ParentApp for Teens in Tanzania
ParentApp for Teens is a digital app-based parenting programme for caregivers and their 10 to 17-year-olds. The project seeks to establish nurturing caregiver-teen relationships and reduce the risk of violence against adolescents in and outside the home. The project’s goal is to strengthen caregivers’ ability to provide a protective environment and ensure the health and wellbeing of their children through positive parenting techniques.
News
There is emerging evidence that in-person playful parenting programmes can successfully be adapted for digital delivery. Despite regional trends showing substantial year-on-year growth in smartphone penetration and reduced data costs over the next decade in low- and middle-income countries such as Tanzania, there is limited evidence on delivery and effectiveness in these settings.
The trial builds on earlier phases of research including (1) feasibility and acceptability piloting of ParentApp for Teens in South Africa and Tanzania and (2) an optimisation trial conducted in Tanzania to improve engagement, retention and delivery mechanisms.
The study will be conducted in two regions, Mwanza and Shinyanga, in Tanzania. These regions border each other and include urban, peri-urban, and rural areas. Swahili is widely spoken in both regions.
- Test the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of ParentApp on improving positive parenting, reducing adolescent sexual, physical, and emotional abuse.
- Test delivery of ParentApp at scale through local implementing partners.
- Explore pathways of impact through mediation models and qualitative investigation.
- Co-develop a national strategy to scale in-person, remote, digital, and hybrid parenting support.
This study is the first known randomised controlled trial of a hybrid-digital parenting app, that is being designed and rigorously tested in low-resource settings. At this moment of unprecedented global recognition of the need for effective and scalable parenting programmes to prevent sexual, physical, and emotional violence against children and bolster families against hardships, the results of the study will generate an evidence-base to inform the scale-up of the intervention in Tanzania and other low-and-middle countries.
Findings from this and other GPI studies testing digital parenting programmes will explore the usefulness of parenting programmes as a learning tool, by using learning through play and behavioural mechanisms aimed at developing positive parenting skills for holistic development.
Findings will help parents and practitioners to understand the beliefs, perceptions, and practices of learning through play in the Global South, sharing contextual learning through play tools that allow children and adolescents to build a deeper understanding of their relationships and the world around them.
The trial was registered on the Open Science Framework (OSF).
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Webinar recording
Webinar recording | Optimising Engagement for a Digital Parenting Intervention in Tanzania
27 July 2023
Digital interventions present a scalable and cost-effective alternative, yet engaging families is a substantial challenge.
Join us for a webinar exploring the study design, implementation, and findings of a 2x2x2 factorial trial for the optimisation of engagement in ParentApp for Teens, an open-source digital parenting intervention implemented in Tanzania.
We gratefully acknowledge the dedication and hard work of our incredible fieldwork team, whose efforts made this study possible. Their commitment, professionalism, and teamwork were essential to every stage of the research process – from planning and data collection to troubleshooting and daily operations in the field.
Our sincere thanks go to the dedicated Project Management Team, whose leadership and coordination were central to the success of this study: Joyce Wamoyi (Principal Investigator), Kija Nyalali (PhD Research Fellow and Project Manager), Samwel Mgunga (Field Coordinator and Project Manager), Elaine Kijoti (Data Manager), Stivin Mwakakeke (Monitoring and Evaluation Officer), Onduru Onduru (Postdoctoral Research Fellow), Mwita Wambura (former Study Manager).
We are also grateful to our IT Officers – Specioza Mistry, Gervas Mbosoli, Kelly James, and Albert Mshanga – for their invaluable technical support, maintenance of data collection tools, never ending tracing and efforts in ensuring seamless digital operations throughout the fieldwork.
Sincere thanks as well to our drivers – Peter Chacha, Gasper Magungu, and Alfred Sezar – played a vital role in ensuring the safe and timely transport of team members and equipment across all field sites.
To our remarkable team of Research Assistants, we extend our deepest appreciation. You formed the backbone of this fieldwork, and your dedication, attention to detail, and strong interpersonal skills were crucial in building rapport with participants, conducting interviews sensitively and thoroughly, and collecting high-quality data. Many of you worked long days under challenging conditions with patience, flexibility, and a positive spirit. Your ability to adapt, communicate effectively, and support one another was truly inspiring. We are deeply grateful for your enthusiasm, hard work, and the professionalism you brought to this project every single day.
Our thanks go to: Dulubale Sahani, Athanas George, Gloria Massawe, Elibariki Bombo, Irene Yunzu, Neema Chacha, Sabrina Walele, Janeth Nandrie, Zulfa Chihundo, Joan Marijan, Judith Rumishael, Aneth Abraham, Elia Jonas, Linda Mosha, Justina Mosha, Mwambona Mathias, Denis Jaka, Eric Mukoba, Elias Saguda, Nicodem Kawedi, Mirumbe Winani, Philomena Joseph, Monica Kisumo, Justina Jeremia, Bhoke Boniface, Daniel Cyprian, Titus Mtorela, Barricki Bernard, Janson Anania, and Emmanuel Mayala.
To every member of the fieldwork team: thank you for your energy, commitment, and excellence. We also extend our heartfelt thanks to the caregivers who participated in this project, your time, openness, and commitment made this work possible, and your voices remain at the heart of everything we’ve learned.