Internet-based third wave interventions that reduce stress in parents of children and adolescents with chronic conditions: systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose Parents raising children with chronic conditions experience increased stress and reduced quality of life. Research demonstrates that internet-based third wave parent interventions are effective in reducing parental stress. This study aims to synthesize evidence to assess the effectiveness of these parent interventions for children and adolescents with chronic conditions. Design/methodology/approach No systematic review has been conducted that synthesizes the impact of these parent interventions. Electronic databases were systematically searched for eligible studies (CINHAHL, EMBASE, EMCARE, MEDLINE, PsycINFO). English peer reviewed studies that were internet-based and incorporated the third wave approach were included in this review. Findings The primary outcome measure was parental stress. Ten studies met eligibility criteria, with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy predominating among third wave approaches. With eight studies rated as low risk of bias, findings appear reliable and valid. Meta-analysis using a random effects model showed that internet-based third wave interventions effectively reduce parental stress (effect size: −0.33, 95% CI: −0.17, −0.50). However, results should be interpreted cautiously due to various confounding variables. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first systematic review synthesizing internet-based third wave interventions for parents of children and adolescents with chronic conditions. This analysis identifies some critical insights: how protocol variations affect data quality, validity concerns when combining diverse chronic conditions, the importance of differentiating between interventions for parents of children versus adolescents, and challenges in measuring parental stress due to inconsistent assessment tools. Future well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed to address these confounding factors.