Adaptation of a developmental milestone resource for parents from diverse, low-income communities in South Africa

Abstract

Knowledge of developmental milestones allows parents to support the developmental needs of their children and monitor their behaviour. Many available developmental resources, however, do not apply to culturally, economically, and linguistically diverse communities in low– and middle-income countries. There is a need to adapt established resources to improve contextual relevance. As primary stakeholders, parents should contribute to the adaptations. An existing developmental milestone resource was adapted for parents from low-income communities in South Africa using a mixed-method research design. In phases 1 and 2, a six-member expert panel reviewed and adapted the existing resource for the parents of children aged 2–47 months using a questionnaire and focus group. In phase 3, 18 parents of young children from low-income communities were interviewed to gain their perspectives on the adapted milestone. Most developmental milestones were deemed applicable, but they require adaptation to be relevant for use in low-income communities. The four themes identified were: language use, access to materials indicated in the resource, context and developmental literacy. Parents found the adapted resource relevant to promoting developmental literacy. International developmental milestone resources require contextual adaptation for diverse communities. Parents were included in developing the resource, increasing its relevance. The adapted resource should be trialled to evaluate the effectiveness of promoting parents’ developmental literacy.