Adapting an established measure of supervision for beach settings. Is the parent supervision attributes profile questionnaire reliable?

Building the Foundation of Aquatic Literacy in 4-6 Years-Old Children: A Systematic Review of Good Pedagogical Practices for Children and Parents

Children between the ages of 4–6 years represent the population most affected by drowning accidents, while their early involvement in physical activity, and more specifically in aquatic activities is a key factor in their future physical life journey. The systematic review’s purpose was to identify aspects in the intervention’s studies with children and/or their parents that had a significant impact on the Aquatic Literacy (AL) dimensions mentioned as motor, psychological, affective, and cognitive. The PICO method was used to define the research question and PRISMA checklist searched for articles in nine databases: Cochrane, Embase, ERIC, ProQuest, PsychInfo, PubMed, Scopus, SportDiscus, and Web of Science. Eligibility criteria were: (1) English language, (2) primary research, (3) population of 4–6 year old children or their parents, (4) intervention study design, and (5) results related to at least one of the AL domains. The strength of evidence and the risk of bias were assessed. Results showed relatively poor number of studies for such a vulnerable population regarding the drowning risk (n = 8 for parents and n = 14 for children intervention). Studies did not show a consensus on which educational approach was more beneficial than others. Concerning parental education, results were rather homogeneous, especially concerning the theoretical frameworks employed and the relevancy to include parents in swimming programs. The development of pedagogical tools for promotion and evaluation, based on the AL theoretical framework, could help to clarify the question of “how to teach” children to prevent drowning and engage young children in long-term physical activities.

S.A.F.E.R. Near Water: An Intervention Targeting Parent Beliefs About Children's Water Safety

OBJECTIVE

The current study aimed to develop, implement, and evaluate the S.A.F.E.R. Near Water program, an evidence-based and theory-driven intervention targeting parent beliefs relevant to keeping children safe around water.

METHODS

A nonrandomized trial was conducted. Parents with children aged two through five years who were enrolled in lessons either at a public or private swim organization in Ontario, Canada were recruited and nonrandomly assigned to either an Intervention (N = 92) or Control (N = 150) condition. All parents completed the same questionnaire measures two times over the course of their child's swim lesson session period, once at the beginning (preintervention) and again at the end (postintervention; approximately 9-15 weeks later). Questionnaires assessed parents' perceptions related to supervision, child drowning risk, water safety, and optimism bias. Parents in the Intervention condition participated in S.A.F.E.R. Near Water, an educational water safety program comprising in-person seminars, informational handouts, and posters.

RESULTS

The S.A.F.E.R. Near Water program was associated with increased knowledge in targeted areas and effectively communicated most of the intended messages. A series of primary regression analyses revealed that parents receiving S.A.F.E.R. Near Water demonstrated improvements in: beliefs about the value of supervision; judgments about children's swim skills and drowning risk; and perceptions related to swim lessons and children's supervision needs (sr2 range: 0.22-0.38).

CONCLUSION

These findings provide support for the feasibility and usefulness of a multifaceted, parent-focused, educational program delivered alongside children's swim programming to promote closer adult supervision of children around water.

Parent supervision attributes profile questionnaire (PSAPQ) for young children: psychometric properties of the Chinese version

Background

In China, thousands of children die from unintentional injury each year: the incidence rate of injury is from 19.4 to 64.3% which is the leading cause of mortality for children. An important factor to injury may be inadequate supervision. Thus, a linguistic and culturally appropriated, validated instrument to measure the supervision of children in Chinese primary caregiver is important and necessary. The purpose of this study was to translate and test the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Parent Supervision Attributes Profile Questionnaire (C-PSAPQ).

Methods

This is a two-phase study. In phase I, the C-PSAPQ was produced by for- and back-ward translation. A total of 296 primary caregivers of 3–6 years old children were invited to participate in the second phase of the psychometric study. In order to assess the reliability of the C-PSAPQ, internal consistency and test-retest methods were performed. Additionally, construct validity was examined by using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The averaged variance extracted (AVE) and Bootstrap were used to test the convergent and to discriminate validity. The concurrent validity was assessed by evaluating the association between the self-reported C-PSAPQ and naturalistic observations.

Results

The Cronbach’s α and intraclass correlation coefficients were acceptable for the C-PSAPQ and four subscales. The CFA supported a 4-factor loading model; however, the convergent validity was not acceptable (AVE < .5 for two subscales). The concurrent validity was supported.

Conclusions

Due to the unacceptable convergent validity of the C-PSAPQ, an exploratory factor analysis is needed to ensure that the same trait is measured by its indicators in different cultures.

Supervising for Home Safety Program: A Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) Testing Community-Based Group Delivery

Objective

The individually delivered Supervising for Home Safety (SHS) program improves caregivers' injury-related beliefs and supervision practices. The current randomized controlled trial used a group delivery in a community setting and assessed program impact, feasibility, and acceptance.

Methods

Caregivers of 2-5-year-olds were randomized to receive either the SHS or an attention-matched control program.

Results

In the SHS group only, there were increases from baseline to postintervention in the following: beliefs about children's vulnerability to injury, caregiver preventability of injuries, and self-efficacy to do so; readiness for change in supervision; and watchful supervision. Face-to-face recruitment by staff at community organizations proved most successful. Caregivers' satisfaction ratings were high, as was caregiver engagement (95% completed at least seven of the nine sessions).

Conclusion

The SHS program can be delivered to groups of caregivers in community settings, is positively received by caregivers, and produces desirable changes that can be expected to improve caregivers' home safety practices.

Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Portuguese version of the Parental Supervision Attributes Profile Questionnaire

OBJECTIVES

To cross-culturally adapt and validate the Portuguese version of the Parental Supervision Attributes Profile Questionnaire (PSAPQ). The PSAPQ is a measure of parental supervision, which has not been translated and adapted into any language other than English.

METHODS

The Portuguese version was the result of forward/backward translations, consensus panels and pretesting. Reliability and internal consistency were assessed using Cronbach's α, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in adults with different educational levels.

RESULTS

Cronbach's α (α=0.70-0.79) and ICC (>0.75) were acceptable in three of four factors. The results of CFA (χ(2)/df=2.243; CFI=0.951; GFI=0.96; RMSEA=0.056; P(RMSEA ≤ 0.05)=0.222) suggest a good adjustment between the factors.

CONCLUSIONS

The Portuguese version of PSAPQ showed acceptable psychometric properties. This study evidenced some vulnerabilities of the fate subscale, emphasising the need for further investigation of the effects of the educational level of the parents.

An analysis of stratagems to reduce drowning deaths of young children in private swimming pools and spas in Victoria, Australia

This population-based retrospective case series study examined the frequency and distribution of protective stratagems (legislatively compliant safety barrier, adequate caregiver supervision, water familiarisation and early administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation [CPR]) amongst drowning deaths of young children (0-4 years) in private swimming pools or spas in Victoria, Australia. In 65.0% (52/80) of deaths, none of the four protective stratagems were known to be present and there was only one case where all four were known to be present. This indicates that if the presence of all four stratagems is increased, this may reduce drowning in this age group and setting. While these results are positive, further examination of the presence and interaction of these stratagems for effectiveness is required. Further research is also warranted to explore the impact of enforcement of pool fencing legislation and potential associations between water familiarisation and drowning risk. In addition, a consensus on the definition of adequate supervision in needed.