Current Research
Review - Parents’ experiences of accessing support for parenting
Mapping review
The OT4Parenting research team has completed a systematic mapping review examining how parents access professional support for parenting concerns. This review provides an overview of existing evidence across a wide range of parental experiences and can be accessed here:
Rider, J., Honey, A., Pituch, E., O’Mara, V., & McGrath, M. (2025). Accessing support for parenting among parents living with disabilities: A mapping review of qualitative research. Health and Social Care in the Community, 2025, 8821639. https://doi.org/10.1155/hsc/8821639
Building on this foundation, the team has conducted a series of qualitative meta-syntheses that bring together the experiences of parents living with different types of conditions of accessing or trying to access formal support for their parenting. The first two to be published focus on parents living with chronic conditions and mental health conditions.
Parents living with chronic conditions
McGrath, M., Honey, A., O’Mara, V., Pituch, E., & Rider, J. V. (2025). How do parents who live with chronic disease experience accessing formal parenting supports? A systematic review and meta-synthesis of qualitative research. Disability and Rehabilitation, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638288.2025.2574530
This paper analysed data from 18 original qualitative studies involving the experiences of 267 parents living with chronic conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, cancer, cystic fibrosis and HIV. Three central themes emerged: (i) Absence of support – parents often described feeling invisible within healthcare systems (ii) What supports are needed – parents wanted practical, education and emotional support and (iii) Designing supports that work – parents called for supports that are flexible, tailored and grounded in need.
Parents living with mental health conditions
Honey, A., Rider, J., Pituch, E., O’Mara, V., & McGrath, M. (2026). Supporting parents with mental health conditions: A qualitative systematic review of parents’ experiences with professional support. Community Mental Health Journal. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-026-01628-3
This paper synthesized data from 49 studies. Parents reported that they would benefit from support in a range of areas including: access to their children; childcare and respite; structure and routine; practical tasks; managing child behaviours; stress management in parenting; parent-child relationships; educating and supporting children around mental health; and developing positive understandings and confidence around parenting. They had received or wanted to receive support via: parenting education programs; family interventions; opportunities to talk to professionals; opportunities for peer support; advocacy; practical help; family-friendly mental health services; and respectful, collaborative and non-judgmental services. However, most parents reported lacking this support.
The OT4Parenting team sees occupational therapists as being in a position to support parenting given that parenting is one of the most valued occupational roles for those who engage in it. These reviews provide critical information about how parents want to be supported to guide occupational therapists working with adult populations.
Global survey of occupational therapists
Our international research team conducted a global survey exploring how occupational therapists support adults in their parenting roles.
We’re thrilled to share two new papers which draw on responses from 1,357 OTs in 42 countries.
McGrath, M., Honey, A.*, Almomani, F., Chen, Y., Codd, Y., Junghun A., Kunishige, M., Morrison, R., O’Mara, V., Peterson, J., Pituch, E., Romli, M., Rozen, D., Sabbah, R., Sarsak, H., Saunders, E., Sim, S., Tan, H.L., Wong, W.T., Wan Yunus, F., & Rider, J. (early online). Parenting and Occupational Therapy: An exploration of global practice. Occupational Therapy Journal of Research.https://doi.org/10.1177/15394492251382465
This paper highlights that parenting is often under-addressed in OT practice — less than half regularly ask clients about their parenting roles, and only a third frequently intervene around parenting concerns. The research also found that assessment practices tend to rely on informal conversations or general OT measures rather than parenting-specific tools, and that interventions are most often limited to education and training rather than tailored, occupation-centred parenting support. Those occupational therapists who had prior training in parenting and OT were more likely to integrate parenting into their regular assessment and intervention practices.
Honey, A.*, Almomani, F., Chen, Y., Codd, Y., Junghun A., Kunishige, M., Morrison, R., O’Mara, V., Peterson, J., Pituch, E., Rider, J., Romli, M., Rozen, D., Sabbah, R., Sarsak, H., Saunders, E., Sim, S., Tan, H.L., Wong, W.T., Wan Yunus, F., & McGrath, M., (2025). Supporting parents with disability and other challenges through occupational therapy: What is needed? Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 72(3), e70026. https://doi.org/10.1111/1440-1630.70026
This paper examines what is needed to increase occupational therapy support for parents with disabilities and other challenges based on data from the global survey.
It found that supportive institutional structures, training, resources and occupation-based assessments are needed. However increased recognition of occupational therapists’ suitability to support parents is also needed both within and outside the profession.
We hope these findings encourage more services, educators, and clinicians to foreground parenting as a core part of adult OT practice.
We have also published two papers from the study that focus on OT support for parenting in particular countries:
Morrison, R., Honey, A., & McGrath, M. (2026). "That's not part of my role." Practices and tensions around adult parental care occupations in Chilean occupational therapy. Brazilian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 34 (e4185), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1590/2526-8910.cto423441852
Codd, Y., Honey, A., & McGrath, M. (early online). The role of occupational therapy in supporting parenting occupations: An Irish occupational therapy perspective. British Journal of Occupational Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1177/03080226261418491
POP Framework
After preliminary testing in Ireland, planning is underway for a global study that will use Experience Sampling Method to explore the range tasks and activities that parents do as part of parenting. We will use this information to assess the validity of the POP framework, identify any additional parenting occupations, and explore the impact of culture on parenting practices.