The goal of this clinical trial is to see if 12 sessions of a Parent Management Training program can treat irritability in children aged 10-14 years old. The main question it aims to answer are: * Can a Parent Management Training for parents reduce anger outbursts and cranky moods in their children? * Can Parent Management Training be done in an outpatient clinic and do parents like it? Up to 18 families can join this study. This study will be used to set up a larger study in the Fall of 2025. Parent participants will complete 12 sessions of Parent Management Training for Irritability. Each session will be 45-55 minutes weekly. They will also participate in the assessments of their child before, during and after treatment. Child participants will do assessments before, during and after the Parent Management Training treatment.
Up to 18 families will be consented for this Parent Management Training (PMT) to Treat Irritability study in order to meet the aim of having 12 families complete the study. The child and a parent will complete pre-treatment evaluations about the child's mental health, behavior and cognitive functioning. Participants who meet inclusion criteria (age 10-14 with significant irritability) and do not meet exclusion criteria (e.g. Autism, Bipolar disorder, active PTSD, serious medical issues or Intellectual disability) will be invited to join the trial. All participants will receive the 12 PMT sessions from a licensed mental health professional. The PMT sessions will focus on the parents only, but both the parent and child will complete standardized measures and interview with a clinician in the middle of the treatment. After the 12 sessions of PMT, the parent and child will complete a post-treatment assessment. Pre and post treatments assessments will be compared to determine changes in the child's irritability and other areas of functioning.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
36
developing parenting skills and competencies dealing with oppositional and irritable behaviors in the child.
Childrens Hospital Colorado
Aurora, Colorado, United States
RECRUITINGDemonstrate the feasibility of Parent Management Training (PMT) procedures
The study team will implement a PMT protocol with fidelity and acceptability assessments. A member of the study team will complete independent fidelity ratings of 50% of recorded sessions using the Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Irritability Adherence Scale. The Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) (revised short form) will be used by the clinician and the parent to rate engagement in treatment after each PMT session. There are no established benchmarks for this measure, but it will provide information about the acceptability of the treatment by rating the alliance between the therapist and the parent.
Time frame: 5 months
Change in irritability
Participants will report a decrease in irritability as measured by the Revised Affective Reactivity Index-Clinician (ARI-CL). The ARI-CL rates temper outbursts, irritable moods and impairment. Total scores range from 0-50, with a score over 30 indicating severe clinical irritability and lower scores indicating lower irritability.
Time frame: 5 months
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