Early Pathways

Early Pathways is an in-home trauma-informed therapy program designed to serve families living in poverty who have young children with significant behavior problems.

Early Pathways practitioners focus treatment around five core elements: (1) strengthening the parent-child relationship through child-led play, practices enhancing parents’ awareness of and responsiveness to the child’s needs, and other nurturing activities; (2) helping parents form developmentally appropriate expectations for child behavior; (3) teaching parents cognitive strategies to respond calmly and thoughtfully to challenging child behaviors; (4) teaching parents positive reinforcement and listening sessions skills to strengthen children’s pro-social behaviors and compliance; and (5) teaching parents limit-setting strategies to reduce children’s challenging behaviors. Practitioners aim to use trauma-informed practices to guide all aspects of the program. For example, practitioners help families create a safe environment, identify sources of support, and developing a trauma narrative. Practitioners also teach trauma-informed parenting strategies within each core element (e.g., trauma-informed limit setting).

Early Pathways does not currently meet criteria to receive a rating because no studies of the program achieved a rating of moderate or high on design and execution.

Date Last Reviewed (Handbook Version 1.0): Jun 2022

Sources

The program or service description, target population, and program or service delivery and implementation information were informed by the following sources: the program or service manual and the program or service developer’s website.

This information does not necessarily represent the views of the program or service developers. For more information on how this program or service was reviewed, download the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Version 1.0

Target Population

Early Pathways is designed to serve families with children ages 1–5 who have significant behavioral or emotional difficulties or who have experienced potentially traumatic events. The program targets families living in poverty while also serving clients across the socio-economic spectrum.

Program or Service Delivery and Implementation

Dosage

Early Pathways is typically delivered in 8–16 weekly sessions. The number of sessions is based on the individual needs of the child and parent. Each session lasts for 1 hour, or longer if needed.

Location/Delivery Setting

Recommended Locations/Delivery Settings

Early Pathways is delivered in participants’ homes.

Education, Certifications and Training

Early Pathways is delivered by mental health practitioners. Practitioners typically have at least a master’s degree in a mental health field or are actively working toward a master’s degree. Practitioners without these qualifications may deliver the intervention under the supervision of an experienced clinician until appropriate mastery is demonstrated.

Early Pathways offers a training program to become a certified Early Pathways provider. The certification process requires practitioners to attend a 2-day training workshop, participate in 12 consultation sessions with Early Pathways trainers, and submit client assessments and reports during the consultation process.

Early Pathways also offers a 1-day informational workshop for parents, caregivers, and professionals who work with children across disciplines to provide an in-depth understanding of challenging behaviors and stress/trauma-related concerns in young children birth to age 6.

Program or Service Documentation

Book/Manual/Available documentation used for review

Fox, R. A. (2018). Early Pathways: Home-based mental health services for very young children in poverty. Penfield Children’s Center.

Available languages

Early Pathways materials are available in English and Spanish.

Other supporting materials

Treatment Model

Training and Certifications

For More Information

Website: www.earlypathways.org

Phone: (414) 345-6386

Email: earlypathways@penfieldchildren.org

Note: The details on Dosage; Location; Education, Certifications, and Training; Other Supporting Materials; and For More Information sections above are provided to website users for informational purposes only. This information is not exhaustive and may be subject to change.

Extent of Evidence

Results of Search and Review	Number of Studies Identified and Reviewed for Early Pathways
Identified in Search	11
Eligible for Review	1
Rated High	0
Rated Moderate	0
Rated Low	1
Reviewed Only for Risk of Harm	0

Studies Reviewed

Sometimes study results are reported in more than one document, or a single document reports results from multiple studies. Studies are identified below by their Prevention Services Clearinghouse study identification numbers. To receive a rating of supported or well-supported, the favorable evidence for a program or service must have been obtained from research conducted in a usual care or practice setting.

Studies Rated Low

Study 14234

Love, J. R., & Fox, R. A. (2019). Home-based parent child therapy for young traumatized children living in poverty: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Child and Adolescent Trauma, 12, 73-83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-017-0170-z

This study received a low rating because it did not meet design confound standards.

Studies Not Eligible for Review

Study 14226

Fox, R. A., & Holtz, C. A. (2009). Treatment outcomes for toddlers with behavior problems from families in poverty. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 14(4), 183-189. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-3588.2009.00527.x