An attachment-based, psychotherapeutic parent education course was created for incarcerated mothers and fathers to help improve their ability to provide positive parenting and a more stable home environment for their children. The current study assessed the effects of this parenting curriculum on parents' reported tendencies to be abusive, their sense of efficacy and satisfaction as a parent, their psychological distress, and their knowledge of child development and positive child guidance. Results of pre-post assessments showed a significant improvement in parents' reported sense of efficacy and satisfaction in the parenting role; their knowledge, skills, and behavior as a parent; their understanding of child development; their knowledge of alternatives to using corporal punishment; establishing appropriate parent-child boundaries; and they were less likely to view their child's independence as a threat. Females showed a significant decrease in distress symptoms. Results are discussed in terms of the need for effective, high-quality parent education as an important component of intervention programs that aim to improve the developmental outcome for children of incarcerated parents.
