Peer-reviewed article
Using the Socio-Ecological Model to Explore Parents' Resilience and Perceptions of Adverse Childhood Experiences: A Qualitative Study in the Southeastern United States.
Dominguez MG, Markham C, Springer AE, Brown LD ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This qualitative study interviewed 21 parents in the southeastern United States about how resilience helps protect children from adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Parents identified self-regulation, social support from parent support groups, and community resources as key factors that strengthen their ability to prevent and reduce the impact of ACEs. The research uses the socio-ecological model to understand how resilience operates across different levels—from individual and family relationships to community and policy systems. Parents called for systemic policy changes to better prevent ACEs and protect children.
Key points
- Parental resilience, developed through self-regulation and social support, acts as a protective factor against adverse childhood experiences
- Parent support groups help improve parental resilience and well-being across multiple levels of the socio-ecological model
- Close relationships and community resources buffer the impact of ACEs on child development
- Parents expressed strong desire for ACE prevention and mitigation strategies
- Systemic policy change was identified as necessary to combat ACEs at the societal level
Limitations
This study describes parents' perceptions and experiences but does not measure actual child outcomes or test whether increased parental resilience results in improved child well-being. The sample is small (n=21), 85% female, and drawn from a single parent support group, limiting generalisability.
Abstract
Background: The negative impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on child development is documented. The parent-child relationship protects against ACEs and improves healthy child development, playing a crucial role in preventing and mitigating ACEs by strengthening parental resilience. However, there is a gap in the literature on our understanding of parental resilience's impact on the parent-child relationship within the social-ecological model (SEM) (i.e., intra- and interpersonal, community, and societal levels). Objective: This study explores parents' perspectives on parental resilience as a protective factor for preventing and mitigating ACEs at every level of the SEM. Method: This study uses a thematic analysis approach for qualitative research. In-depth individual interviews (n = 21) were conducted with members of a parent support group (PSG) (85% female) based in a community-based organization serving families. Demographic information and ACE scores were collected for each participant to describe the sample. Results: Key findings highlighted parents' perspectives on improved resilience through self-regulation and social support following participation in PSGs, conceptualized as an inter-level construct within the SEM mechanism due to its influence on parents' well-being, traversing SEM levels. Under Theme 1: The Many Faces of Parental Resilience, Theme 3: The Power of Close Relationships, Theme 4: Community Resources as a Buffer, and Theme 7: Change Through a Policy Lens: "Anything that protects them," parents expressed a strong desire for ACE prevention and mitigation strategies and called for systemic policy change to combat ACEs. Conclusions: Parental resilience perceptions are valuable and hold promise to inform the future institutionalization of a multi-level parent resilience-focused framework, which will aid in ACE prevention and mitigation.