Project SummaryThis application will launch an independent research career in dissemination science that (a) leverages natural, resource-efficient opportunities for health promotion in families' settings and routines; (b) synthesizes empirical literature withlocal knowledge to develop evidence-based content for dissemination; and (c) utilizes mixed methodologies to maximizeprogrammatic impact and reach through end-user feedback within a social marketing framework. The proposed study willdevelop and examine a parent-preschooler book reading (PPBR) intervention, consisting of an emotion-enhancedchildren's book and brief parent literacy training. This proposal aims to integrate and extend prior literature that shows (1)a positive relationship between parents' use of labels and explanations of emotions with children at age 3.5 in a storybookreading task, and children's affective knowledge at age 5;14 (2) knowledge acquisition and generalization throughactivities directing children to engage in social and cognitive narrative content following book reading;15 and (3) benefitsof dialogic reading strategies in encouraging parent-child discourse during PPBR to enhance learning.16 We plan toleverage PPBR as a natural family routine by which to influence parent-child discourse around affective content toimprove child affective knowledge, parent meta-emotion philosophy, and parent-child emotion talk. We are collaboratingwith Miami Children's Initiative (MCI), which focuses on Liberty City – a high poverty, predominantly black and AfricanAmerican neighborhood in Miami – to maximize area resources and services, build community capacities, and implementsustainable solutions. We will (1) obtain input from parent stakeholders of children ages 3-5 enrolled in MCI's GrowingLearners Program regarding perceived barriers and benefits to a PPBR intervention (n=21; Preliminary Study); (2) usefindings to inform development and refinement of a PPBR intervention prototype and solicit end user feedback onusability, acceptability, strengths, and persistent obstacles for use (n=21; Specific Aim 1); and (3) examine promise of therevised PPBR intervention in an open trial (n=23; Specific Aim 2). We will conduct paired T-tests to examine pre- to post-intervention differences in child affective knowledge, parent meta-emotion philosophy, and parent-preschooler emotiontalk (Hypothesis 1) and a mixed-method analysis of intervention barriers and strengths to examine its acceptability andusability (Hypothesis 2). Findings will set the foundation for further refinement and future work examining effectivenessin a larger multiple baseline or randomized clinical trial. Primary Sponsor Dr. Frazier will oversee Training Goal 2:Dissemination and Implementation Science (with consultants Dunn, Chambers, and Shernoff), supporting communitypartnership and stakeholder engagement to guide intervention development (Specific Aim 1) and mixed method design ofthe open trial (Specific Aim 2). Co-Sponsor Dr. Hart will oversee Training Goal 1: Parent-Child Emotion-RelatedInteractions (with consultants Denham and Salmon), supporting the development and iterative refinement of the PPBRintervention (Specific Aim 1), and the identification and measurement of emotion- and interaction-related outcomes(Specific Aim 2). The proposed training and research plan will launch an independent career in dissemination sciencefocused on leveraging natural opportunities to support healthy development in socioeconomically disadvantaged youth.
