Helping young children build emotional skills after hardship
Promoting Emotional Development Among Young Children Facing Adversity: An Effectiveness Implementation Study in St. Louis Schools
This project compares a short, six-session online parent-child program called THRIVE with an established parenting course to help 4–6-year-olds in high-risk schools strengthen their emotional and social skills.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Washington University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Saint Louis, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11105907 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If your child is 4 to 6 years old and facing hardship, this offers a six-session program delivered by video conference that teaches parents ways to support their child's emotional growth. Families who join will be randomly assigned to either THRIVE or an online parenting education program of similar length. The work is run through three high-risk St. Louis school districts to make it easier for families to participate, and the team will test two ways of putting the program into schools so it can reach more children. The focus is on practical parenting help that can be used at home to boost children's social, emotional, and cognitive development.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are caregiver-child pairs with children aged 4.0–6.11 who attend participating high-risk school districts in the St. Louis area and meet the study's inclusion criteria.
Not a fit: Children outside the 4.0–6.11 age range, families not enrolled in the participating districts, or those unable or unwilling to take part in video-based sessions are unlikely to benefit from or be eligible for this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could improve young children's emotional skills, reduce risks for later mental health problems, and make parenting support easier to access in high-need communities.
How similar studies have performed: Related brief parent-child programs have shown promise in prior work, and THRIVE was previously found feasible and acceptable in a St. Louis county pilot, though wider effectiveness in school settings is still being established.
Where this research is happening
Saint Louis, United States
- Washington University — Saint Louis, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Luby, Joan L. — Washington University
- Study coordinator: Luby, Joan L.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.