Evaluating the effect of the Partners in Parenting Kids (PiP Kids) online program on parental self efficacy and child anxiety and depression, delivered in partnership with the Raising Children Network.

The intervention, ‘Partners in Parenting Kids’ (PiP Kids), is an updated version of the web-based parenting program ‘Parenting Resilient Kids’ (PaRK; ACTRN12616000621415), since renamed 'PiP Kids'. The original PaRK program is an online parenting program designed to equip parents/caregivers (henceforth 'parents') with evidence-based parenting strategies to prevent or reduce depression and anxiety in their child aged 5-11 years. The PiP Kids intervention includes a web-based program drawn from the PaRK intervention and is fully self-directed online with modules covering topics related to parenting in the context of preventing or reducing a child's anxiety and/or depression (i.e. connection, managing emotions and internalising behaviours, managing conflict, establishing family rules, setting goals, when to seek help, parents sharing about their own mental health). The modules provide practical strategies to support participants to make changes to their parenting, to align more closely with the parenting recommendations in the evidence-based and expert-consensus-based Parenting Guidelines, in addition to evidence-based content curated to support participants in reducing depression and anxiety in their child. The interactive modules can be accessed online from any device with internet access (including smartphones). The modules include educational materials, illustrations, podcasts, interactive activities, goal-setting exercises, and an end-of-module quiz with immediate feedback to consolidate learning. Each module takes approximately 20-30 minutes to complete, depending on the topic and how participants engage with the module. Before commencing the program, participants will be able to select between a ‘Tailored’ pathway (i.e. program content is personalised based on responses to an initial self assessment; this is the original design of the program) or a ‘Non-tailored’ pathway (i.e. program content is completely self selected with no self assessment completed; this new pathway has been created to suit the real-world implementation context). Participants will receive the following as part of the PiP Kids program; Tailored pathway: 1) This pathway will allow participants to first complete a self-assessment of their parenting practices as part of the pre-program surveys, which will take approximately 25-30 minutes. The self assessment will include the Parenting to Reduce Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (PaRCADS) which was developed as a criterion-referenced measure to assess parenting against a set of evidence-based parenting guidelines for the prevention of child anxiety and depressive disorders (Sim et al., 2019). Participants will rate their own parenting practices on domains such as their involvement in their child's life, how they manage conflict and how they help their child manage emotions. Responses will be rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 'almost never' to 'almost always'. In addition, as part of the pre-program surveys, participants will also be offered the option of completing the Parental Self Efficacy Scale - Child (PSES-C) and the Paediatric Symptoms Checklist (PSC-17). The original PSES assesses parental self-efficacy in parenting to reduce the risk of adolescent depression and anxiety (see Nicolas et al, 2020). The PSES-C has been adapted specifically for use with parents of children aged 5-11 years. Responses will be rated on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 'not at all confident' to 'very confident'. The Paediatric Symptoms Checklist (PSC-17) assesses emotional and behavioral problems in children on a 3-point Likert scale from ‘never’ to ‘often’. 2) A tailored feedback report which is based on participants' responses to the PaRCADS, which is viewable on participants’ personal dashboard. The report includes information about the parent's current parenting strengths and suggestions of practical strategies for identified areas for development. 3) Specific module recommendations based on responses to the PaRCADS and profile questions. Participants can however further tailor their module selection based on their own preferences/interests by selecting additional non recommended modules, or de-selecting recommended modules if they choose. 4) Optional post-program surveys will be offered at the completion of the program including the PaRCADS, PSES-C, PSC-17 and a program evaluation survey. The Non-tailored pathway: 1) Participants will not be required to complete the self-assessment in this pathway and will not be provided with any tailored feedback report or the module recommendations. Participants will instead be able to self-select their preferred modules right away. 2) All three surveys (PaRCADS, PSES-C, PSC-17) will be offered as optional pre-program surveys but may be skipped if participants choose not to complete them. 3) Optional post-program surveys will be offered at the completion of the program including the PaRCADS, PSES-C, PSC-17 and a program evaluation survey. The program is designed to be completed over a period of up to 90 days. However, the duration of the intervention will differ for each participant, based on the number of modules selected and pace of module completion. A maximum of 14 modules will be available for participants to add to their personalised program. By default, modules will ‘unlock’ (i.e. become available for participants to complete) at a rate of one module per week, until all selected modules have been unlocked. Participants are notified by email when a new module unlocks. If they prefer, participants can choose to override the default unlock date, and unlock modules at an earlier date. After all initial chosen modules have been unlocked, any remaining modules, including any not initially chosen, will become available for participants to complete if they wish. Participants can revisit any modules they have already completed at any time. Program adherence will be monitored through website analytics. Note. Children will not be directly involved in the program.