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Completed

NCT Number: NCT02792309

Impact Evaluation of MotherWise Program

Mathematica was awarded a contract by ACF to conduct the evaluation of selected grantees offering Healthy Marriage and Relationship Education Programs.This particular evaluation will focus on the University of Denver's MotherWise program, which offers relationship education and other supports to low-income women expecting a baby. The program has three core components: (1) 18 hours of core workshop sessions using the Within My Reach relationship education curriculum supplemented with content on mother-infant relationships; (2) case management services; and (3) optional relationship education workshops for couples. The evaluation will test the effect of this full package of services on mothers' relationship outcomes, as well as other outcomes related to child well-being, such as co-parenting and father involvement.

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Key information

Conditions

Parenting Family Relations Marriage Mother-Child Relations

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

Female

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

University of Denver

Denver, Colorado, 80208, United States

About this study

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), is conducting an evaluation of healthy marriage and relationship education (HMRE) programs. Mathematica was awarded a contract by ACF to conduct the evaluation of selected programs/grantees.This segment of the larger evaluation will focus on the University of Denver's MotherWise program.

The Mother Wise program will offer relationship education and other supports to low-income women expecting a baby. The program will have three core components: (1) 18 hours of core workshop sessions using the Within My Reach relationship education curriculum supplemented with content on mother-infant relationships; (2) case management services; and (3) optional relationship education workshops for couples. The evaluation will test the effect of this full package of services on mothers' relationship outcomes, as well as other outcomes related to child well-being, such as co-parenting and father involvement. If feasible, the evaluation will also examine some measures available through hospital records, such as birth weight.

Mother Wise will enroll women who are expecting a baby and those who have had a baby within the past month.

Control group members will not be eligible for Mother Wise but will be eligible for other services available in the community.

To document the outcomes of study participants, survey data will be collected at two time points: (1) a baseline survey administered at study enrollment, a (2) a 12-month follow-up survey, and (3) a 30-month follow-up survey. Surveys will be conducted by staff at Mathematica's Survey Operations Center using computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI). Survey data may be supplemented with administrative records data from the Denver Health system.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

To be eligible, women must be expecting a baby or had a baby in the past 3 months.

Exclusion criteria

To be eligible, women must not be incarcerated.

Treatment and study plan

MotherWise Program

Behavioral

Healthy Marriage or Relationship Education services for pregnant women.

Primary outcomes

  1. Perceived romantic relationship skills

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    Six-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  2. Perceived romantic relationship skills

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    Six-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  3. Perceived conflict management skills

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    Five-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  4. Perceived conflict management skills

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    Five-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  5. Support for going slow in romantic relationships

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    One-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  6. Support for going slow in romantic relationships

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    One-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  7. Disapproval of couple violence

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    Five-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  8. Disapproval of couple violence

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    Five-item scale (ranges from 1 to 4)

  9. Any psychological abuse

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    A binary variable equal to 1 if the mother indicates that a romantic partner has subjected her to psychological abuse in the past year.

  10. Any psychological abuse

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    A binary variable equal to 1 if the mother indicates that a romantic partner has subjected her to psychological abuse in the past year.

  11. Any physical abuse

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    A binary variable equal to 1 if the mother indicates that a romantic partner has pushed, shoved, kicked, punched or beaten her up in the past year.

  12. Any physical abuse

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    A binary variable equal to 1 if the mother indicates that a romantic partner has pushed, shoved, kicked, punched or beaten her up in the past year.

  13. Had an unintended pregnancy since program enrollment

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    A binary variable equal to 1 if the mother reported having had an unintended pregnancy since random assignment.

  14. Had an unintended pregnancy since program enrollment

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    A binary variable equal to 1 if the mother reported having had an unintended pregnancy since random assignment.

  15. Quality of co-parenting relationship with baby's father

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    Ten-item scale (ranges from 0 to 10)

  16. Quality of co-parenting relationship with baby's father

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    Ten-item scale (ranges from 0 to 10)

  17. Depressive symptoms

    Time frame: 1 year after random assignment

    Eight-item scale (ranges from 0 to 24; based on PHQ-8)

  18. Depressive symptoms

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    Eight-item scale (ranges from 0 to 24; based on PHQ-8)

  19. Number of relationship transitions

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    This is a continuous variable representing the number of relationship transitions the mother reported since random assignment. A relationship transition occurs each time a romantic relationship begins or ends.

  20. Material hardship

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    This continuous variable ranges from 0 to 6 and reflects how many of six possible things a mother had done in the past year because she did not have enough money.

  21. Child social-emotional and behavioral problems

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    This 31-item scale is a measure of the child's social-emotional and behavioral problems with higher scores indicating more problems.

  22. Child social-emotional abilities

    Time frame: 30 months after random assignment

    This 11-item scale is a measure of the child's social-emotional abilities-such as empathy, prosocial behaviors, and compliance-with higher scores indicating higher competence.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.

Other

Collaborators

  • Department of Health and Human Services

Registry information

Official study title

Strengthening Relationship Education and Marriage Services - Impact Evaluation of MotherWise Program

Important dates

Study start
2016
Primary completion
2021
Study completion
2021
First posted
Jun 7, 2016
Registry last updated
Apr 25, 2022

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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