Preventing maltreatment in institutional care: A cluster-randomized controlled trial in East Africa

An increasing number of orphans in low- and middle-income countries are living in institutional care facilities where they experience poor quality of care and ongoing maltreatment. To prevent maltreatment, we tested the effectiveness and feasibility of the intervention Interaction Competencies with Children – for Caregivers (ICC-C). In a two-arm cluster-randomized controlled trial, 203 caregivers (65.5% female, M(age) = 36.63 years, SD(age) = 12.26) and 356 children (46.1% female, M(age) = 9.43 years, SD(age) = 1.93) from 24 orphanages in Dar es salaam (Tanzania) participated from August to October 2018 (Baseline) and March to April 2019 (Follow-Up). Orphanages were assigned to the intervention or waitlist-group. Caregivers in the intervention group received the ICC-C intervention to prevent maltreatment through focusing on non-violent caregiving strategies. The primary outcome was the change in self-reported maltreatment by caregivers (Conflict Tactics Scale). Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03594617, 20 July 2018. Participation in the intervention resulted in a significant reduction in reported maltreatment (f(2) = 0.153), a decrease of positive attitudes toward violent discipline (f(2) = 0.248), and an increased level of childcare knowledge (f(2) = 0.220) in the caregiver sample, each indicating a moderate effect. Caregivers’ training participation did not predict reduced maltreatment reported by children. Aspects of feasibility, including motivation to participate, acceptability, and integration of the new strategies were evaluated positively. The study promises initial effectiveness and feasibility of efforts to improve the situation of children in institutional care settings in resource-poor countries by offering training to care providers.