Each year, more than in the U.S. are part of an investigation of suspected child abuse or neglect. Two psychologists at the University of 91吃瓜 are working together to lower that number.
笔谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤蝉听 and have each developed programs to help prevent or reduce child maltreatment at a critical point for development 鈥� Miller-Graff during pregnancy and Valentino during early childhood.
Now, the two are bringing their programs together with a聽聽from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
鈥淭his is a great example of what can happen when faculty members have the opportunity to collaborate and work closely with each other and generate innovative ideas together,鈥� said Valentino, the William J. Shaw Center for Children and Families Collegiate Chair in the聽.
Over the next five years, the clinical trial will assess whether the prenatal and early childhood programs work in tandem to prevent child maltreatment.
鈥淭his project represents, more broadly, ways that researchers like us could collaborate to really create some exciting synergies around things that have been developed independently,鈥� Miller-Graff said. 鈥淣ow, it can be brought together in an interesting way.鈥�
The power of collaboration
As a graduate student, Miller-Graff studied a program for mothers and older children who were exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV), which is physical, sexual or emotional abuse stemming from romantic relationships. As many as experience IPV in their lifetime, and it can have detrimental long-term effects on child development for children living in homes where it occurs. IPV is also one of the biggest risk factors for child maltreatment.
Though the program was effective at reducing IPV and improving maternal and child outcomes, Miller-Graff wondered if earlier intervention could prevent the onset of chronic violence in the children鈥檚 lives.
鈥淭hat is really what got me interested in doing work in pregnancy, thinking about, 鈥極K, how do we set things up better from the start for families?鈥欌�� she said.
Miller-Graff, now a professor of psychology and peace studies at 91吃瓜, worked with Kathryn Howell at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to adapt this program to specifically address the developmental needs and concerns of pregnant women. Known as the聽 (PMEP), this five-session program works to reduce intimate partner violence among pregnant women, improve maternal mental health and support early positive parenting practices with the goal of preventing subsequent child maltreatment.
Valentino鈥檚 research takes an alternate approach by intervening in the early childhood years 鈥� another period when the risk of child abuse and neglect is elevated. Valentino, the director of the , developed the聽 (RET) program, a six-session intervention that gives mothers tools to improve their emotional support and response to their child鈥檚 needs.
鈥淭his is an exciting opportunity to collaborate and be able to test both models together,鈥� Valentino said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping that receiving both interventions sort of has synergistic benefits for both mom and child.鈥�
Building connections
With the support of the NIH grant, Miller-Graff and Valentino will commence their research by working with families in South Bend and Memphis, Tennessee.
鈥淚 think one of the primary reasons this project was selected for funding was because it鈥檚 offering a new approach to child maltreatment prevention, developmentally attuned at two different important critical stages 鈥� both prenatally and during early childhood,鈥� Valentino said.
The ability to study how families engage with multiple programs over longer periods is often limited in research. This trial, though, will focus on the same women who have already participated in a of the PMEP and re-randomize them for participation in RET once their child is of age.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 unusual to see in the research,鈥� Miller-Graff said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really excited to be able to continue to support families and follow them over a longer period of time.鈥�
For Miller-Graff, the project is also a testament to the community built at the Shaw Center, which supports a number of programs for South Bend children and families.
鈥淧ositive relationships are central to good research, but maintaining those relationships takes time, effort and intention,鈥� Miller-Graff said.
Factors like housing instability, which often accompanies chronic family violence, can understandably make it more challenging for families to remain involved in programs over the long term.
鈥淥ne of the things that鈥檚 really special about being at 91吃瓜 is that we have such an outstanding community at the Shaw Center of staff members who have developed really amazing relationships with our families across projects,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ecause of that community and support, we鈥檙e uniquely equipped to follow 鈥� and remarkably successful in following and supporting 鈥� families over time.鈥�
For Valentino, who won the in 2022, the project鈥檚 focus on prevention makes it especially meaningful and impactful. Because anyone 鈥� not just clinical psychologists or licensed social workers 鈥� can be trained to offer the intervention, it has great potential for scalability.
鈥淥ne of my long-term goals is to be able to develop programs that can truly make a difference in the world and can prevent child maltreatment,鈥� she said. 鈥淎n important step along the way is to be able to assess the program rigorously in more than one clinical trial. This represents a really great opportunity for research that can get beyond my lab and into communities nationally.鈥�
Originally published by at on Nov. 18.
Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu