Educating for change: A meta‐analysis of education programs for separating and divorcing parents

• Published date: 01 July 2024
• Author: Michael A. Saini,Samantha Corrente
• Date: 01 July 2024
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fcre.12801

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Educating for change: A meta-analysis of

education programs for separating and

divorcing parents

Michael A. Saini | Samantha Corrente

University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario,

Canada

Correspondence

Michael A. Saini, Factor-Inwentash Chair of

Law and Social Work, Factor-Inwentash

Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto,

246 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario,

M5S 1A1, Canada.

Email: michael.saini@utoronto.ca

Abstract

Parent education programs have been designed explicitly

for separated and divorced parents. These programs typi-

cally aim to help parents navigate the challenges of co-

parenting, reduce their children's exposure to interparental

conflict, and promote their children's well-being post-

separation and divorce. Evaluating the effectiveness of par-

ent education programs has been challenging, given the het-

erogeneity of formats, duration, and settings of these

programs. This meta-analytic review aimed to complete a

compressive search of relevant studies of parent education

programs for separated and divorced parents. Among

40 studies, 103 treatment effects were included across edu-

cation programs. The overall weighted standardized mean

difference across all education programs was 0.24

(CI =0.14, 0.34, Q=1274.69, df: 97, p< 0.001,

I

2

=0.96.7), but these small effects were not maintained at

follow-up (ES 0.00, CI: 0.09, 0.09). Given the considerable

heterogeneity across effect sizes, a meta-regression and

multiple regressions were computed to assess the influence

of moderator variables. This review provides further evi-

dence of the effectiveness of parent education programs.

Implications are provided to create evidence-based

guidelines.

DOI: 10.1111/fcre.12801

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which

permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no

modifications or adaptations are made.

© 2024 The Author(s). Family Court Review published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Association of Family and Conciliation

Courts.

512 Family Court Rev. 2024;62:512–541.

wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/fcre

KEYWORDS

meta-analysis, parent education, separation and divorce:

Family law

Key points for the Family Court Community

•The meta-analytic review examines 40 studies on parent

education for separated and divorced parents, showcas-

ing a comprehensive and systematic information retrieval

process.

•Results encompass face-to-face and online parent educa-

tion programs, contributing to the growing empirical evi-

dence supporting their effectiveness.

•Overall, the review indicates a significant, albeit low to

moderate, effect size (d=0.24) across various outcomes,

demonstrating the positive impact of parent education

programs.

•Twelve outcomes are considered, revealing diverse pro-

gram impacts. More robust effects are noted for parent

communication, knowledge gained, court outcomes, rela-

tionship adjustment, parent competency, and child

adjustment.

•The debate on the duration of parent education pro-

grams is addressed, with findings suggesting that shorter

and longer programs can be impactful. A proposed differ-

ential approach aligns program duration with specific

goals.

•The review underscores the increasing prevalence of

online options for parent education programs. Interest-

ingly, computer-generated facilitation produces more

robust effect size estimates than programs facilitated by

professionals, prompting further research.

INTRODUCTION

The separation and divorce process can bring about substantial changes in relationship structures. This includes

shifts in co-parenting dynamics with ex-partners, alterations in parenting styles, changes in parent–child interactions,

difficulties in child adjustment, shifts in sibling relationships, and adjustments in relationships with extended family

members (Tafà et al., 2022; Zemp & Bodenmann, 2018). Separation and divorce can also influence how parents fulfill

their parenting and co-parenting roles (Baum, 2003; Cox et al., 2021; Saini, et al., 2019). Research emphasizes the

crucial role of positive parenting post-separation as a protective buffer against the potential negative adjustment to

SAINI and CORRENTE 513