Study of the Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up Program to Support Parenting and Reduce Stress in Young Children Facing Early Life Challenges

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying the effects of the Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up ABC parenting program on stress-related biological markers in young children. The study involves about 150 caregiver-child pairs, focusing on children aged 24 to 42 months who have faced social challenges such as low income, violence, trauma, or caregiver separation. The aim is to understand how this evidence-based parenting program may influence child stress and wellbeing. Participants will be randomly assigned to two groups one will receive the 10-session home-based ABC program immediately, which focuses on improving parental sensitivity and nurturing behaviors. The other group will be placed on a waitlist for about four months before receiving the same ABC program. The intervention is delivered in the home environment to support positive caregiver-child interactions. During the study, caregivers will complete online surveys and engage in play-based observation tasks with their children. Non-invasive biological samples like saliva, cheek swabs, and hair will be collected from children, and saliva samples from caregivers, at two to three different times. Researchers will measure various outcomes including child inflammation, stress hormones, epigenetic age, telomere length, hair cortisol, parenting behaviors, child wellbeing, executive functioning, mental health, and caregiver anxiety and depression. The study is designed to monitor changes from before the intervention to 13-20 weeks after baseline.

Resilience Through Interventions for Successful Early Outcomes