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A Pilot Study in Narrative Approach of an Adolescent Parenting Program for Enhancing Parenting Competency during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong

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Title: A Pilot Study in Narrative Approach of an Adolescent Parenting Program for Enhancing Parenting Competency during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong
Language: English
Authors: Florence F. Y. Cheung, Christy Tsang, Yu Cheng Hsu, Paul S. F. Yip
Source: British Journal of Guidance & Counselling. 2025 53(4):519-530.
Availability: Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 12
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, COVID-19, Pandemics, Program Effectiveness, Family Relationship, Parenting Skills, Self Efficacy, Competence, Psychological Patterns, Stress Management, Therapy, Workshops, Parent Child Relationship, Secondary School Students, Conflict, Adolescents
Geographic Terms: Hong Kong
DOI: 10.1080/03069885.2024.2373172
ISSN: 0306-9885
1469-3534
Abstract: Since 2019, Hong Kong has been experiencing a social and mental health crisis caused by social unrest and the COVID-19 Pandemic. As a result, there have been reports of increasing family conflicts among secondary students. With the understanding that family support and positive relationships are crucial for maintaining the mental well-being of young people, narrative therapy is a practical approach for helping families shift from problem-focused perspectives to empowering strategies for rebuilding positive relationships. The study aims to report on the effectiveness of a pilot group parent narrative therapy workshop for family relationship harmonisation and enhancing parenting competency using quantitative and qualitative methods. The study participants included 34 parents from five local schools. The results indicated a significantly increased sense of parental competency, general self-efficacy, adult hope, and decreased parental stress. Qualitative reports and participants' narratives also demonstrated the positive effect of the narrative therapy workshop on their parent-adolescent relationships.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: EJ1490385
Database: ERIC
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  Value: <anid>AN0189325059;bjg01aug.25;2025Nov18.00:09;v2.2.500</anid> <title id="AN0189325059-1">A pilot study in narrative approach of an adolescent parenting program for enhancing parenting competency during the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong </title> <p>Since 2019, Hong Kong has been experiencing a social and mental health crisis caused by social unrest and the COVID-19 Pandemic. As a result, there have been reports of increasing family conflicts among secondary students. With the understanding that family support and positive relationships are crucial for maintaining the mental well-being of young people, narrative therapy is a practical approach for helping families shift from problem-focused perspectives to empowering strategies for rebuilding positive relationships. The study aims to report on the effectiveness of a pilot group parent narrative therapy workshop for family relationship harmonisation and enhancing parenting competency using quantitative and qualitative methods. The study participants included 34 parents from five local schools. The results indicated a significantly increased sense of parental competency, general self-efficacy, adult hope, and decreased parental stress. Qualitative reports and participants' narratives also demonstrated the positive effect of the narrative therapy workshop on their parent–adolescent relationships.</p> <p>Keywords: Adolescent; COVID-19; family conflict; narrative approach; parenting; SDG 3: good health and well-being</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-2">Introduction</hd> <p>The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 pandemic a global threat to humanity in February 2020, leading to the closure of many daily and social activities in order to reduce disease transmission. During the school suspension period, the Education Bureau of the Hong Kong Government and many countries encouraged e-learning, which has been challenging for teachers and students who are not familiar with the approach. Lockdowns and social distancing measures have led to reduced social and health support, resulting in increased mental health issues for people of all ages. Adolescents and parents worldwide commonly experience conflicts, and unmanaged parenting stress can lead to poorer family relationships. So et al. ([<reflink idref="bib33" id="ref1">33</reflink>]) discovered a significant positive impact when examining the mediation effects of psychosocial and financial well-being on the relationship between COVID-19 distress and suicidality among young adults in Hong Kong.</p> <p>A survey conducted in Hong Kong during the pandemic revealed that approximately 25-30% of families experienced increased conflicts (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, [<reflink idref="bib18" id="ref2">18</reflink>]). According to a systematic review conducted by Ni et al. ([<reflink idref="bib29" id="ref3">29</reflink>]), mental health issues during and after protests, riots, and revolutions can be intensified by family tensions, especially in cases where there are differences in political views. The study also found that the involvement of young protesters in the social movement in Hong Kong can further exacerbate the situation. Sharing a meal is a significant symbol of family unity in Chinese culture (Ma, [<reflink idref="bib26" id="ref4">26</reflink>]). A pilot programme was initiated with two hypotheses to enhance the relationship between parents and adolescents. The first hypothesis suggests that participating in the parenting workshops would increase parenting efficacy and competence. The second hypothesis proposes that fostering a more positive relationship, improving communication, and promoting mutual understanding between parents and adolescents would reduce conflict and lead to peaceful resolutions.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-3">Research questions</hd> <p></p> <ulist> <item> How does the 5-sessions parenting workshop impact the participating families?</item> <p></p> <item> What is the impact of implementing the Narrative Approach on the outcomes of an adolescent parenting programme?</item> </ulist> <hd id="AN0189325059-4">Literature review</hd> <p></p> <hd id="AN0189325059-5">Family conflicts</hd> <p>Conflicts between parents and adolescent children often stem from everyday events, with household chores being a common source of tension in families in mid and late adolescence (Steinberg, [<reflink idref="bib34" id="ref5">34</reflink>]). Parents and teenagers may understand each other's perspectives but tend to reject them, intensifying the tension in the relationship. The parenting style parents adopt plays a crucial role in their relationship with adolescent children. ([<reflink idref="bib3" id="ref6">3</reflink>]) studied parenting styles and parent–adolescent relationships, exploring the mediating roles of behavioural autonomy and parental authority. It is found that neglectful and authoritarian parents are more likely to experience conflicts with their adolescent children. Adolescents may engage in delinquent behaviours due to unmet demands from neglectful parents or dissatisfaction with authoritarian parents' rules, expectations, and lack of emotional support. During adolescence, children seek more independence from parental authority, and parents who respond by becoming increasingly authoritarian may experience higher rates of noncompliance and hostile exchanges with their teenagers (Youniss & Smollar, [<reflink idref="bib41" id="ref7">41</reflink>]).</p> <p>The way that adolescents handle conflict with their parents can greatly impact their overall well-being and adjustment. This includes styles such as positive problem-solving, conflict engagement, withdrawal, compliance and exit (Branje et al., [<reflink idref="bib4" id="ref8">4</reflink>]; Tucker et al., [<reflink idref="bib35" id="ref9">35</reflink>]). By identifying which style an adolescent tends to use, appropriate interventions can be put in place to encourage positive conflict resolution skills rather than avoidance. It is also important to examine the dynamics between parents and teenagers to understand how conflicts arise and how to manage them effectively (Granic, [<reflink idref="bib17" id="ref10">17</reflink>]). Emotional variability, or the flexibility and ability to express different emotions during conflicts, can be especially helpful in reducing conflicts between parents and adolescents. Van der Giessen et al. ([<reflink idref="bib36" id="ref11">36</reflink>]) state that dyadic variability in mother-adolescent interactions is associated with developmental trajectories and psychosocial functioning. When both parties can freely express positive and negative thoughts and feelings, they are more able to find alternative ways to communicate and negotiate their relationship during disagreement. Communication is key when it comes to adolescent–parent conflict resolution, and the design of any family resolution programme should be accessible to both parents and adolescents.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-6">A narrative approach</hd> <p>Michael White and David Epston developed Narrative therapy in the late 1980s (White & Epston, [<reflink idref="bib38" id="ref12">38</reflink>]). This approach values clients' stories and strives to listen respectfully and collaboratively. Instead of judging or blaming the client, the therapist encourages them to explore new possibilities and meanings in their shared story. One of the fundamental beliefs of narrative therapy by White ([<reflink idref="bib37" id="ref13">37</reflink>]/89) is that "<emph>The problem is the problem; the person is not the problem</emph>", which separates the internalised problem from the person and helps deconstruct negative stories. The approach focuses on how different interpretations are created, their creation circumstances, and the consequences of accepting specific interpretations (Freedman & Combs, [<reflink idref="bib14" id="ref14">14</reflink>]; Monk et al., [<reflink idref="bib27" id="ref15">27</reflink>]; Zimmerman & Dickerson, [<reflink idref="bib42" id="ref16">42</reflink>]). Therapists can practise double listening to identify sparkling moments in the clients' lives and help them separate those from the dominated and "problem-saturated" stories they have internalised. This process helps create space for alternative life stories that better align with the client's abilities and values (Corey, [<reflink idref="bib11" id="ref17">11</reflink>]).</p> <p>One of the practices in Narrative therapy involves inviting an outsider witness to therapy sessions, who acts as a third party and listens to the person's preferred stories and identity claims. This practice establishes personal connections to the client's preferred way of living and reinforces their life's absent or implicit narratives. By hearing how their story impacts others and contributes to their lives, clients can feel validated and encouraged to develop themselves in positive ways further (Carey & Russell, [<reflink idref="bib5" id="ref18">5</reflink>]; Denborough, [<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref19">12</reflink>]).</p> <p>Narrative therapy has been proven to treat traumatic experiences and reconcile relationships effectively. It can facilitate families in deconstructing problem-focused stories in their relationships and empowering them to create more positive stories, and improving their relationships with one another (Freedman, [<reflink idref="bib13" id="ref20">13</reflink>]). Additionally, it has the potential to enhance communication patterns for women who are experiencing low marital satisfaction (Ghavibazou et al., [<reflink idref="bib15" id="ref21">15</reflink>]). A recent qualitative study conducted in India (Baldiwala & Kanakia, [<reflink idref="bib1" id="ref22">1</reflink>]) demonstrated that narrative therapy could highlight the skills of children and their families through counselling, instilling a greater sense of control over their lives.</p> <p>Several studies in Hong Kong have explored the impact of narrative therapy on various groups, such as inmates in prison (Chuk & Lee, [<reflink idref="bib9" id="ref23">9</reflink>]), cancer patients in terminal stages (Lit, [<reflink idref="bib23" id="ref24">23</reflink>]), victims of sexual assault (Hung, [<reflink idref="bib19" id="ref25">19</reflink>]), individuals struggling with substance abuse (Chan et al., [<reflink idref="bib6" id="ref26">6</reflink>]), adults with intellectual disabilities (Hung, [<reflink idref="bib20" id="ref27">20</reflink>]), and individuals affected by the social unrest in 2019 (Wu & Ho, [<reflink idref="bib40" id="ref28">40</reflink>]). One case study implemented the narrative approach for family therapy (Lau, [<reflink idref="bib21" id="ref29">21</reflink>]), which involved a student in a secondary school who was not attending. Narrative therapy proved beneficial in helping the family resist the prevalent societal perception of non-attendance as deviant and restore the relationship between the parents and their child.</p> <p>Schools and non-government organisations often hold local parenting programmes, but not all have undergone research studies. These programmes usually consist of one-off workshops or lectures. They are primarily aimed at parents of young children, such as the Triple P-Positive Parenting Programme and Tuning in to Kids. The Triple P-Positive Parenting Programme is an evidence-based intervention that aims to enhance parenting skills, reduce child behaviour problems, and promote healthy family functioning (Leung et al., [<reflink idref="bib22" id="ref30">22</reflink>]). Tuning in to Kids is another evidence-based parenting programme focusing on emotion coaching to improve parents' ability to effectively recognise, understand, and respond to their children's emotions (Chan et al., [<reflink idref="bib7" id="ref31">7</reflink>]). Low ([<reflink idref="bib25" id="ref32">25</reflink>]) studied parent–adolescent conflicts to determine whether parenting programmes could decrease such conflicts in Hong Kong. The study found that participation in parenting programmes significantly reduced the frequency and intensity of parent–adolescent conflicts, highlighting the potential benefits of holding parenting programmes for Hong Kong families. A recent local study focused on the emotional needs of parents, which evaluated the effects of a mindful parenting workshop for parents of adolescents and young adults after social unrest in Hong Kong (Lo et al., [<reflink idref="bib24" id="ref33">24</reflink>]). The participants' subjective experiences of the mindfulness-based parent support programme had perceived benefits.</p> <p>Despite narrative therapy's potential benefits, it has yet to be mainstream in Hong Kong. There is limited empirical research on its effectiveness and application. This pilot study aims to contribute to the existing literature on narrative therapy for family conflicts in Hong Kong, adapted to the impact of COVID-19 and social unrest. Additionally, it explores the possibility of using narrative therapy in local relationship enhancement programmes.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-7">Objective of the study</hd> <p>The objective of the present study is to redress the impact of COVID-19 restrictions by rebuilding parent–adolescent relationships and enhancing parents' competence and self-efficacy by intervening with the narrative approach workshops.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-8">Method</hd> <p></p> <hd id="AN0189325059-9">Data collection</hd> <p>The study used random sampling and sent invitation letters to all the local secondary schools in Hong Kong. Some schools expressed interest in the workshop but also made additional requests, such as participation through an online setting, or refused to do questionnaires or participate in the study. The research team underwent a screening process considering all the factors, including the schools' requests. Due to limited resources and a tight budget, five schools were invited. All the participating schools sent invitations to parents of students from Secondary 1–6. A total of 34 participants were recruited to participate in the pilot study.</p> <p>A mixed methods design was used, where quantitative measures were collected pre- and post-intervention through questionnaires. Qualitative measures were collected through practitioners' reports and the narratives shared by participants through guided questioning and recorded by practitioners. The interventions and data collection took place between November 2020 and January 2022. The study was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Institute in February 2020.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-10">Questionnaire measures</hd> <p>Based on the hypothesis, measures were administered to parents in pre-and post-test questionnaires to evaluate the effectiveness of the workshops. Background items regarding the parents' gender and the age and form of their children were asked. The Parenting Sense of Competence Scale, Parental Stress Scale, General Self-Efficacy Scale, Perceived Stress Scale and Adult Hope Scale were incorporated into the questionnaire:</p> <p> <emph>Parenting Sense of Competence Scale</emph>: The scale contains 17 items, each rated on a 6-point Likert scale ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree". There are nine questions measuring parental satisfaction and seven for parental self-efficacy. The former examines parents' anxiety, motivation and frustration, e.g. "The problems of taking care of a child are easy to solve once you know how your actions affect your child, an understanding I have acquired.", whereas the latter examines parents' competence, capability levels and problem-solving abilities in their parental role, e.g. "Sometimes I feel like I'm not getting anything done." (Gibaud-Wallston & Wandersman, [<reflink idref="bib16" id="ref34">16</reflink>]). The Chinese translation has shown good reliability and internal consistency and is significantly correlated with self-esteem and post-natal depression systems (Ngai et al., [<reflink idref="bib28" id="ref35">28</reflink>]). Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.79.</p> <p> <emph>Parental Stress Scale:</emph> The scale consists of 17 items on a 6-point Likert scale ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree". The scale was translated into Chinese in a previous Hong Kong study (Cheung, [<reflink idref="bib8" id="ref36">8</reflink>]). Cheung reported having eliminated Item 2 ("There is little or nothing I wouldn't do for my children if it were necessary") of the original questionnaire in the translated version due to an unexpected negative item correlation with the rest of the scale. The revised version showed good reliability and could distinguish between "adjusted" and "maladjusted" parents with a cut-off point of 52/53. To compute the parental stress score, items 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 16 and 17 were first reverse-scored, and then the scores were summed, with a higher score indicating higher parental stress (Berry & Jones, [<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref37">2</reflink>] & Cheung, [<reflink idref="bib8" id="ref38">8</reflink>]). Cronbach's alpha was 0.74.</p> <p> <emph>General Self-Efficacy Scale</emph>: A 10-item scale assessed on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree", correlated to emotion, optimism, and work satisfaction. Negative coefficients were found for depression, stress, health complaints, burnout, and anxiety (Schwarzer & Jerusalem, [<reflink idref="bib31" id="ref39">31</reflink>]). Cronbach's alpha was 0.84.</p> <p> <emph>Perceived Stress Scale:</emph> A 14-item questionnaire for measuring the perception of stress. It measures the degree to which situations in one's life are appraised as stressful. Items were designed to tap into how unpredictable, uncontrollable, and overloaded respondents find their lives. The scale also includes direct queries about current stress levels and is the most widely used psychological instrument for experienced stress using a 5-point Likert-type scale (from 0 to 4) ranging from "Never" to "Always" (Cohen et al., [<reflink idref="bib10" id="ref40">10</reflink>]). Cronbach's alpha was 0.83.</p> <p> <emph>Adult Hope Scale:</emph> A 12-item questionnaire measuring the level of hope. The scale is divided into two subscales that reflect Snyder's cognitive model of hope: (<reflink idref="bib1" id="ref41">1</reflink>) Agency (i.e. goal-directed energy, e.g. "I energetically pursue my goals") and (<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref42">2</reflink>) Pathways (i.e. planning to accomplish goals, e.g. "Even when others get discouraged, I know I can find a way to solve the problem"). Four items comprise the Agency subscale, and four comprise the Pathways subscale. The remaining four items are distracters, which mask the intent of the scale. Each item is answered using a 4-point Likert-type scale ranging from "Not at All True" to "Exactly True" (Snyder et al., [<reflink idref="bib32" id="ref43">32</reflink>]). Cronbach's alpha was 0.79.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-11">Qualitative data</hd> <p>Qualitative data include the parents' own feedback on the workshop, which was collected by directing guided questions to them at the last session of the workshop. Trainers of the workshops were also required to complete observation reports, and responses were coded to evaluate changes in the parent's parenting skills and their relationship with their children.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-12">The narrative therapy workshops</hd> <p>The workshops were comprised of five sessions, each of which lasted approximately two hours. All of the teaching materials were created by a narrative therapist with over ten years of experience practising narrative therapy. The narrative therapist conducted the workshop at two participating schools and trained the counselling teachers and social workers of the other three schools to take over the execution. All the trainers were provided with a standardised workshop outline, a trainers' booklet and all necessary teaching materials. Parents who completed the programme were given food delivery coupons as an incentive, and they were required to submit a family dining picture as homework for the programme. Initially, a planned activity would have asked the parents to bring their families to the school for a meal together; however, it was ultimately cancelled due to concerns about the pandemic. Participants were instead invited to take photos of a meal they partook in with their families and share their experiences during the last session.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-13">Statistical analysis</hd> <p>The one-tailed paired-samples Wilcoxon test was used to analyse the difference between pre- and post-intervention and account for the impact of the small sample size and normality assumption.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-14">Results</hd> <p>A total of 34 parent participants from five secondary schools joined the workshops, of which 33 were female and the remaining one male. 17 participants completed and were identifiable in the pre-and post-test surveys, among which 14 had an adolescent child in junior forms and three in senior forms. All participants attended at least four of the five sessions.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-15">Pre- and post-questionnaire evaluation of the workshops</hd> <p>The comparison of pre- and post-outcome measures is shown in Table 1. The result shows that the General Self-Efficacy and Adult Hope Scale significantly improved after parent workshops. However, there was no improvement on the rest of the scales.</p> <p>Table 1. Comparison of Pre-post outcome measures.</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><td /><td /><td>Pre</td><td>Post</td><td>Difference</td><td><italic>p</italic>-value</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>n</td><td /><td>17</td><td>17</td><td /><td char="." /></tr><tr><td>Sex, n (%)</td><td>Female</td><td>16 (94.1)</td><td>16 (94.1)</td><td /><td char="." /></tr><tr><td /><td>Male</td><td>1 (5.9)</td><td>1 (5.9)</td><td /><td char="." /></tr><tr><td>Grade, n (%)</td><td>S1-3</td><td>14 (82.4)</td><td>14 (82.4)</td><td /><td char="." /></tr><tr><td /><td>S4-6</td><td>3 (17.6)</td><td>3 (17.6)</td><td /><td char="." /></tr><tr><td>Parenting Sense of Competence, mean (SD)</td><td /><td>68.0 (11.2)</td><td>71.4 (10.0)</td><td>3.35(2.08)</td><td char=".">0.121</td></tr><tr><td>General Self Efficacy, mean (SD)</td><td /><td>28.4 (5.2)</td><td>29.9 (5.2)</td><td>1.47(0.85)</td><td char="."><bold>0</bold>.<bold>034</bold></td></tr><tr><td>Parental stress, mean (SD)</td><td /><td>38.6 (9.1)</td><td>35.5 (11.4)</td><td>−3.18(2.49)</td><td char=".">0.099</td></tr><tr><td>Perceived stress, mean (SD)</td><td /><td>34.5 (5.6)</td><td>32.6 (6.1)</td><td>−1.82(1.53)</td><td char=".">0.087</td></tr><tr><td>Adult Hope, mean (SD)</td><td /><td>22.5 (3.4)</td><td>23.6 (3.9)</td><td>1.18(0.75)</td><td char="."><bold>0</bold>.<bold>016</bold></td></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <p>1 <emph>Qualitative data:</emph> Participants all gave positive feedback about the workshops, with the majority agreeing or strongly agreeing. They especially showed appreciation in the fourth session about reauthoring the preferred family story and writing a "love letter" to their adolescent child describing their own Landscape of Identities (LOI) with the support of Landscape of Actions (LOA).</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-16">The session that left the most profound impression on participants</hd> <p>All participants provided positive feedback regarding the workshops, with most agreeing or strongly agreeing, as shown in Table 2. They particularly expressed gratitude for the fourth session, where they learned how to rewrite their preferred family story and compose a "love letter" to their teenage child, describing their Landscape of Identities (LOI) with the assistance of Landscape of Actions (LOA). The LOA is created by discussing events and circumstances, while the LOI focuses on personal qualities and values.</p> <p>Table 2. The session that left the deepest impression on participants.</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><td>Session</td><td>Count (%)</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td char="(">4(23.53)</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td char="(">2(11.76)</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td char="(">2(11.76)</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td char="(">7(41.18)</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td char="(">2(11.76)</td></tr><tr><td>Total</td><td char="(">17</td></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <hd id="AN0189325059-17">Qualitative observations</hd> <p>Based on the observation reports submitted by the trainers, the workshops effectively brought about the following positive changes in the participating families.</p> <p></p> <ulist> <item> Externalising the problems</item> </ulist> <p>At the beginning of the workshops, when the parents were invited to share their family stories, all of them had internalised a "problem-saturated" narrative of the relationship between themselves and their children, which made them believe so fervently that their adolescent child was the cause of the problem and bore sole responsibility for conflicts. During the workshop, the parents were constantly guided by our trainers to reassess the problem with a more distant and objective attitude, with questions that asked them to identify the problem and reflect on the "patterns" of its occurrence, such as the particular circumstances under which the conflict usually arose, or how the confrontation intensified if they were unable to resolve their argument immediately. By proactively reflecting on the conflicts, parents were able to discover a different and previously unexplored perspective to re-evaluate the problem and the true nature of their children.</p> <p>One of the successful cases involved a mother whose elder son was constantly anxious about his academic performance, making conflicts particularly frequent on the eve of examinations. The mother gave an account of a past confrontation between them during exam periods. Arguments sparked when she was unable to answer her son's mathematics question, resulting in him lashing out at her. After dissecting the incident under the guidance of our workshop trainers, the mother was able to realise the trigger of the conflicts was not her son's bad temper but the fact that he was under great pressure given the limited time for revision, and in order to tackle the gist of the problem fundamentally, she could advise her son to start revision early and save more time for preparation instead of attributing the conflict to her son's character.</p> <p>Another mother also shared how she had a tense relationship with her son due to his apparent sloppiness. He would throw away his worn socks when he came home from school and yell at his mother to find another pair next time he needed to go out. The mother found such patterns of behaviour extremely annoying and unbearable, yet she had no choice but to tidy up since her son was "incapable of changes". After the workshop, however, she determined that her son would not make changes because he never had to face the consequence of his irresponsibility and hence would not see the necessity of correcting his conduct. She stopped helping her son clean up his mess and endured the temporary untidiness, and when he yelled again for a new pair of socks a week later, she calmly pointed to the bottom of the sofa, which was precisely the place where he left his socks. Since then, the son has never thrown his socks around and even took the initiative to help his mother with the housework.</p> <p></p> <ulist> <item> 2. Recalling sparkling moments and reconstructing their preferred family stories</item> </ulist> <p>The workshop incorporated a session which specifically required parents to identify a positive trait of their child and share a happy moment between themselves and their children. At first, the participants tended to complain about their children's poor attitudes, late bedtimes and unacceptable habits. Some even went so far as to assert that finding any good quality in their child was impossible. Nonetheless, with repeated encouragement from trainers, the impasse began to break down, and they could recall some seemingly trivial good memories. Once they started sharing, the particular incident they remembered immediately set off many other warm and tender memories. While recollecting these treasured moments, they reminded themselves of the precious qualities of their child and learned to appreciate them more. As the process continued, they became capable of furnishing the existing problem-focused narrative with a fresh perspective and eventually reconstructed a more favourable version of their family stories.</p> <p>For example, there was a mother whose son fell victim to an online romance scam and lost a large amount of money. The family later reported the incident to the police. At the end of the workshop, the mother confessed during her sharing that, at first, she did not see any good in her son. However, having been inspired by the trainer and other parents as they worked hard to recount the good times they had with their children, she eventually thought of some positive qualities of him.</p> <p></p> <ulist> <item> 3. The "outsider-witness" practice</item> </ulist> <p>A workshop session involved participating families sharing their reauthorized stories with one another. Trainers then raised guided questions to encourage participants to reflect on others' experiences and rethink how they interact with their children. The questions included: 1) "As you listened to others' family stories, was there anything the other participants said caught your attention?"; 2) "Did other participants' stories remind you of your personal experiences with your children?"; 3) "Did recalling these past experiences remind you of any traits, beliefs or values of yourself?"; and 4) "Did the reflection inspire or motivate you to consider further actions?"</p> <p>One of the parent participants shared that her relationship with her younger son had remained strained in the last two years. During the outsider-witness practice, however, she was deeply touched by another parent who endeavoured to improve her parenting skills because "her relationship with her child mattered more than her pride", which motivated her to take the first step to invite her son to a hike. Her son warmly received and appreciated her initiative and has shown significant improvement in attitude since then.</p> <p>In another case, the mother had high expectations for her son's academic performance. She imposed a strict time constraint on his use of electronic gadgets, which, unsurprisingly, was met with strong resistance from the son's side. Their conflicts intensified, and their relationship quickly deteriorated as her son got into secondary school. Nevertheless, as she listened to other participants' struggles with their children, she was given the opportunity to reassess the problems as an outsider. As she observed other parents' control over their children from a more distant and objective perspective, she was struck by the similarities between them and herself. Before the practice, she could hardly comprehend her son's rebellious attitude and why he failed to understand she was acting in his best interest, yet after having reflected on her parenting style, she then realised that it was precisely her excessive control which drove her son away. She could not expect her son to understand her without first making an effort to understand him. She began actively asking and listening to her son about his thoughts and feelings and eventually learned to adjust her expectations and negotiate more achievable goals with him.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-18">Discussion</hd> <p>This study has provided valuable insights into utilising a narrative approach in adolescent parenting programmes in Hong Kong. The results, obtained through quantitative and qualitative analyses, support the two hypotheses, which are 1) participating in parenting workshops increases parenting efficacy and competence and 2) fostering a positive relationship promotes mutual understanding between parents and adolescents, reduces conflict and improves parent–adolescent relationships.</p> <p>The programme has shown positive effects in enhancing parents' competency in dealing with their adolescent children, particularly those who have been affected by school suspensions during the COVID-19 outbreak in Hong Kong. Additionally, the programme has provided parents with new perspectives and insights through narrative therapy, improving conflict resolution with their adolescent children. Participants demonstrated significant improvement in hope and self-efficacy after completing the workshops. Among the five sessions, the fourth workshop stood out as particularly impactful. During this session, participants were tasked with writing a "love letter" to their children, highlighting their positive qualities and values (Landscape of Identities, LOI) supported by life stories (Landscape of Actions, LOA) from a parental perspective. Several participants reported receiving positive feedback from their adolescent children for displaying good manners, sharing food, and actively engaging in conversation. This suggests that the Narrative Approach is practical and well-received for adolescent parenting programmes.</p> <p>The qualitative narratives shared by participants and the observations of practitioners further confirm the positive changes in parents' skills and self-efficacy, as well as their relationship with their adolescent children. These findings provide initial evidence of the positive impact of the intervention, which can now be considered for scaling up to benefit more families. Besides, the workshops were conducted by the first author, an experienced Narrative Therapist, as well as trained practitioners who were school social workers or counselling teachers. There was no significant difference in the outcome changes in parents before and after the workshops between the experienced and trained practitioners. This suggests that the train-the-trainer model is feasible for scaling up the delivery of narrative therapy for parent–child conflict in Hong Kong.</p> <p>From an ecological perspective, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted Hong Kong Chinese family functioning and resilience (Lo et al., [<reflink idref="bib24" id="ref44">24</reflink>]); the 5-session programme did not produce significant results regarding parenting sense of competence, parental stress, and perceived stress. The participants might still face various challenges. However, the programme received positive feedback from all five schools involved, with requests for an extension of 6–8 workshops to further alleviate participants' stress levels.</p> <p>Most parenting programmes in Hong Kong primarily focus on young children, those with special educational needs, or intellectually gifted children, but adolescent programmes are limited. This leaves parents with few options to navigate the complex terrain of adolescent parenthood. The existing programmes always prioritise academic or career planning, overlooking the various challenges of parent–adolescent relationships. This study shows that adolescent parenting programmes that address these complex issues are urgently needed in Hong Kong and beyond.</p> <p>The study also suggests that the Narrative Approach can help parents gain new perspectives and insights to improve conflict resolution with adolescent children. It highlights the importance of implementing narrative techniques in school-based parenting programmes. By prioritising the parents' experience, they can effectively communicate and engage in discussions that encourage equitable and inclusive parenting so as to be a departure from traditional one-sided conversations. The Narrative Approach emphasises the creation of a safe and non-judgmental space for participants to share their stories and experiences. It established a supportive environment where participants can openly discuss their challenges, concerns, and successes in raising their adolescents during the workshops. This safe space encouraged active participation, trust-building, and a sense of community among them. It may be the reason for the productive and positive outcomes for both parents and adolescents.</p> <p>Participants in the workshops showed significant improvement in hope and self-efficacy, which underscores the potential for enhancing parents' emotional well-being and confidence in their parenthood. The Narrative Approach encourages externalising problems, separating them from personal identity. In the workshops, participants could explore the challenges they faced as separated from themselves, allowing them to view the issues more objectively. Externalising conversations reduces blame and defensiveness, enabling participants to engage in discussions centred on problem-solving rather than personal attacks. The increase in hope and self-efficacy can serve as evidence for promoting parental resilience and mental health, especially in challenging circumstances, such as traumatic life events.</p> <p>The exceptional results observed in writing "love letters" to their children highlight the practicality and efficacy of this specific approach within the programme. It implies that in Hong Kong Chinese Culture, parents may not accustomed to articulating their adolescent children's positive qualities or behaviours. Promoting this kind of communication between parents and adolescents is necessary. The Narrative Approach invites individuals to explore alternative stories and possibilities. Through writing the "love letters", participants could have the time and space to challenge dominant or negative narratives that may hinder the relationship with their adolescent children. By exploring alternative stories, they could discover new perspectives, strengths, and resources to reshape their interactions and parenting strategies. This process encourages flexibility, open-mindedness, and creativity in finding effective solutions.</p> <p>Implementing the programme in the local context and evaluating its efficacy can make parent–adolescent relationships a valuable asset rather than a problem. This will undoubtedly enhance the resilience of families to cope with challenges. Therefore, the study acknowledges that a narrative approach can be an alternative to dealing with parent–adolescent conflicts in Hong Kong, effectively enhancing adolescent parenting competency.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-19">Limitations</hd> <p>Limitations of the present study include the small sample size and the lack of a control group, making it challenging to ascertain the improvement in the participating groups. However, participant feedback showed the positive impacts of the unique narrative approach. No follow-up had been conducted after the workshops; hence, there needed to be more data regarding the sustainability of the effects of the workshop. Secondly, though random sampling was used, the participants might not be representative of the Hong Kong population, as 33 out of the 34 parent participants were female, resulting in a lack of representation of the fathers' views on the workshop's effectiveness. Even when conflicts mainly were between the father and the child, some mothers reported difficulties convincing their spouses to join the workshop. Previous case studies on narrative therapy for men also highlighted the importance of considering how cultural values of masculinity can influence the therapeutic relationship and the client's receptiveness to treatment (Schermer, [<reflink idref="bib30" id="ref45">30</reflink>]). Future studies can aim to target more fathers for the programme and investigate the potential differences in the outcomes between men and women in narrative therapy for parent–child relationships (Table 3).</p> <p>Table 3. The Outlines of 5-sessions of Parent workshops (https://youthlocker-csrp.hku).</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><td>Session</td><td>Topic</td><td>Brief expected outcomes:</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>Never tire of learning</td><td>Participants will learn about the psycho-social change of an adolescent by providing the basic knowledge about the biological, psychological and social development growth of adolescents</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>Thoroughly learn about "problem"</td><td>Through learning to externalize the "problem" and map the influence of the problem on the person, and the influence of the person on the problem (Wolter et al., <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="bibr39">2006</xref>) so that the participants will learn how to externalize the "problem" from their adolescent child and aware the impacts of the "problem".</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>Learning from each other</td><td>Identification of the unique outcomes which contradict the dominant story (Wolter et al., <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="bibr39">2006</xref>), including their knowledge, intentions or personal qualities, the participants will share their life stories of how to tackle the "problem" by sharing their positive life experiences.</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>Reauthorizing a "preferred" family story</td><td>Participants will learn to discover their beliefs, value, hope and dream for their families and reauthor an alternative family storyline. This session will facilitate the participants to write therapeutic letters, "love letters" to their adolescent child.</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>Outsider-witness and Definitional Ceremony</td><td>The person who has authored the alternative story is invited to tell the preferred story of his/her life in the group, who as the audience or will acknowledge the person's preferred story and express resonance.</td></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <hd id="AN0189325059-20">Conclusion</hd> <p>The objective of the present study is to redress the impact of COVID-19 restrictions by rebuilding parent–adolescent relationships and enhancing parents' competence and self-efficacy by intervening with the narrative approach workshops, which provide an alternative to mainstream interventions. The parent participants showed significantly increased general self-efficacy and hope, and their narratives also showed the workshop's positive effects on improving the parent–adolescent relationship. The change of the parent participants also has a positive impact on their adolescent children. The findings of this study strongly support the practical applicability of the Narrative Approach in the context of adolescent parenting programmes, emphasising its potential effectiveness and relevance. Further developments in the narrative approach of parenting programmes will definitely promote hope and competency for adolescent parents.</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-21">Acknowledgement</hd> <p>This study is funded by The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Hong Kong</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-22">Disclosure statement</hd> <p>No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).</p> <hd id="AN0189325059-23">Data availability statement</hd> <p>The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.</p> <ref id="AN0189325059-24"> <title> References </title> <blist> <bibl id="bib1" idref="ref22" type="bt">1</bibl> <bibtext> Baldiwala, J., & Kanakia, T. (2022). Using narrative therapy with children experiencing developmental disabilities and their families in India: A qualitative study. Journal of Child Health Care, 26 (2), 307 – 318. https://doi.org/10.1177/13674935211014739</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib2" idref="ref37" type="bt">2</bibl> <bibtext> Berry, J. D., & Jones, W. H. (1995). The parental stress scale: Initial psychometric evidence. 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Her research interests include strengths-based approaches, mental health, adolescents and parenting.</p> <p>Christy Tsang is a secondary school teacher with board experience as a mental health educator and a researcher. Her research interests include youth and community mental health and inclusive education.</p> <p>Yu Cheng Hsu is a research assistant professor at the HKJC Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention. His research interests are in using data-driven approaches to solve mental health challenges.</p> <p>Paul S. F. Yip is the director of the HKJC Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention. His research interests are promoting a public health approach to meeting the mental challenge of the community. He has published extensively on population health and suicide prevention. He is also a chair professor (population health) at the University of Hong Kong.</p> </aug> <nolink nlid="nl1" bibid="bib33" firstref="ref1"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl2" bibid="bib18" firstref="ref2"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl3" bibid="bib29" firstref="ref3"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl4" bibid="bib26" firstref="ref4"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl5" bibid="bib34" firstref="ref5"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl6" bibid="bib41" firstref="ref7"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl7" bibid="bib35" firstref="ref9"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl8" bibid="bib17" firstref="ref10"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl9" bibid="bib36" firstref="ref11"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl10" bibid="bib38" firstref="ref12"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl11" bibid="bib37" firstref="ref13"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl12" bibid="bib14" firstref="ref14"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl13" bibid="bib27" firstref="ref15"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl14" bibid="bib42" firstref="ref16"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl15" bibid="bib11" firstref="ref17"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl16" bibid="bib12" firstref="ref19"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl17" bibid="bib13" firstref="ref20"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl18" bibid="bib15" firstref="ref21"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl19" bibid="bib23" firstref="ref24"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl20" bibid="bib19" firstref="ref25"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl21" bibid="bib20" firstref="ref27"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl22" bibid="bib40" firstref="ref28"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl23" bibid="bib21" firstref="ref29"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl24" bibid="bib22" firstref="ref30"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl25" bibid="bib25" firstref="ref32"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl26" bibid="bib24" firstref="ref33"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl27" bibid="bib16" firstref="ref34"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl28" bibid="bib28" firstref="ref35"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl29" bibid="bib31" firstref="ref39"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl30" bibid="bib10" firstref="ref40"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl31" bibid="bib32" firstref="ref43"></nolink> <nolink nlid="nl32" bibid="bib30" firstref="ref45"></nolink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Foreign+Countries%22">Foreign Countries</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22COVID-19%22">COVID-19</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Pandemics%22">Pandemics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Program+Effectiveness%22">Program Effectiveness</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Family+Relationship%22">Family Relationship</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Parenting+Skills%22">Parenting Skills</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Self+Efficacy%22">Self Efficacy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Competence%22">Competence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychological+Patterns%22">Psychological Patterns</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Stress+Management%22">Stress Management</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Therapy%22">Therapy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Workshops%22">Workshops</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Parent+Child+Relationship%22">Parent Child Relationship</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Secondary+School+Students%22">Secondary School Students</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Conflict%22">Conflict</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Adolescents%22">Adolescents</searchLink>
– Name: Subject
  Label: Geographic Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Hong+Kong%22">Hong Kong</searchLink>
– Name: DOI
  Label: DOI
  Group: ID
  Data: 10.1080/03069885.2024.2373172
– Name: ISSN
  Label: ISSN
  Group: ISSN
  Data: 0306-9885<br />1469-3534
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Since 2019, Hong Kong has been experiencing a social and mental health crisis caused by social unrest and the COVID-19 Pandemic. As a result, there have been reports of increasing family conflicts among secondary students. With the understanding that family support and positive relationships are crucial for maintaining the mental well-being of young people, narrative therapy is a practical approach for helping families shift from problem-focused perspectives to empowering strategies for rebuilding positive relationships. The study aims to report on the effectiveness of a pilot group parent narrative therapy workshop for family relationship harmonisation and enhancing parenting competency using quantitative and qualitative methods. The study participants included 34 parents from five local schools. The results indicated a significantly increased sense of parental competency, general self-efficacy, adult hope, and decreased parental stress. Qualitative reports and participants' narratives also demonstrated the positive effect of the narrative therapy workshop on their parent-adolescent relationships.
– Name: AbstractInfo
  Label: Abstractor
  Group: Ab
  Data: As Provided
– Name: DateEntry
  Label: Entry Date
  Group: Date
  Data: 2025
– Name: AN
  Label: Accession Number
  Group: ID
  Data: EJ1490385
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=eric&AN=EJ1490385
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/03069885.2024.2373172
    Languages:
      – Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 12
        StartPage: 519
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Foreign Countries
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: COVID-19
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pandemics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Program Effectiveness
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Family Relationship
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Parenting Skills
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Self Efficacy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Competence
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychological Patterns
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Stress Management
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Therapy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Workshops
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Parent Child Relationship
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Secondary School Students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Conflict
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Adolescents
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Hong Kong
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: A Pilot Study in Narrative Approach of an Adolescent Parenting Program for Enhancing Parenting Competency during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Florence F. Y. Cheung
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Christy Tsang
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Yu Cheng Hsu
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Paul S. F. Yip
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          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 01
              Type: published
              Y: 2025
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 0306-9885
            – Type: issn-electronic
              Value: 1469-3534
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 53
            – Type: issue
              Value: 4
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: British Journal of Guidance & Counselling
              Type: main
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