Sociodemographic predictors of engagement in an eHealth parenting program for parents with elevated depressive and anxiety symptoms

Background. Electronic health (eHealth) programs are a promising avenue to enhance the accessibility of parenting interventions that aim to improve parent mental health. However, engagement in eHealth parenting programs can be variable and sociodemographic factors may help elucidate for whom there are barriers. Such work may inform specific components of future eHealth interventions and support the scalability and effectiveness of existing interventions for those experiencing barriers.Objective. The current study aims to investigate the extent to which sociodemographic factors predict various engagement metrics in a novel eHealth parenting program (The Building Emotional Awareness and Mental Health [BEAM]).Methods. A secondary data analysis of engagement metrics was conducted in two separate randomized controlled trials (RCT) of the BEAM program. A total of n = 110 mothers (Mage = 31.85 years old, SDage = 4.67) of young children participated across both trials. We examined the magnitude of the relationships between sociodemographic predictors with distinct metrics of engagement.Results. Program engagement was highest in the earlier weeks of the program and declined across later weeks (β = -.16, p < .001). Older mother age positively predicted several engagement metrics, including more time watching mental health videos (β = .34, p = .010) and parenting videos (β = .34, p = .010). Higher household income positively predicted more forum page views (β = .44, p < .001), number of BEAM sessions attended (β = .30, p = .006), and more weeks of BEAM program engagement (β = .35, p < .001). First time-parents engaged in fewer program weeks (β = -.25, p = .009). Number of children in the household, employment status, and living in an urban area did not significantly predict any program engagement metrics. Conclusions. Parent engagement varied throughout the program, and it may be beneficial to specifically target mid and later program engagement for participants. First-time and low-income parents may face additional barriers in participating in eHealth programs and benefit from additional support from the intervention team to bolster engagement. Additional research will be helpful in replicating and extending these findings with larger samples to optimize program engagement.