| The purpose of this study was to qualitatively investigate the experience of parenting education for single, Latina mothers with substance abuse histories who have persisted in attendance to completion of a parenting program. Although parenting education has been found to be effective, dropout is an ongoing problem, particularly for parents with certain demographic characteristics. No researcher has qualitatively explored the experience of parents at risk of dropout who persist in attendance and succeed in completing a parent education program. Eight single Latina mothers who had completed at least 7 out of 10 sessions of a parenting program designed to reach mothers impacted by substance abuse were interviewed. Parents' perception of both the program and the stress in their lives were explored. The results illuminated the strengths of the program and strengths of the parents. The overarching theme in terms of parents' perception of the program was that the parents felt successful in the program, and this motivated them to continue in the program. Factors that contributed to the mothers' experience of success were emotional support, a practical hands-on style of teaching, and their relationship with the instructor. The parenting program had an important place in the context of parents' lives as it was part of a larger effort to improve their lives. Success in the program was important to this population, and their focus was on success in other areas of their lives as well. When asked about the stress in their lives, parents revealed not how they were negatively impacted by it, but how they were overcoming it. Four themes emerged in terms of how parents viewed their lives. These were a value for learning, an internal locus of control, a desire to give more to their children, and a perspective of gratitude. The single Latina mothers were motivated to join the parenting program due to their value for learning and desire to give more to their children. Finally, parents revealed barriers to attending traditional parenting programs. The program studied occurred one-on-one in the home, and the structure resolved most barriers for the parents. The strongest obstacle to traditional programs was shame, followed by emotional struggles, transportation issues, and lack of child care. Only emotional struggles were a barrier for the program studied, and this was only true for half the parents. The other issues were not barriers for this program, but would have been for traditional programs. |
