(PS4-A21) Exploring the Effects of Augmenting Traditional PCIT with a Video-feedback Component

Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), originally developed for children between the ages of two and seven presenting with disruptive behavior, is now an evidence-based treatment used for a wide variety of populations. Treatment consists of two phases: child-directed interaction (CDI) and parent-directed interaction (PDI). Parental mastery of the Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System (DPICS) skills is required to move from CDI to PDI to graduation. According to PCIT literature, the average treatment length is 14 sessions; however, anecdotal data and data from case studies show that treatment tends to be longer. There is a paucity of research exploring this discrepancy in treatment length. The current study is the first to incorporate the addition of a video-feedback component to explore its impacts on PCIT outcomes. As a pilot study, the present study seeks to explore the effects of video-feedback added to the CDI phase of PCIT.  

Participants consisted of qualifying PCIT families who were seen through a university clinic for children and parents in the northeastern United States. The sample includes a total of ten parent-child dyads which were matched into five pairs. Matching was based on child’s age, gender, parental perception of child’s disruptive behavior via the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory score, parents’ level of comfort with regards to watching videos of themselves, and parents’ attitude towards attending treatment twice a week. After matching, the dyadic pairs were randomized into one of two groups: video-feedback treatment (n=5) or control (n=5).

A series of matched pairs t-tests conducted in SPSS explored whether the addition of a video-feedback component resulted in more effective PCIT outcomes. A pre-post analysis was conducted to compare the total number of CDI sessions required for parents to meet mastery. There was a statistically significant difference between the video-feedback treatment group (M = 3.0, SD = 0.71) and control group (M = 5.2, SD = 0.45); t(4) = 5.88, p = .004, where parents receiving video-feedback met criteria in less sessions. As for pre- and post-CDI DPICS skill usage, the difference in frequency between the video-feedback treatment group (M = 25.6, SD = 19.55) and the control group (M = 3.2, SD = 16.22) was not statistically significant, t(4) = -2.135, p = .100; however, the treatment group exhibited an overall higher frequency of skills usage.

These findings suggest that augmenting traditional PCIT with a video-feedback component aided in faster acquisition and greater frequency of DPICS skill usage during CDI. These results indicate that parents in the video-feedback group showed a greater response to treatment, suggesting that video feedback is a beneficial  therapeutic tool to address their child’s noncompliance and aggression at an accelerated rate. PCIT is also a demanding form of therapy with high levels of attrition. The video-feedback group displayed enhanced skill acquisition, providing evidence that a video-feedback component can aid in PCIT treatment compliance and retention. Our results highlight that the augmentation of video-feedback to traditional PCIT increases the efficacy of PCIT, which in turn, provides our patients with therapeutic benefits on a faster and larger scale.