Movember’s Family Man breaks down the barriers to upskilling dads
No more dodgy parenting advice … so begins Movember’s new website Family Man.
The parenting hub has been developed with dads in mind, full of strategies for raising kids that have been ratified by leading global child behaviour experts.
For example, meltdowns in the supermarket, crocodile tears before bed, overuse of screens.
These testing scenarios are accompanied by instructional animations that give the viewer a choice of actions they might take and possible outcomes to different tactics.
These are accompanied by easy-to-digest explanations of why a child might be acting the way they are, and how a dad might respond.
“When kids are acting up, they tend to get everyone’s full attention. And they know it,” says the website in a tutorial on ‘The Power of Attention.’
In subsequent animations, the viewer is given tips and tactics on how they might praise a child for behaviour they want to see more of.
Family Man, says Movember, is the first free online parenting program ‘designed to equip parents of kids aged 2-8 with practical skills needed to navigate common tricky parenting situations.’
Previous research by the charity, has shown that 42 per cent of dads say they feel anxious about being a ‘good father’, yet only 20% of parents who have taken a parenting course are men.
“Although it can be used by any caregiver, Family Man was designed with fathers in mind and aims to boost dads’ confidence in their parenting skills, which leads to better psychological wellbeing for both parent and child,” says Jane Endacott, director of digital mental health and suicide prevention at Movember.
Family Man was adapted from a successful program called ParentWorks, which was developed by Professor Mark Dadds from the University of Sydney and tested on 456 parents in an open trial.
“Evidence-based parenting programs are effective in reducing behavioural problems, yet few involve the participation of fathers,” Professor Dadds said.
“Our study showed that this type of intervention was successful in reducing child behavioural problems, dysfunctional parenting, interparental conflict and, (as a result), improving parenting mental health.
“Family Man was designed to be accessible to all families and may be especially useful in rural and remote areas, where resources can be hard to access.”
“It can be fully delivered online, without the support of trained practitioners, which is a key barrier for many parents.”