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_... . <br /> 1 . 1 <br /> ” . . <br /> . . , <br /> . . <br /> 4. Project N rrative <br /> 1 <br /> a. Statement of Need. The purpose of the proposed research,and demonstration <br /> project is to test the impact of two methods of parent education on the parenting <br /> skills and behaviors of abusive and neglectful parents of preschool Children: <br /> That some parental abuse of children is attributable to the lack of knowledge <br /> regarding child development, childrearing,and child management techniques is <br /> . . <br /> supported in the child abuse literature (Helfer and Pollock, 1968; Johnson and <br /> Morse, 1968; Parke and Collmer, 1975; Burgess, 1979). Our agency's experience ' <br /> in treatment of abusive parents bears out these findings. In fact, a recent • <br /> review of our caseload revealed approximately 60 cases of confirmed or potential <br /> abuse in which the lack of adequate parenting was a precipitating factor. These <br /> 60 cases rep 1 esent fmilies in which all children are preschool age (2-5 years), <br /> ' 58% of the mcIthers are between 16 and 25 years and are single parents. These <br /> , - statistics aJ well as our experience in working with these types of families , <br /> suggest that they could benefit from the proposed program. Moreover, our staff <br /> • has identified parent education as the single greatest service need for abusive <br /> and neglectful families in Orange County. Finally, the Triangle J Council of <br /> Governments, in its Fall 1982 needs assessment, has also ranked parent education <br /> as the first priority service need in Orange County. There are no discrete <br /> parent education services in Orange County.' <br /> The objectives of the proposedproject are as follows: 1) To determine which <br /> of the selec ed models is effective in improving (a) parental knowledge and <br /> skills in ch'ldrearing and child development and (b) parental behavior toward <br /> the child; ) To determine which model has a greater effect on reduCing abuse <br /> , . <br /> reports or r _eatedoccurrences of abuse among project parents; 3) To determine <br /> the relative cost-effectiveness of :the two selected methods compared with <br /> ' daycare alon . <br /> , . <br /> Parent e ucation has been .shown to influence parental attitudes and <br /> ' . . . . <br /> . , <br /> ......_ <br />