Comparison of group versus one-to-one delivery of an emotion socialization intervention

Evidence based programs that focus on how parents respond to their children's emotions, such as Tuning in to Kids® (TIK), can be delivered in a number of ways, including in the group setting. However, attending a group does not suit all parents. The current study used a partially randomized controlled design to compare group versus one-to-one delivery of TIK with parents of 4–10-year-old children with challenging behaviors. TIK supports parents to improve their emotion awareness and regulation, and to respond to children using emotion coaching. Parents ( n  = 229) were randomly allocated to group TIK ( n  = 76), one-to-one TIK ( n  = 80), or a 9-month wait-list control ( n  = 73) with questionnaires for parents and teachers. Results showed both methods of delivery were effective. One-to-one was superior in improving parent emotion dismissing and parent stress as well as child behavior, however, participation in both interventions resulted in clinically significant reductions in child behavior problem intensity. Trial Registration: Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry No. ACTRN12618000310268.