FAQs

What is positive parenting?

Positive parenting is simply an approach to parenting that gives parents tools and strategies to raise their child in an environment that is safe, loving and predictable. Triple P’s positive parenting allows parents to decide what is important to them. It doesn’t tell parents how to raise their children, but gives them the confidence and skills to build good relationships with their child, set boundaries and rules, and follow up with consequences that aren’t harmful. Read more about what Triple P is.

How do I find a Triple P provider?

Many thousands of professionals around the world have been trained to deliver Triple P to parents. They work for many, many different organisations, agencies and governments. We encourage Triple P-trained providers to put their details on our Triple P map on this website. Use this search to find a provider close to you. If you can’t find a provider nearby, email us and we will try to help find one for you. Otherwise you could do Triple P Online.

My child is a teenager. Is there a Triple P suitable for me?

Yes! There is a range of Teen Triple P programmes that cater to parents of adolescents from 12-16 years. Use the Triple P Selector to find the Teen Triple P right for you.

How do I know it will work?

Triple P is the most extensively researched parenting programme in the world. Clinical trials and evaluations over decades have shown that Triple P works for most families, in many different cultures, and in many different family situations. Read some of the research highlights and use the Triple P Selector to make sure you’re getting the right level of Triple P help for your own family’s needs. 

Shouldn’t parenting just come naturally?

You’d never think of getting behind the wheel of a car without a few lessons, yet most of us raise our kids without knowing what works best, choosing bits and pieces we’ve learnt from our parents and friends, or picked up on Google. But Professor Matt Sanders, the clinical psychologist whose research forms the basis of Triple P, believes parenting is the most important job in the world. After decades working with families around the world, he says parents everywhere have similar goals – they want healthy, happy children, they want a little less stress, and they’re relieved when they are given a few tips to make those goals happen more quickly and easily. 

I don’t like classes or sessions with other people. Can I do Triple P in private? 

Yes, you can do Triple P with a provider on your own (or with a partner). You can also do a Triple P course online or with self-help books and videos. If you want to find a provider for face-to-face consultations, use the Triple P Selector and choose “Individual Sessions” in Step 2. This will guide you to the type of Triple P to suit your family’s needs.

Can I DIY Triple P?

Yes, you can do Triple P Online. Triple P Online is an eight-module course with Professor Matt Sanders as your personal (virtual) provider. The modules are a fun mix of video clips, workbook exercises and goal setting, with optional podcasts, and text and email reminders. If you don’t want to do an online Triple P course, you may be interested in the Triple P self-help book

Where does Triple P come from? 

The research home base of the Triple P – Positive Parenting Program is in Australia, at the University of Queensland’s Parenting and Family Support Centre. Foundation Director Professor Matt Sanders is regarded as one of the world’s leading authorities on parenting. Today, there are hundreds of researchers in universities and institutions around the globe contributing findings that inform the development of new Triple P programmes. Their work means Triple P has the largest evidence base of any parenting programme in the world.

The providers who deliver Triple P to parents have been trained and accredited in Triple P and usually work for governments, agencies, institutions or as individual health practitioners. 

What kind of Triple P should I do?

You can either speak with your local Triple P provider to help you decide which programme is best for your needs and your family or you can use our Triple P Selector, to see what might suit best. 

As a rule of thumb, if your child has minor behaviour problems Seminar, Primary Care, Discussion Group and Group Triple P will help. Group Triple P is also helpful if your child has more serious behaviour problems. All of these programmes are available for parents of teenagers as well. 

If you are having serious problems at home, Standard, Enhanced and Pathways Triple P are intensive programmes that may meet your needs. 

Stepping Stones Triple P is for parents of a child with a disability.

Family Transitions Triple P is for parents going through divorce or separation.

Triple P Online is an eight-module web programme that can be done at home.

Lifestyle Triple P is for parents who want a healthier, more active lifestyle for their children. 

I don’t want to do a course. Will you give me some tips anyway?

It’s really important to us, as a parenting programme that has been scientifically proven to work, to give parents the kind of information that will make a real difference to them and their families. Our research shows that parents get the best results when they do a programme that is either guided by a provider, or is done methodically, through an online programme or self-help book. So, this website doesn’t give quick tips, because that kind of advice is unlikely to work in the long term. What we can offer you is a taste of the ideas that Triple P is based on. You can read about the Five Steps to Positive Parenting – a quick rundown of the pillars that inform all Triple P strategies – or check out some of our Hot Topics or blog articles. When you read about Triple P and understand the thinking that is behind it, we hope you will agree it’s worth putting the time in to do a course or see a provider – after all, we think it’s important to give every child the very best start in life, and it could make your life happier and less stressed.

What do other parents think of Triple P? 

They love it! But the proof is in the pudding, as they say. So, watch videos of parents telling their own stories, in their own words. You can read parents’ stories as well. You could also see some of our inspiring case studies that show how far the Triple P effects are felt. 

Do both parents have to attend a Triple P course or session together?

It is great if both parents can attend although this is not essential. Triple P is also used very successfully by single parents. But families with both parents attending will experience many benefits at home working as a team to change their child’s behaviour. You’ll probably communicate better about parenting, argue and disagree less, and support each other more. Even if only one parent can attend, Triple P is still of great benefit.

Can Triple P help grandparents, foster parents and other carers?

The principles of Triple P apply to anyone who cares for children. Grandparents and other caregivers often attend Triple P programmes.

Can I do more than one type of Triple P?

Yes. Parents can complete as many of the Triple P choices as they wish. For example, you may go to a one-time seminar and decide you would like to do a more intensive group programme as a booster.

Can anyone run a Triple P programme?

No. Providers running Triple P are required to have completed an approved training course and be an accredited provider. Always check the qualifications of the person running any parenting programme.