“I’m Not a Bad Parent! I’m Working Really Hard”: Understanding How Personalised Interventions Work for Parents of Children With Conduct Problems

BackgroundParenting programmes are widely implemented to help alleviate conduct problems in children. This qualitative study was undertaken as part of the Personalised Programmes for Children Randomised Controlled Trial (PPC RCT) which evaluated a personalised parenting programme for those who had either declined or not responded to previous standard group-based parenting interventions. The narratives of parents or carers taking part in the RCT were explored to understand their experiences of personalisation.MethodsTwenty-five parents took part in semi-structured interviews either in person or online. Verbatim transcripts were analysed using a thematic codebook approach.ResultsThree main themes were identified from the parents' narratives: (1) the importance of choice, (2) the importance of the relationship with the practitioner, and (3) the importance of going beyond the usual.ConclusionsOur findings demonstrate that offering parents choices within an intervention (such as location or time) is essential in creating an appropriate personalised approach that was valued by the study participants. Parents also highly valued the inclusion of their children. To engage parents who have previously not engaged or responded to prior group interventions, a more personalised approach utilising the element of choice and parent-led approaches should be considered.