Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) training to reduce parental burnout and support child well-being

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy-Based Training Programme for Reducing Parental Burnout and Improving Emotional and Behavioural Issues in Children: A Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial

This project will try ACT-based training with Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong parents and their 3–11-year-old children identified as at risk to see if it reduces parental burnout and improves children's emotional and behavioral adjustment over three months.

Quick facts

• Phase: Not applicable
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 120 (estimated)
• Ages: 3 Years to 65 Years
• Sex: All
• Sponsor: Chinese University of Hong Kong (Academic / other)
• Locations: 2 sites (Kwun Tong and 1 other locations)
• Trial ID: NCT07047378 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this trial studies

This is a randomized controlled trial comparing an ACT-based parenting program (with a parallel group for children) to a control condition in Hong Kong families identified by school social workers as at risk of domestic violence or emotional distress. The parent program uses mindfulness, values-based parenting, and cognitive defusion techniques to increase psychological flexibility and reduce burnout, while children participate in group sessions aimed at emotional regulation and resilience. Outcomes include feasibility and acceptability of the intervention, changes in parental burnout, and children's emotional and behavioral adjustment measured at baseline and up to three months post-intervention. Sessions are delivered in Cantonese at community and university partner sites.

Who should consider this trial

Good fit: Ideal candidates are Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong primary caregivers aged 19–65 with a child aged 3–11 who have been identified by school social workers as being at risk of domestic violence or experiencing emotional distress, along with those children.

Not a fit: Families with parents who have severe mental illness or developmental disabilities that interfere with participation, non–Cantonese speakers, or those not experiencing the targeted stressors are less likely to benefit from this intervention.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, the program could reduce parental burnout and improve children's emotional and behavioral adjustment, offering a practical approach for at-risk families and informing parenting support and child protection policies.

How similar studies have performed: ACT has shown benefits for adult mental health and parenting processes in prior research, but randomized evidence specifically targeting parental burnout and downstream child adjustment is limited, making this application relatively novel.

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

For the Parent ACT Group:

1. Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong residents between the ages of 19 and 65 years.
2. Primary caregivers of a child aged 3 to 11 years.
3. Have been identified by school social workers as being at risk of domestic violence or experiencing emotional distress.

For the Child ACT Group:

1. Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong residents between the ages of 3 and 11 years.
2. Have been identified by school social workers as being at risk of domestic violence or experiencing emotional distress.

For both groups (Shared inclusion criteria):

1. Participants must have sufficient Cantonese language proficiency to understand and communicate during the intervention.
2. Both parents and children must provide informed consent to participate in the study and all related assessments.

Exclusion Criteria:

For the Parent ACT Group:

1. Parents diagnosed with severe mental illnesses.
2. Parents with a developmental disability that interferes with their ability to comprehend the program's content.
3. Parents with cognitive, language, communication, visual, or hearing impairments or disorders that could impede their understanding of the intervention content; or
4. Parents currently participate in other psychosocial, psychoeducational, or parenting interventions.
5. Parents with active substance abuse issues that may interfere with their ability to participate in or benefit from the program.
6. Parents whose children have been diagnosed with psychological or medical conditions.

For the Child ACT Group:

1\. Children who have been diagnosed with psychological or medical conditions.

For both groups (Shared Exclusion criteria):

1. Families who are unable or unwilling to commit to attending the six-week sessions or completing follow-up assessments.
2. Families who lack access to transportation or other necessary resources to attend the intervention sessions
3. Parents and children who cannot understand or communicate in the language used in the intervention and assessments (i.e., Cantonese and Chinese).

Where this trial is running

Kwun Tong and 1 other locations

• Harmony House Limited — Kwun Tong, Hong Kong (Recruiting)
• Chinese University of Hong Kong — Shatin, Hong Kong (Recruiting)

Study contacts

• Study coordinator: Yuen Yu CHONG, PhD

Conditions Child Abuse; Parental Burnout; Child maltreatment; Acceptance and Commitment Therapy; Hong Kong; Parental burnout; Psychological flexibility; Feasibility