Konti, F., Başarı, Ş., & Direktör, C. (2026). Effectiveness of school-based family empowerment psychoeducational program on parental involvement and family interaction. Psychology, Health & Medicine. Advance online publication.
In a recent article published in Psychology, Health & Medicine, Near East University (NEU) researcher Assoc. Prof. Dr. Şengül Başarı, together with Feray Konti (NEU) and Cemaliye Direktör (Dr. Suat Günsel State Primary School, Ministry of National Education), examined a question that affects almost every family with school-age children: can a short, well-designed program delivered inside an ordinary primary school actually improve how parents and children relate to one another?
The motivation is practical. Parenting is one of the most important roles a person can take on, but it is rarely taught in any structured way. Schools see children every day, yet most schools have no formal way to support the parents who are raising them. The family-support programs that do exist tend to focus on families dealing with specific challenges — autism, ADHD, learning difficulties, behavioural problems — and there are far fewer programs designed for “ordinary” parents who simply want to do better. After the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped how families and schools work together, and in multicultural settings such as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), this gap has become harder to ignore.
To test a possible solution, the team designed and ran an eight-session psychoeducational program for parents of children attending a state primary school in TRNC. Thirty volunteer parents (26 mothers and 4 fathers) were recruited and randomly split into two equal groups: one group went through the program straight away, while the other group served as a waitlist control and received the program after the study finished, so that no-one was denied the support. The sessions ran for sixty minutes each, twice a week, over four weeks, and were always delivered by the same facilitator inside the school’s seminar room — a familiar, trusted setting for the parents.
The program was built around four practical pillars. The first focused on quality time and play, helping parents see how everyday games and shared moments support a child’s cognitive, emotional and social development. The second tackled healthy communication. The third addressed conflict resolution — using parents’ own real-life examples as case studies, alongside drama-based role-plays in which they took turns playing the parent and the child, so each side’s perspective was felt rather than just discussed. The fourth pillar focused on the parent–school partnership, clarifying the roles of teachers, administrators and parents and how to work together effectively. Throughout, parents received a structured handbook, watched short videos, completed take-home tasks, and worked with case studies, ensuring that what they learned in the seminar room could be carried home that same evening.
To measure change, the researchers used the Family Interaction Patterns Scale, a 12-item instrument they had developed and validated in earlier work, with strong reliability (Cronbach’s alpha around .90). It was administered to both groups before and after the program, and the data were analysed using a 2 × 2 multivariate analysis of variance. The results were clear: parents who completed the program showed statistically significant gains in both parental involvement (p < .001) and family interaction (p < .001), while the waitlist group remained essentially unchanged. The effect sizes were in the medium range (partial η² between .45 and .55), meaning the improvements were not just statistical artefacts but real, meaningful changes in how parents reported behaving with their children.
The practical takeaway is encouraging. Because the program was delivered inside an existing school, by an education administrator, using ordinary materials and a familiar room, it does not require expensive infrastructure or specialised clinical settings. That makes it realistic to embed similar programs into routine school practice, reaching families through a channel they already trust. The authors note important limitations — the sample was small, drawn from a single school, dominated by mothers, and based on self-report — and call for larger, longer studies that include more fathers and follow families over time. Even so, the message of the study is hopeful: parents are willing to learn, schools are well-placed to support them, and a short, structured program can move the dial on what really matters — the everyday relationship between a parent and a child.
For collaboration and inquiries, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Şengül Başarı can be contacted through [email protected]
About the researcher
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Şengül Başarı was born in Bostancı in 1987. She completed her undergraduate studies in the Department of Psychological Counselling and Guidance at the Atatürk Faculty of Education, Near East University, and went on to earn both her Master’s degree (2011) and her Ph.D. (2019) in the same department at NEU’s Educational Sciences Institute. She joined the Near East University faculty as Assistant Professor in January 2020 and was promoted to Associate Professor in December 2024.
She currently serves as Vice Chair of the Department of Educational Sciences at the Atatürk Faculty of Education, while continuing her academic work as a faculty member in the Department of Psychological Counselling and Guidance. Within Near East University she is also a member of the Quality Coordination Accreditation Commission and the Faculty’s Quality Unit Commission, a board member of the Educational Sciences Research Center founded at NEU in 2023, and a member of the Faculty’s Horizontal/Vertical Transition Commission.
Throughout her career, Dr. Başarı has delivered training and in-service seminars for teachers and students on topics such as adolescent communication, peer bullying, aggression and anger management, peer relationships, and the importance of career choice. She has also organized workshops for graduate students in psychological counselling and guidance on “Bibliotherapy Applications”, “Advanced Bibliotherapy Applications”, “Utilization of Digital Stories in Bibliotherapy Applications”, and “Positive Psychology”. Her research interests center on guidance and psychological counselling, school success in adolescents, education, and bibliotherapy, with academic work presented at national and international conferences and published in indexed journals.
Disciplines: Psychological Counselling and Guidance, Educational Sciences, Bibliotherapy, Adolescent Mental Health.
Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a School-Based Family Empowerment Psychoeducational Program on parental involvement and family interaction. A pre-test – post-test experimental design with a control group was employed. The sample consisted of 30 volunteer parents (26 mothers, 4 fathers) whose children were enrolled in state primary schools affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 15) or a control group (n = 15). The Family Interaction Patterns Scale was administered as a pre- and post-test measure. The intervention comprised eight 60-minute sessions delivered over four weeks within the school setting. Multivariate analyses indicated that participation in the psychoeducational program was associated with statistically significant increases in both parental involvement and family interaction scores in the experimental group compared to the control group (p < .01). Effect size estimates indicated medium effects (partial η² = .45–.55). These findings suggest that school-based empowerment-oriented psychoeducational programs may support family involvement and parent – child interaction within primary school contexts.
