Topic: Child Abuse, Parenting
Target Population: Parents
Sector: Medical Setting, Community-Based, Multi-Sector
This program is delivered to parents of infants and is intended to impact parents and infants.
All Babies Cry (ABC), a hospital-based and home-based program, is designed to educate parents about normal infant behavior in order to reduce the incidence of infant maltreatment.
Results from one quasi-experimental study showed that intervention participants reported using a wider variety of strategies to manage their stress at a 17-week follow-up compared to a control group. Intervention parents also reported greater knowledge, more self-reassurance, less self-blame, and greater perceived effectiveness of and greater intent to implement the target strategies to calm their baby and to manage their stress. There were no effects on social connections or on perceived behavioral control of infant crying or on parental stress. Results of a randomized trial among new mothers of low income indicated improved knowledge of the typical peak of crying among intervention mothers compared to a control group. There were no differences between groups in knowledge of Shaken Baby Syndrome, knowledge that shaking a baby could lead to brain damage or death, number of soothing strategies used for baby, or number of calming strategies used for parenting stress. Results in the intervention group were stronger among non-United States born mothers compared to those born in the United States.
The ABC program consists of the following:
Module topics include the following:
Program materials are available in English and Spanish. A mobile app is also available.
ABC was created in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The extent to which this program has been implemented is unclear.
Training information for the implementation of the ABC program was not located.
Considerations for implementing this program include acquiring the video and necessary equipment for participants to view the video in the hospital and ensuring participants have the necessary equipment in their homes to watch the take-home DVD.
The Clearinghouse can help address these considerations. Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu
If you are interested in implementing ABC, the Clearinghouse is interested in helping you!
Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu
The in-hospital video is 11 minutes. The take-home DVD, which includes the four modules, is approximately 60 minutes. Parents can watch the take-home video all at once or one chapter at a time. This video can be viewed on a computer, phone, or television.
Information on implementation costs was not located.
To move ABC to the Promising category on the Clearinghouse Continuum of Evidence, at least one evaluation should be performed demonstrating positive effects lasting at least one year from the beginning of the program or at least six months from program completion.
The Clearinghouse can help you develop an evaluation plan to ensure the program components are meeting your goals. Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu
Contact the Clearinghouse with any questions regarding this program.
Phone: 1-877-382-9185 Email: Clearinghouse@psu.edu
You may also contact All Babies cry by email info@childrenstrustma.org or visit http://www.allbabiescry.com/
http://www.allbabiescry.com/; Cala Cala, Kelly, Ramos, VanVleet, and High (2020); and Morrill, McElaney, Peixotto, VanVleet, and Sege (2015).
Cala Cala, L. F., Kelly, C. L., Ramos, E., VanVleet, M., & High, P. (2020). Which mothers know that all babies cry? A randomized controlled trial of a child abuse prevention program for low-income new mothers. Clinical Pediatrics, 59(9-10), 865-873. https://doi.org/10.1177/0009922820922532
Morrill, A. C., McElaney, L., Peixotto, B., VanVleet, M., & Sege, R. (2015). Evaluation of All Babies Cry, a second generation universal abusive head trauma prevention program. Journal of Community Psychology, 43(3), 296-314.
