Some have argued that human rights for children include feeling safe, wanted and respected at home. Parent-Child Connectedness (PCC) is characterized by a home environment of caring and trust where children and parents enjoy spending time together, communicate easily, and respect and support each other. PCC is emerging as a “super-protective factor” that may shield children from a variety of health risk behaviors (e.g., unprotected sex, substance use, violence, poor academic performance). This study investigated whether children feeling loved and spending time with parents were associated with parents asking kids about their problems/concerns, children going to parents with their problems/concerns, children desiring to be like their parents when they grow up, and parental involvement at school.
Data were collected from approximately 900 children, ages 9 to 13, at ten health education centers in six states. Participating students indicated their choices by pressing corresponding letters on handheld, electronic keypads. Questions were developed by an advisory team consisting of center staff, school administrators and teachers, a child psychologist, a pediatrician, university researchers, and health educators. School-level data (e.g., ethnicity proportion or free/reduced lunch participation) for schools participating were obtained from the National Center for Educational Statistics. Based on similar studies at these health education centers, total demographic data for this study is expected to reflect national averages.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to:
1. Identify the primary protective benefits of Parent-Child Connectedness 2. Based on the results of this study, identify associations among Parent-Child Connectedness variables, parent-child communication, and parental school involvement. 3. Identify implications of the results of the study for curriculum development/planning for improving Parent-Child Connectedness in grades 4-8