Healthy Marriage Initiatives

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Healthy Marriage Initiatives

• What Role does a Child Abuse Prevention Program
  have in the Healthy Marriage Initiative?

Alicia Luckie, T/TA Coordinator FRIENDS National
Resource Center for CBCAP
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Factors Related to Healthy Families, Healthy
Children

• Educational Opportunities
• Access to Stable Employment
• Quality Childcare
• Quality Healthcare
• Social networks and connections
• Safe neighborhoods
• Parenting skills Child Dev. knowledge
• Financial management skills
• Spiritual strength
• Self-Care skills

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Factors Related to Healthy Families, Healthy
Children

• Educational Opportunities
• Access to Stable Employment
• Quality Childcare
• Quality Healthcare
• Social networks and connections
• Safe neighborhoods
• Parenting skills Child Dev. knowledge
• Financial management skills
• Spiritual strength
• Self-Care skills
• Relationship Skills the missing link in
  programs/services

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• Strengthening couple and co-parenting
  relationships reduces risks for children and
  promotes their well-being

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A Child-Centered Initiative

• Adults who experience high conflict and
  separation/divorce are at greater risk of
  depression, unhealthy stress levels, physical
  illness, and economic hardship
• This can affect their parenting increase risks
  for children
• Children who experience parental high conflict
  and separation or divorce At greater risk for a
  number of negative outcomes, including
  maltreatment
• When children are physically abused, it is often
  in the context of a poor couple relationship

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Looking at Abuse and Neglect

• Children living with two parents are
• 44 less likely to be physically abused
• 47 less likely to suffer physical neglect
• 43 less likely to suffer emotional neglect
• 55 less likely to suffer some form of child
  abuse
• than children living with a single parent.

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Healthy Couples, Healthy Children A Clear Link

• Healthy relationships spill over in parenting
  and into later adult relationships for the child
• Intervention research demonstrates that
  parent-child relationship quality and child
  behaviors were improved more by Couples
  Education than by Parent Education (Cowan
  Cowan)

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Benefits of Healthy Marriages for Children

• Better school performance and lower truancy and
  dropout rates
• Fewer emotional and behavioral problems
• Lower rates of substance abuse
• Lower rates of criminal activity and delinquent
  behaviors
• Lower rates of out-of-wedlock births
• Fewer sleep and health problems

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Benefits of Healthy Marriages for Adults

• Lower mortality
• Better health physical and mental
• Greater financial well-being

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Benefits of Healthy Marriages for the Workplace
and Communities

• Adults in healthy marriages
• Accrue more capital and are more financially
  stable
• More likely to be homeowners
• Are better employees
• Lower absenteeism greater work commitment
  greater job stability higher levels of
  productivity
• Sources Forthofer et. al., 1996 Lupton Smith,
  2002 Gray Venderhart, 2000, Daniel, 1995
  Schoeni, 1995 Cornwell Rupert, 1997 Nakosteen
  Zimmer, 1997.

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Beginning the Work Where do we Start?

• The Presidents Healthy Marriage Initiative (TANF
  Priority Areas)
• Other States Initiatives
• Resources Available
• Healthy Marriage Resource List (handout)
• Healthy Marriage Self-Assessment Tool

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Other States Initiatives

• Several State Initiatives Alabama, Arkansas,
  California, Florida, Oklahoma, Louisiana,
  Michigan, Tennessee, Texas, Utah.
• State Legislation Arizona, Florida, Minnesota,
  Tennessee.
• Governors Initiatives Utah, Oklahoma, Florida,
  Arkansas, Louisiana.

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Healthy Marriage Self-Assessment Tool

• Created for FRIENDS, the National Resource Center
  for CBCAP programs.
• Developed by the National Practitioners Network
  for Fathers and Families in collaboration with
  other marriage and family experts.
• The tool is to be used voluntarily.
• The Healthy Marriage Self Assessment Tool
  (HMSAT) is intended to present a broad
  perspective to providers, allowing the tool to be
  applicable to a wide range of family service
  agencies.
• It is a discussion tool and guide for staff and
  parents to consider in efforts to expand capacity
  and implement healthy marriage education and
  support services.

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Pilot Sites for HMSAT

• Contact Alicia Luckie with FRIENDS National
  Resource Center at apluckie_at_elmore.rr.com
• Obtain a copy of the HMSAT (electronic copies
  available)
• Pilot it in your State and local communities
• Provide FRIENDS with any feedback about the
  instrument (Did it meet your needs, useful,
  user-friendly, etc.) www.friendsnrc.org

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Contact Information

• Alicia Luckie, M.S.
• Training/Technical Assistance Coordinator
• FRIENDS National Resource Center for CBCAP
• E-mail apluckie_at_elmore.rr.com
• Phone [phone]
• www.friendsnrc.org