Parenting support for Congolese mothers to help children's mental health
Official title: Congolese mother and child mental health in response to early child development interventions
Funded at Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences · NIH-11457789 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This follows children of Congolese mothers who did or did not get a year-long parenting program to learn whether early parent support links to better mental health at school age.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (East Lansing, United States) |
| Project start | December 1, 2023 |
| Project end | November 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $134,908 |
| NIH project number | 3R01MH135045-03S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11457789 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are children and their mothers who took part in the earlier MISC parenting program trial (both those who received MISC and those in the usual-care group).
✕Less likely to help
Families who were not part of the original trial or who cannot attend annual follow-up visits are unlikely to benefit directly from participation.
What this research studies
If you or your child were part of the earlier parenting program trial, researchers will invite you to annual visits for three years to check children's thinking, self-control, emotions, social skills, growth, and mothers' mental health. The project follows about 100 children whose mothers received the biweekly MISC parenting program and about 114 children whose mothers received usual care. Visits include brief developmental and emotional tests, caregiver interviews about family life and stress, and measurements of child growth. The team will compare the two groups over time to understand which family and health factors relate to school-age mental health.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help design parent-support programs that lower the risk of mental health problems for children as they enter school.
How similar studies have gone: Some parent-training programs have shown short-term gains in child development, but long-term effects on school-age mental health are still uncertain.
Where this research is happening
-
Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences
East Lansing, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Boivin, Michael Joseph — Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Boivin, Michael Joseph
Related research
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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.