2 Clinical Trials for Various Conditions
Horizon Outreach has developed the Horizon Eagle Fatherhood Program (HEFP). HEFP includes a program/services aspect, but also includes a rigorous evaluation component, featuring a randomized control trial (RCT) research design. The evaluation will determine the effect of the Horizon Eagle Fatherhood Program with fathers aged 18 and up in Houston, Texas. Specifically, the research is examining the effects of the program relative to: (1) improvement in healthy relationship and marriage skills, (2) improvement in parenting skills, (3) improvement in conflict resolution and anger management skills, and (4) improvement in financial management skills and progress toward greater economic stability. Program participants will be randomly assigned to either the intervention group or the control group. Participants assigned to the intervention group will receive the program now. Participants assigned to the control group will have an opportunity to receive the program later. All participants (intervention and control) will complete a pretest questionnaire. Intervention participants will then participate in the Horizon Eagle Fatherhood program. This is an intensive 40-hour classroom-based program taught by project staff. Both intervention and control participants will receive case management services. Following completion of the program by the intervention participants, all participants will complete a posttest questionnaire. After completion of the posttest, all participants will have an opportunity to participate in a workforce training program. Six months following posttest, all participants will complete a third questionnaire. In addition, a selected number of participants will participate in focus groups. After completing the six-month follow-up questionnaire, participants from the control group may participate in the 40 hours of classroom instruction, should they choose to do so. This RCT research design component of the Horizon Eagle Fatherhood Program began in June of the second project year. Prior to the start of the RCT, a pilot/readiness project with no control group was conducted. This was followed by a short-term pilot of the RCT.
The Urban Institute-a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization-is partnering with Rubicon Programs to conduct a rigorous evaluation of its Fathers Advancing Communities Together (FACT) program. FACT is a multi-faceted program designed to deliver responsible parenting, healthy relationships, and economic stability services on a voluntary basis to low-income fathers in Contra Costa County, California. Urban's evaluation comprised of three key components: The implementation evaluation will describe FACT program activities and services, including communication and coordination across partners, service delivery mechanisms, and whether and how participants and their families received comprehensive services. Urban will identify a logic model for the program and assess the barriers to and facilitators of program performance. The implementation evaluation will draw from interviews with program staff, partners, and stakeholders, as well as field observations, program and administrative data, and focus groups with FACT participants and their families. The outcome evaluation will build on the implementation evaluation to determine whether specific program components, their frequency, and their duration, are related to outcomes. Urban will conduct surveys of program participants at the time of their enrollment into the program and one year following their enrollment to explore how participants' self-reported attitudes on various domains are associated with economic self-sufficiency and family functioning. Urban will also use program and administrative data collected by Rubicon and its partners, specifically Rubicon's case management database, to assess participant outcomes. The impact evaluation will assess to what extent participation in the FACT program is associated with improved outcomes as compared to similarly situated individuals who did not participate in the program. Urban will work with Rubicon's partners to identify individuals living in Contra Costa County who were eligible to participate in the program but, for whatever reason, did not do so. Once a comparison group of fathers has been established, Urban will use individual-level outcome data to determine whether the FACT program has an impact on economic self-sufficiency and family functioning.