Quasi-Experimental Study of a Universal Parent-focused Child Sexual Abuse Primary Prevention Intervention: Smarter Parents. Safer Kids.

The deposited materials contain a dataset from a quasi-experimental study that sought to evaluate the effectiveness of a universal parent-focused child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention intervention, Smarter Parents. Safer Kids. (hereafter Smarter Parents). Smarter Parents is designed as a 2-hour workshop to be delivered in a group setting to parents or caregivers by 1-2 community health educators. This study leveraged ongoing community implementation of Smarter Parents in the state of Pennsylvania from May 1, 2024 through December 31, 2026. During this period, when parents registered for a Smarter Parents workshop, they were presented with the opportunity to participate in research with the NYU-based research team (experimental group). Participants were eligible if they were 18-years-old or older, English-speaking, a Pennsylvania resident, and a parent or self-defined primary caregiver to at least one child under 13-years-old. The control group was recruited with the same eligibility criteria from two sources including a) outreach across Pennsylvania from community organizations similar to those delivering Smarter Parents, and b) recruitment through the online research panel Connect by CloudResearch. Control participants were offered an optional publicly available standard of care. All participants completed 10-15-minute electronic surveys hosted on REDCap at three timepoints: baseline, 1 month post-baseline/Smarter Parents workshop, and 3 months post-baseline/Smarter Parents workshop. Participants who missed one timepoint were not recontacted to complete the next. The primary outcome measure was the 15-item Assessment of SmartParents Knowledge (ASK; baseline, 1-month, 3-months). Additional measures administered include the 16-item Knowledge of Parenting Strategies Scale (KOPSS; baseline and 1-month) and the 10-item Preventive Behaviors Questionnaire (PBQ; baseline). Basic demographics were asked at baseline including the 8-item Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). Participants in the experimental group also completed a Smarter Parents workshop satisfaction survey administered at 1-month follow-up.