The Young Parenthood Program: Preventing Intimate Partner Violence Between Adolescent Mothers and Young Fathers

Abstract

This pilot study tested the Young Parenthood Program (YPP), which is a new coparenting counseling program designed to support positive communications and prevent the occurrence of intimate partner violence (IPV) among pregnant adolescents and their biological partners. One hundred five coparenting couples were recruited, assessed, and randomized into a treatment or a control group and then reassessed at 3 and 18 months post birth. The assessment process included an interview-based screening for the occurrence of IPV that was administered to both mothers and fathers in individual meetings. Initial results indicated that couples who were randomly assigned to the YPP were significantly less likely to have engaged in IPV at the first follow-up, compared to couples in the “treatment as usual” control group, but the strength of this finding diminished over time. Because the YPP is new and our sample is relatively small, findings should be regarded as preliminary. Additional testing of YPP is necessary, but initial results are promising and underscore the potential value of targeted programs for preventing IPV among at-risk populations.