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NCT Number: NCT02743039

The Northwestern University Two-Generation Study of Parent and Child Human Capital Advancement

The Northwestern University Two-Generation Child and Family Outcomes Study (NU2Gen) of the Community Action Project of Tulsa County's (CAP Tulsa's) CareerAdvance® program examines the effects of CareerAdvance® on parent and child human capital outcomes (e.g., child academic achievement, parent educational advancement and certification, and psychological and family functioning), and (2) explore mechanisms that might give rise to program effects (e.g., home language environment; coping, balance, and stress; and parent and academic and career identity).

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Key information

Conditions

Children Parents

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States

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About this study

The Northwestern University Two-Generation Study (NU2Gen) of Parent and Child Human Capital Advancement is funded through Community Action Project of Tulsa County's (CAP Tulsa) Health Profession Opportunity Grant (HPOG II) from the Administration for Children and Families and through the HPOG II University Partnership grant. The federal awards support the implementation of CareerAdvance®, a workforce training and career employment program for parents living in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the surrounding communities, as well as our Northwestern-based research project.

CareerAdvance® provides education and training, career coaching, and other supportive services for parents while their children attend CAP Tulsa-run Head Start programs, other Tulsa-area public preschool programs, and Tulsa-area K-12 public schools. The explicit goal of the program is to promote the economic self-sufficiency and well-being of low-income families across generations.

The evaluation is composed of two parts: the Two-Generation Human Capital Outcomes Study and the Two-Generation Explanatory Mechanisms Study. Through parent surveys and parent and child administrative data we will examine the effects of CareerAdvance® on parent and child human capital outcomes (e.g., child academic achievement, parent educational advancement and certification, and psychological and family functioning). Using innovative measurement tools (e.g. Language Environment Analysis (LENA)) along with parent and child focus groups and interviews, we will also explore mechanisms that might give rise to program effects (e.g., home language environment; coping, balance, and stress; and academic and career identities). Participants will actively take part in the study for three years and we will collect child administrative data for study parents' children until they turn 18 years old or graduate high school, whichever occurs last. Current funding for NU2Gen is through September 2020.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

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

Inclusion criteria

  • Applicants to CAP Tulsa's CareerAdvance® program under the HPOG II evaluation study, including participants who are randomly assigned not to participate in CareerAdvance® by the HPOG II evaluation study.

Exclusion criteria

  • Not proficient in English

Treatment and study plan

CareerAdvance®

Behavioral

CareerAdvance® is a dual-generation program providing education, career coaching, and soft-skills training for parents while their children attend CAP Tulsa's Head Start programs.

Primary outcomes

  1. Parent's employment

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect higher rates of employment

  2. Parent's healthcare sector employment

    Time frame: Years 1 and 2

    We expect higher rates of employment in the healthcare sector

  3. Parent's income

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect higher income

  4. Parent's income

    Time frame: Year 1

    We expect lower income

  5. Parent's healthcare training certification

    Time frame: Years 1 and 2

    We expect higher rates of healthcare training certification and credentialing

  6. Child's academic achievement

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect higher levels of academic achievement

  7. Child's attendance

    Time frame: Years 1 and 2

    We expect higher rates of school attendance

  8. Child's grade promotion

    Time frame: Years 1 and 2

    We expect higher rates of grade promotion

Secondary outcomes

  1. Parent's depression

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect less depression; Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II; Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996)

  2. Parent's optimism

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect increased optimism; Revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R; Scheier, Carver, & Bridges, 1994)

  3. Parent's work-family balance

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect better work-family balance; Fragile Families Study; CAP Family Advancement Study (NU)

  4. Parenting stress

    Time frame: Year 1

    We expect stable or increased parenting stress; Aggravation in Parenting Questionnaire (APQ; Cooper et al., 2009); Fragile Families Study

  5. Parent's perceived stress

    Time frame: Year 1

    We expect stable or increased perceived stress; Perceived Stress Scale (PSS; Cohen & Williamson, 1988)

  6. Parent's hope/goal efficacy

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect higher levels of hope/goal efficacy; State Hope Scale (Snyder et al., 1996)

  7. Parent's social capital

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect higher social capital; Willingness to ask for/offer help (Adapted from the Boston Non-Profit Organizations Study survey; Tran, Graif, Jones, Small, & Winship, 2013)

  8. Child adaptive skills

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect an increase in child adaptive skills; Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS-RS; Gresham & Elliott, 2008)

  9. Home language environment

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect an increase in positive home language environment factors (e.g., books, reading time, learning activities) and a decrease in negative home language environment factors (e.g., television, video games/computer time, phone); Language Environment Analysis (LENA) system

  10. Time use

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect improved time use in the home; LENA Time Diary (Northwestern University, 2017)

  11. Routines

    Time frame: Year 2

    We expect more stable routines in the home

  12. Child emotional and behavior problems

    Time frame: Year 1

    We expect stable or increased child behavior problems; Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; Achenbach & Rescorla, 2000)

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Northwestern University

Other

Collaborators

  • Department of Health and Human Services

Registry information

Acronym: NU2Gen

Important dates

Study start
2016
Primary completion
2020
Study completion
2020
First posted
Apr 19, 2016
Registry last updated
Jul 7, 2021

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

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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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