Online parenting guidelines to prevent adolescent depression and anxiety: Evaluating user characteristics and usefulness

Aim: The aims of this study were to evaluate user characteristics and the perceived usefulness of a set of online parenting guidelines to prevent adolescent depression and anxiety. Methods: Upon downloading the online guidelines, users were invited to complete a brief demographic survey assessing user characteristics (Survey 1). Consenting respondents were emailed an evaluation survey 1 month later, which assessed perceived usefulness of the guidelines (Survey 2). Results: Over 22 months, 2631 users completed Survey 1 and 233 completed Survey 2. Most users endorsed the usefulness of the guidelines, and most parent users reported at least a little improvement on their parenting. Users were favourable towards a web-based parenting program as one way to improve the guidelines. Conclusions: Findings suggest that the online guidelines may be a useful and sustainable universal prevention strategy for parents of adolescents.