IMPLEMENTING A LARGE-SCALE TEST OF MARRIAGE AND RELATIONSHIP SKILLS EDUCATION: BUILDING STRONG FAMILIES

1. IMPLEMENTING A LARGE-SCALE TEST OF MARRIAGE AND RELATIONSHIP SKILLS EDUCATION:BUILDING STRONG FAMILIES Alan M. Hershey and M. Robin Dion National Council on Family Relations Annual Conference November 5, 2008

2. Overview • Background: Motivation of BSF • What is the BSF project? • What is the BSF intervention? • What have we learned from implementing marriage/relationship skills interventions for low-income couples? • How are we measuring the effects of BSF?

3. Why Are We Doing BSF? • To help unwed parents build stronger relationships and fulfill their hopes for marriage • To learn whether BSF programs can build stronger families

4. Why Focus on Unwed Parents at the Time of Their Child’s Birth? • 1/3 of all births are to unmarried women • Children growing up without their biological, married parents are at increased risk for: • Poverty • Dropping out of school • Delinquency • Substance abuse • Becoming teen parents • Most unwed couples have romantic, supportive relationships and hope to marry

5. Over 80% Are Romantically Involved When Their Child Is Born Not Romantic 18% Romantic - Cohabiting 47% Romantic – “Visiting” 35% Source: Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study, Carlson 2002.

6. Unwed Parents Have High Hopes for Their Relationship Source: Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study, Carlson 2002. .

7. But a Year Later, Few Couples Have Achieved Their Aspirations Source: Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study, Carlson 2002.

8. What is Building Strong Families? • A demonstration and evaluation of the effectiveness of healthy marriage programs for unwed parents • Collaboration with sites to implement local programs • In-depth study of the implementation of programs • Impact evaluation based on random assignment • Focus on broad set of outcomes

9. Factors that Could Inform Intervention Design • Transition to parenthood affects relationships • Pregnancy is opportunity for intervention • Significant body of knowledge on correlates of successful relationships • Couples can benefit from interventions • Special barriers to success in marriage/relationships for low-income couples • Low-income unwed couples have little access to relationship/marriage programs

10. A Conceptual Framework for the BSF Intervention 1. Antecedents of Family Formation 2. Program/Policy Interventions 3. Intermediate Outcomes 4. Long-Term Outcomes Enhanced Child Well-Being and Development Improved Parent Well-Being Reduced Non-Marital Childbearing Increased Family Self-Sufficiency Family Demographics Relationship Type and Quality Multiple Partner Fertility Relationship Skills, Attitudes, Expectations Employability Physical and Mental Health Parenting Skills Cultural Factors Economic Conditions and Public Policies Marriage and Relationship Education Services to Address Other Family Needs Healthy Marriage Relationship Quality and Stability Positive Parenting and Parent-Child Relationships Father Involvement Improved Family Functioning

11. Critical Intervention Features • Voluntary participation • Target population: interested unwed expectant couples 18+ years old • Curriculum appropriate to the population: adaptation and supplementation • Intensive and comprehensive program • Assessment for domestic violence and other issues

12. Seven Sites, with 12 Locations, Got Involved in BSF

13. Sites Used Three Approaches to Organize BSF Services • Three sites integrated BSF into a home visiting program • Florida, Indiana, Texas • Two multi-program agencies added BSF to their menu of other services for low-income families • Baltimore, Baton Rouge • Two sites created BSF from the ground up by adding new capacities to existing entities • Oklahoma, Atlanta

14. The BSF Intervention Model Marriage and Relationship Skills Education Group Sessions Male-Female Facilitator Teams 30-44 Hours Family Coordinators Encourage Group Attendance Assess/Link to Other Services Family Support Services Address Marriage Barriers Use Existing Resources

15. A Marriage and Relationship Focus Made BSF Unique • Communication • Conflict resolution • Understanding marriage • Enhancing intimacy • Managing emotions Marriage and Relationship Skills Education

16. Marriage and Relationship Skills Curricula Had to Meet Three Criteria • Research-based • Focused on the transition to parenthood • Appropriate for BSF demographic groups

17. Sites Chose Three Different Curricula

18. Where We are Now in the BSF Project • Enrollment of evaluation sample completed (but programs still enrolling and operating) • First report on implementation published, second in the works • BSF data collection • 15-month survey under way and will continue through June 2009 • 36-month survey begins October 2008 • Evaluation impact reports: Early 2010 and late 2011

19. Who Signs Up for BSF?

20. BSF Couples Are in Mid-20s, Racially Diverse, with Multiple Children Source: BSF Baseline Information Form

21. Most Have a High School Degree and Many Fathers Work … Source: BSF Baseline Information Form

22. …But Earnings Are Low Even When Combined* Median ≈ $18,000 * 2007 Poverty Threshold for Family of Four = $20,650 Source: BSF Baseline Information Form

23. BSF Couples Feel Positively About Their Relationships and About Marriage Source: BSF Baseline Information Form

24. Most Unmarried BSF Couples are in Full-Time Cohabiting Relationships Cohabitation Status Not Cohabiting Some of the Time All the Time Most of the Time Sources: BSF Baseline Information Form

25. Most BSF Couples Expect to Marry Source: BSF Baseline Information Form

26. Marriage Expectations Vary by Confidence in Partner’s Faithfulness BSF couples expect to marry regardless of socioeconomic status, past relationships, and general attitudes toward marriage …but expectations are low for the minority of individuals who are not confident that their partner will be faithful

27. Many BSF Couples Experience Multiple Partner Fertility Members of the Couple Who Have Children By Prior Partners Sources: BSF Baseline Information Form

28. Most Wanted a Child Together, But Not So Soon Pregnancy Intentions • 23% • 53% • 24% *Note: “Intended” denotes both wanting the pregnancy and approving of the timing. Source: BSF Baseline Information Form

29. Strengths Serious relationships Positive feelings about relationship Expectations for marriage Positive regard for marriage Social support, religious attendance Potential Challenges Low earnings Multiple partner fertility Pregnancy timing Transition to family role Some psychological distress Some unease about potential infidelity BSF Couples Have Strengths and Some Unique Challenges

30. How Much Do Couples Attend Core BSF Activities?

31. Most Couples Assigned to the Program Attend Group Sessions • Couples were informed about the program before consenting to be in the evaluation … • …But it remained a challenge to engage couples • In early sample of BSF couples, 61% eventually began attending group sessions • Fairly typical of voluntary programs, but not ideal for testing impacts

32. Couples Who Start Attending Groups Participate About 21 Hours, on Average • Most group attendance is by both partners, rather than individual parents • Among early enrollees, those who start group average total “dosage” from 10 to almost 30 hours • Less than planned for some sites, but more than most marriage education programs

33. Most Get Instruction in Key Curriculum Topics Percentage of Attending Couples Receiving Instruction in Major Content Areas

34. No-Shows and Dropouts Reported Scheduling Issues or Family Illness • No-shows (who never came to a group) tended to report that the timing of group didn’t work with their schedules, or they got too busy to fit it in • Dropouts (who started but didn’t finish full curriculum) tended to report a family illness or change in work schedule

35. What Do Program Group Couples Think of BSF?

36. Couples Appreciate Facilitators and Bond with Other Couples 145 focus group participants from all sites … • Many reported that prior to BSF they had difficulty communicating and managing conflict • Some were excited about the program and had high hopes; skeptics relaxed after 2-3 sessions • Most experiences with group were positive; enthusiastic about facilitators and other couples

37. Communication and Conflict Management Skills Cited As Among the Most Helpful • Focus group participants described learning skills in a wide range of areas… • Being more respectful of each other • Compromising • Trusting one another • Expressing feelings constructively • Preventing harmful fights • Making decisions together • Learning their boiling points • Helping each other heal old traumas

38. Couples Say the Group Sessions Improved their Relationships • Many said it helped them to control their anger and handle conflict • Several said they felt closer because they learned new things about their partner • Some said the benefits extended beyond the couple relationship to their interactions with children

39. Couples Saw the Link Between their Relationship and the Child • Many parents said they learned to avoid arguing and fighting in front of their children: • “We should be role models for our kids.” • “We learned we should work on making the home a better place for our children.” • “I learned that parents should get along so that children can see good parents.”

40. Measuring the Impact of BSF on Couples and Children

41. Impact Analysis Addresses Couple and Family Outcomes…. • Service Receipt • Parents’ Relationship • Marital/relationship status • Relationship quality • Co-parenting • Relationship with new partner • Family Outcomes • Parenting/family involvement • Family structure • Family self-sufficiency

42. ….and Child Well-Being • Socio-Emotional Development • Child’s social competence (empathy) • Presence of externalizing behaviors • Presence of internalizing behaviors • Emotional security amid parental conflict • Cognitive development • Attachment • Child Health • General health status • Illness in the past month • Asthma diagnosis and severity

43. Outcomes Measured through Parent Surveys and Child Assessments • First follow-up: telephone surveys of mothers and fathers 15 months after enrollment • Second follow-up 36 months after birth of child • Repeat survey of parents • In-home assessment of child • Assessments • Receptive language: Peabody Picture Vocabulary test • Self-regulation: Walk a Line Slowly • Parent-child interaction: Three Bags Task • Attachment:Toddler Attachment Q-Sort 45

44. Analytical Challenges • Estimating impacts when the outcome is not observed for all couples: relationship quality • Option 1: Constrain analysis to outcomes definable for whole sample • Option 2: Modeling to take account of program/control group differences • Statistical power reduced by participation rate • Major option: Pool sample across similar sites

45. Stay Tuned for More Results • First report on BSF implementation available at www.buildingstrongfamilies.info • Further report on implementation: summer 2009 • 15-month impacts: spring 2010 • 36-month-impacts: Late 2011