a los servicios y a los y las ... more La Guía de Buenas Prácticas en Parentalidad Positiva está dirigida a los servicios y a los y las profesionales que desarrollan su tarea en las áreas de Servicio Social, Educación, Salud, Justicia, o en alguna otra área donde se trabaje desarrollando labores de asesoramiento, orientación, intervención o apoyo a las familias. Contiene como instrumento principal un Protocolo de Buenas Prácticas que recoge aquellos aspectos que caracterizan el quehacer profesional y el servicio de apoyo a las familias que son relevantes desde el enfoque de la parentalidad positiva y que pueden ser objeto de mejora. Las posibilidades de mejora de la práctica profesional y del servicio se exploran en tres ámbitos de contenido claramente interconectados: A) Características de los servicios de apoyo a las familias y cultura organizacional; B) Proceso del trabajo profesional con las familias, y C) Uso de programas basados en evidencias dirigidos a las familias. Se señala el proceso de elaboración y aplicació...
Revista de Estudios e Investigación en Psicología y Educación, 2016
Este artículo describe la validación de una escala para evaluar el apoyo social online que percib... more Este artículo describe la validación de una escala para evaluar el apoyo social online que perciben los usuarios de recursos web en español para padres y madres. Responde así a la necesidad de crear un instrumento específico que permita captar la complejidad de este nuevo constructo. Para la validación de la Escala de Apoyo Parental Online (EAPO) se contó con 301 padres y madres españoles y latinoamericanos, que se matricularon en el programa online 'Educar en Positivo' (http://educarenpositivo.es), quedando registradas automáticamente las respuestas al cuestionario en una base de datos al comienzo de su participación. La estructura factorial se obtuvo a través de la técnica de modelo de ecuaciones estructurales exploratorio (MESE) con rotación oblimin y el método de estimación de ponderación de mínimos cuadrados ajustado por la media y la varianza (WLSMW) para su confirmación. Los resultados principales muestran una factorización óptima en el constructo de un modelo de cinc...
The maternal brain undergoes functional and structural adaptations to sensitive caregiving that a... more The maternal brain undergoes functional and structural adaptations to sensitive caregiving that are critical for ensuring infant wellbeing. This study investigates brain structural alterations in neglectful caregiving and their impact on mother-child interactive behavior. High-resolution 3D volumetric images were obtained on 25 neglectful (NM) and 23 non-neglectful control (CM) mothers. Using Voxel-Based Morphometry, we compared gray and white matter volume (GMV/WMV) between the two groups. Mothers also completed an empathy scale and participated with their children in a standardized play task (Emotional Availability Scale, EA). NM, as compared to CM, showed GMV reductions in right insula, anterior/middle cingulate, and right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), as well as WMV reductions in bilateral frontal regions. A GMV increase was observed in the right fusiform and cerebellum. Regression analyses showed a negative effect of fusiform GMV and a positive effect of right frontal WMV on EA...
Objective: To examine the effects of individual and group factors on the changes in child-rearing... more Objective: To examine the effects of individual and group factors on the changes in child-rearing practices in a parenting program. Method: At risk and non at-risk parents (N 496), who varied by sociodemographic factors, participated in 94 groups that differed by size and composition. Latent growth curve modeling was used to examine the impact of individual and group variables on pre–post changes in inductive, coercive, and permissive-neglecting practices. Results: Inductive parenting increased and coercive and permissive-neglecting parenting decreased over the intervention and the proportion of change was influenced by family structure, parents ’ gender and group composition. Low-risk groups and mixed (at-risk and non at-risk) groups did better than medium/high-risk groups in changing inductive and coercive practices whereas all groups did well in changing permissive-neglecting practices. Conclusion: To test the effectiveness of a group-based intervention requires taking into accou...
The quality of the online resources for parents offering access to open knowledge has hardly rece... more The quality of the online resources for parents offering access to open knowledge has hardly received attention despite their increasing number. This paper provides a framework to examine the ethical and content quality of parenting resources. The ethical criteria were based on “the Health on the Net” (HON) framework whereas the content criteria were based on the Positive Parenting framework and the effectiveness of the learning materials used. The criteria were applied to a survey of international websites (n=100) for Spanishspeaking parents. Chisquare analyses showed that websites from Spain, official companies sites and information sites, as compared to South American, parents’ and interactive sites, scored higher in the ethical criteria of privacy, authority, justifiability and financial disclosure. Hierarchical cluster analysis applied to content criteria showed that the High quality websites, unlike the Low quality ones, valued gender equality, a positive parental role, modele...
Uploads