Preliminary Results of Aggression Management Training for Aggressive Parents

Abstract

Four factors associated with parenting have been proposed as being key in the development of the physical abuse of children: (a) physiological arousal in the face of child-related stress, (b) poor communication and parenting strategies, (c) problems in empathic responding, and (d) ascribing negative intentionality to negative behavior. A number of studies have reported on efforts at treating physically aggressive parents with anger management training and with behavior management skills. The current study took a step beyond reporting treatment outcome from a single-case design to studying the impact of a group treatment approach. Twenty-nine aggressive parents were treated with a standardized group treatment over the course of 13 weeks. The treatment focused on anger management, communication skills, problem-solving skills, and the enhancement of empathy. Results indicated that parents, after treatment, reported improvements in their relationships with their children along with less anger. Generally, parents' scores on evaluation questionnaires moved from the clinical range to the normal range posttreatment. This suggests that this type of approach may be useful in reducing aggressive interactions between parent and child.