Correlates of participation in community-based interventions: Evidence from a parenting program in rural China.

Publisher: Public Library of Science Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101285081 Publication Model: eCollection Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1932-6203 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 19326203 NLM ISO Abbreviation: PLoS One Subsets: MEDLINE

Original Publication: San Francisco, CA : Public Library of Science

Child Development* ; Interpersonal Relations*; Caregivers/*psychology ; Community Networks/*statistics & numerical data ; Parenting/*psychology ; Program Evaluation/*statistics & numerical data; China ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Peer Group ; Rural Population

A growing body of literature has documented that community-based early childhood development (ECD) interventions can improve child developmental outcomes in vulnerable communities. One critical element of effective community-based programs is consistent program participation. However, little is known about participation in community-based ECD interventions or factors that may affect participation. This paper examines factors linked to program participation within a community-based ECD program serving 819 infants and their caregivers in 50 rural villages in northwestern China. The results find that more than half of families did not regularly attend the ECD program. Both village-level social ties within the program and proximity to the program significantly predict program participation. Increased distance from the program site is linked with decreased individual program participation, while the number of social ties is positively correlated with participation. The average program participation rates among a family's social ties is also positively correlated with individual participation, indicating strong peer effects. Taken together, our findings suggest that attention should be given to promoting social interactions and reducing geographic barriers among households in order to raise participation in community-based ECD programs.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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Date Created: 20200908 Date Completed: 20201102 Latest Revision: 20240329

20240329

PMC7478867

10.1371/journal.pone.0238841

32898156