The effects of project safecare® on the parenting skills of a mother with an intellectual disability

Parents with intellectual disabilities (ID) who become involved with child social service agencies are typically referred for general parent education groups. These groups provide didactic information on various areas of parenting and use attendance as the only outcome variable. Project SafeCare® is a data-driven parenting program that uses behavioral skills training to teach three categories of parenting skills (health, home safety, and activity planning). Assessment of parenting skills occurs throughout training. Training is criterion-based and includes didactic instruction, role-plays, rehearsals, feedback, and continued practice. This chapter details the SafeCare model applied with one mother with an intellectual disability whose daughter was removed from her care due to neglect. SafeCare was effective at increasing the parenting skills of this mother. Results are discussed in terms of future directions within the area of behavioral parent training for parents with intellectual disabilities.