Home visiting and family involvement: Exploring the quantity of program participation to family outcomes
Catherine Bracaliello
Department of School Psychology
Abstract
Home-based family involvement is a powerful predictor of school readiness and appears to be preferred among ethnic minority, low-income caregivers of young children (Fantuzzo et al., 2000). Although interventions based in the home, such as home visiting, are perhaps the most culturally meaningful ways to promote child outcomes and family involvement, large evaluations of home visiting as a method of service delivery are often impeded by the enormous variation in program targets and goals (Sweet & Appelbaum, 2004).
This investigation evaluated whether the quantity of home visitation predicted families' involvement in young children's education. The newly-developed Family Involvement Questionnaire for Toddlers (FIQ-T) was used to measure the many ways families actively support their children's education at home. Quantity of home visitation was defined as the number of home visits a family received. Participants were low-income, Latino caregivers and their children (N=48) participating in a larger program evaluation of a two-year home visiting program. The sample consisted of children who were in either their first (n= 17) or second year (n=31) of program participation.
Although not exhibited in the full sample, the number of home visits received was found to significantly predict family involvement for children who received two years of the home visiting intervention. Greater quantities of home visiting were associated with higher scores of family involvement, measured by the FIQ-T. Furthermore, the FIQ-T was found to demonstrate predictive validity. Family involvement scores measured by the FIQ-T at program mid-year were found to significantly predict later family involvement assessed at the end of the program year.
These findings highlight the importance of full program participation in achieving family outcomes within the current home visiting program and support the use of the FIQ-T in a low-income, Latino sample. Enhancing family involvement outcomes is a process that may take time and consistent exposure to intervention to come to fruition. Moreover, previous literature has shown not only "quantity," but "quality" and "content" to be critical components of home visiting evaluations (Raikes et al., 2006). Given that relationships between quantity of home visiting and family involvement were not found in the full sample, variables related to the quality and content of home visitation should be examined next. Overall, these initial results support home visiting as a viable method of service delivery for achieving critical family outcomes. Future research, however, should follow the development of family involvement behaviors over time and examine whether increases in family involvement are due to maturation or intervention.
Bio:
Catherine Bracaliello is a third-year PhD student in the School Psychology program working under Dr. Patricia Manz. Her research interests include family involvement in children's education, culturally-sensitive early literacy/language interventions, and program evaluation. After completing her degree she plans to pursue a career as a research analyst/advocate in an educational policy setting.
