This study evaluated the effect of single session email consultation on empowerment of parents. Practitioners in a control group (N = 19) received no training; practitioners in an experimental group (N = 21) were trained to use empowerment oriented techniques in online consultation. Parental empowerment was measured (n=96) through a questionnaire based on the Family Empowerment Scale (Koren, DeChillo, & Friesen, 1992) before and after receiving an advice from a trained or a non-trained practitioner. Parents showed a significant increase in the subscale of self-confidence (Cohen’s d = 0.33). Study findings lend support to the feasibility of single session email consultation as a brief intervention to improve self-confidence of parents. A training for practitioners did not influence the outcomes.
Background. Online consultation is increasingly offered by parenting practitioners, but it is not clear if it is feasible to provide empowerment oriented support in single session email consultation. Method. Based on empowerment theory we developed the Guiding the Empowerment Process model (GEP model) to evaluate text-based consultation. By content analysis of email advice (N=129; 5,997 sentences in total), we investigated the feasibility of the newly developed model (inter-observer agreement, internal consistency and factor structure) and its validity. Concurrent validity was evaluated by comparing coding results, using the GEP model and a Social Support model, that partially intersects with empowerment. Results. Results showed good inter-observer reliability and internal consistency of the GEP model. The results provided evidence for its concurrent validity by a significant correlation of the coding results from the GEP model with the Social Support model, although it was also distinctive. All described techniques which practitioners may employ to guide the parental process towards empowerment were observed in the sample. Also, guidance was provided in all components of the empowerment process. Conclusion. Feasibility of the GEP model for content analysis of email consultation in parental support from a theoretical empowerment perspective has been demonstrated.
Background. Single session email consultations in web-based parenting support may be used for a variety of reasons. Parents may be looking for information on developmental needs of children, for suggestions to improve their parenting skills, or for referrals to helpful resources. The way the practitioner meets the needs of parents, choosing a short-term and text-based approach, has not been analyzed up till now. Objective. To determine if and how practitioner response in single session email consultation matches the need of parents. Method. A content analysis of single session email consultations (129 questions; 5,997 response sentences) was conducted. Three perspectives on the parent-practitioner communication were distinguished to assess the match between parenting questions and consultations, i.e., the expert oriented, parent oriented and context oriented perspective. Results. The parent oriented type is the dominant paradigm in requesting and providing email consultations, with which the other types may be combined. Most consultations showed a mixed perspective with the use of a limited amount of techniques within each perspective. Correlations between the practitioner’s approach and parental expectancies were weak. Conclusions. Professionals have a broad approach to email consultation, offering advice of different perspectives, rather than restricting the advice in order to match a prevalent parental need. All proposed textual techniques were observed in email consultations, providing evidence of their feasibility. Since practice of email consultations is relatively new, practitioners may benefit from the proposed systematic approach to writing email consultations, identifying parental need and permitting the use of professional techniques.
