What is Partners in Parenting?

Partners in Parenting (PiP) is an award-winning, evidence-based parenting program designed to help build parents’ skills and confidence in ways that may reduce their teenager’s risk of depression or anxiety disorders. The program is entirely online and can be accessed from most devices and internet browsers.

The program is designed for parents of teenagers (aged 12 to 17) who are not experiencing problems with depression or anxiety, although it may still be helpful for parents of teens with mental health conditions (alongside other support).

 

What does the program involve?

The main features of the program are:

• An online survey (takes around 30 minutes to complete).
• Personalised feedback about your current parenting.
• Up to 9 interactive online modules.
• Weekly check-in calls to see how you’re going with the program.
• An optional follow-up survey, to tell us what you thought about the program.

 

How long will it take to complete the program?

You can choose how many of the 9 modules you complete, so the time it takes is up to you. Each module takes around 15-25mins to complete, and you’ll have access to one module per week. Most parents will complete their program in 1 to 2 months, but it’s up to you – you will continue to have access to your program and can come back at any time.

 

Can anyone sign up?

To be eligible, you need be a parent or guardian of at least on child aged 12 to 17, live in Australia, speak fluent English, and have Internet access.

 

How do you know it works?

We’ve conducted two previous studies of the Partners in Parenting program, with over 700 families in Australia. The studies found that parents who completed the program reported improved confidence and parenting behaviours that may reduce the risk of depression and anxiety in their teenage children. If you’d like more information about the evidence for the program, please feel free to contact us at med-pip@monash.edu.

 

Can I talk to someone while doing the program?

Absolutely! We’ll give you a call about a week after you complete your first survey, to see how you’re going. After that, we’ll call you each week until you finish your program (unless you don’t want us to call). The calls are an opportunity to ask any questions, trouble-shoot any technical issues, and reflect on your progress through the program.

 

What if my teenager already has a mental health condition?

The program is designed for parents of teenagers who are not yet experiencing problems with depression, anxiety, or other mental health conditions. If your teenager is experiencing mental health problems, we suggest you seek appropriate professional support (you can check out our Useful Resources for more information). However, if you’d still like to complete the program, you are very welcome to – just keep in mind that we aren’t able to provide any treatment or individual advice about yourself or your child’s mental health.

 

What if I have more than 1 teenager?

The program will ask you to choose one teenager when you register, and the program will be personalised with this child’s first name. If you have multiple teenagers, please choose one to have in mind while completing your program. Of course, the information will still be relevant to your other children!

 

Can both parents do the program?

At this stage, we can only have one parent participate in the program. However, you are very welcome to share the resources with your partner if you wish. Some parents may even find it useful to look at the modules together.

 

Are you saying my parenting can cause mental health conditions?

Absolutely not. There are many factors that contribute to a person’s risk of mental health problems. Many of these factors are outside of our control, for example our genetics, family history, personality, early life events, and many others. On top of these factors, there are some things that parents and families can do to that either increase or decrease their children’s risk of mental health problems. For this reason, we think that parents are a great resource to help reduce the risk of mental health problems in their children. Rather than causing mental health problems, parents can help to build their teenager’s resilience against these problems. Our program is designed to help you do this.

 

What if I need more support than the program provides?

If you think you need more support for mental health problems, we suggest you check out our Useful Resources page.

You are still welcome to participate in the PiP program while you are seeking other forms of support.

 

How can I find out more?

For details on the program and associated research project, please read the participant explanatory statement here.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at med-pip@monash.edu.