Parents' Experience with the CO-OP Approach: A Consolidation of Three Qualitative Investigations

Can J Occup Ther. 2021 Mar;88(1):12-25. doi: 10.1177/0008417420968680. Epub 2020 Dec 16.

Abstract

Background.: In the cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance (CO-OP) approach, parent involvement is critical for transferring skills from therapeutic settings to everyday contexts.

Purpose.: This study aimed to gain insight into the experience of parents whose children with developmental coordination disorder participated in CO-OP intervention.

Method.: This consolidation of three small qualitative studies investigating parents' experience involved an inductive qualitative content analysis of 10 parent interviews and 1 parent focus group.

Findings.: Four overarching themes emerged as depicting parents' experience. Although parents recognized the improvements their children made with the intervention, they also expressed several challenges, such as incorporating CO-OP tasks into daily routines, shifting of parent-child relationship and feeling self-efficacious with the approach.

Implications.: This study highlights that parent observation of intervention sessions is not enough to support parents applying CO-OP at home. Research is needed to understand how to best engage parents in the CO-OP approach.

Keywords: Approche cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance (approche CO-OP); Children; Cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance (CO-OP); Developmental coordination disorder; Enfants; Motor skills disorder; Parents; Trouble des habiletés motrices; Trouble du développement de la coordination.

MeSH terms

  • Humans
  • Motor Skills Disorders*
  • Occupational Therapy*
  • Orientation
  • Parents
  • Self Efficacy