A content analysis of Intervention Key Elements and Assessments (IKEA): What's in the black box in the interventions directed to families where a parent has a mental illness?

The successes of interventions for families experiencing parental mental illness has led to an interest in understanding more about what they include, how they are delivered, and who they target. This study sought to investigate effective interventions for parents and/or children with parental mental illness. Thirteen interventions included in a meta-analysis (Siegenthaler, Munder, & Egger, 2012) were scrutinized for components, intensity and targets, via a data extraction matrix. Data were subject to guided content analysis, and collapsed into categories. Identified components included the provision of psychoeducation, encouragement of family communication about each member's experience of parental mental illness, and skills training in parenting behaviors and child resiliency strategies. 11 interventions delivered components to parents, five delivered components to children; most targeted families with parental depression. Interventions offered from 1 to 33 sessions. Findings may be used to inform the development, refinement and evaluation of future interventions for this target group.