Triple P is a population-level system of parenting and family support. It includes five intervention levels of increasing intensity and narrowing population reach.
The program is designed to enhance parental competence, and prevent or alter dysfunctional parenting practices. It aims to reduce risk factors both for child maltreatment and for children’s behavioural and emotional problems.
All services in the Triple P system incorporate five positive parenting principles:
The program emphases parents learning how to apply these skills to different behavioral, emotional and developmental issues in children, ranging from common child-rearing challenges (e.g., toileting, mealtime behavior, bedtime, behaviour in public) to more intense challenges (e.g., child aggressive behavior, fears and anxiety, ADHD difficulties).
The five positive-parenting principles translate into 35 specific strategies and parenting skills in eight different categories:
Triple P provides developmentally tailored menu options that facilitate parental goal setting and self-regulation. Parents learn how to apply those techniques and strategies that are relevant to their child, the parent’s goals, and the family situation.
It was developed by Sanders and colleagues (Sanders 1999; Sanders et al. 2002), at the University of Queensland, in Australia.
See also the following Program Summaries in the Preventing Child Maltreatment Evidence Review:
See also the Self-Directed Triple P Program Summary in the Reducing Child Harm and Maltreatment Evidence Review.
Triple P is a program designed for population level implementation, targeting parents who have children 17 years and under.
The program has been evaluated in the USA (Prinz et al. 2009, Schilling et al. 2019).
Triple P has not been evaluated in Australia or with Aboriginal Australians.
Overall, Triple P has a positive effect on client outcomes.
Supported research evidence:
The Triple P program uses a multi-tiered individualised approach so all parents receive a minimally sufficient level of service. There are a variety of delivery methods available to provide flexibility to meet the needs of individual families and communities.
All levels of Triple P have intervention manuals that have been carefully developed, systematic training regimens for providers/ practitioners, and coordinated resource materials for parents (videos, workbooks, and tip sheets).
The program consists of five levels of interventions:
Involves implementing media and informational strategies about positive parenting. These strategies are intended to de-stigmatise parenting and family support, make effective parenting strategies readily accessible to all parents, and facilitate help-seeking and self-regulation by parents who need higher intensity intervention. It includes use of radio, local newspapers, newsletters at schools, mass mailings to family households, presence at community events, and website information.
Has utility for many parents and is intended to normalize parenting interventions. There are two delivery formats:
For parents of children with discrete child problem behaviours. Provision of advice and information is supported by active skills training for parents. This level is appropriate for parents of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with common child behavior problems and parenting challenges. Level Three involves a series of four brief (20-min) consultations that incorporate active skills training and the selective use of parenting tip sheets covering common developmental and behavioural problems of preadolescent children. This brief and flexible consultation also builds in general enhancement strategies for teaching parents how to apply knowledge and skills gained to non-targeted behaviors and other children in the family.
For parents of children with more severe behavioural difficulties or who are struggling with parenting challenges. Parents learn child management skills and how to apply these skills both at home and in the community.
Level 4 combines the provision of information with active skills training and support, as well as teaching parents to apply skills to a broad range of target behaviors in both home and community settings with the target child and siblings. Two different delivery formats are available:
An optional addition to Level 4. For Families with additional risk factors. Includes optional intervention modules on partner communication, mood management and stress coping skills for parents, and additional practice sessions addressing parent–child issues.
How much does it cost? Information can be found on the Triple P website: https://www.triplep.net/glo-en/home/
Triple P professional training courses delivered by experienced trainers involve:
One population trial conducted across 18 counties in the USA with a sample of 85,000 families (Prinz et al. 2009).
One quasi-experimental design study conducted in the USA with 23,723 children (Schilling et al. 2019).
Triple P – Positive Parenting Program website: https://www.triplep.net/glo-en/home/
02 Mar 2023
We acknowledge Aboriginal people as the First Nations Peoples of NSW and pay our respects to Elders past, present, and future.
Informed by lessons of the past, Department of Communities and Justice is improving how we work with Aboriginal people and communities. We listen and learn from the knowledge, strength and resilience of Stolen Generations Survivors, Aboriginal Elders and Aboriginal communities.
You can access our apology to the Stolen Generations.