Evaluating the Strong Families Programme in Lebanon: A Single-arm Study on Family Functioning and Child Well-being

Abstract

Families in Lebanon face compounded adversities, including political instability, economic collapse, and protracted displacement crises. These conditions place significant strain on caregiver-child relationships, which are critical determinants of child well-being. The Strong Families programme, developed by UNODC, is a brief, evidence-based family skills intervention designed for low-resource and high-stress settings. This study evaluated the programme’s feasibility and effectiveness in Lebanon. A single-arm pre-post design was employed. Seventy-six families with children aged 8–14 years were recruited through community-based organizations across Beirut, Mount Lebanon, and South Lebanon. Caregivers completed a demographic questionnaire, the Parenting and Family Adjustment Scales (PAFAS) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) at baseline (T1), post-intervention (T2), and six-week follow-up (T3). Despite high attrition, results showed significant reductions in SDQ conduct problems and total difficulties, with the greatest improvements among children with high baseline difficulties. PAFAS outcomes indicated significant decreases in coercive parenting and improvements in positive encouragement, parent-child relationship, and parental adjustment among the most challenged caregivers at baseline. Families with lower initial difficulties showed smaller or non-significant changes, suggesting a ceiling effect. No differences emerged between Lebanese and non-Lebanese participants. The Strong Families programme demonstrated feasibility and positive short-term impacts on family functioning and child mental health in Lebanon, particularly for higher-risk families. These findings support its scalability as a contextually adaptable intervention to strengthen resilience in humanitarian and fragile settings.