# Prevention of disparities in child psychosocial development in underserved rural families through promotion of early relational health in pediatric health care

> **NIH NIH K01** · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2022 · $133,528

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
While there have been significant efforts seeking primary prevention of poverty-related disparities in child
psychosocial development, most research has focused on urban areas, with limited study in rural settings.
Such research is critical given that: 1) a higher proportion of children in the rural US live below the poverty line;
2) rural poverty is associated with greater disparities than urban poverty across short- and long-term indicators
of psychosocial development; and 3) rural disparities are increased for people of color. Theoretical frameworks
and empirical evidence suggest that Early Relational Health (ERH; parenting practices/relationship quality) is a
source of resilience that can buffer families’ adverse experiences due to poverty and racism and therefore
represents a target for interventions. Preventive interventions such as home visiting, improve ERH and child
outcomes in rural low-income families; however cost and other barriers (capacity, distance) have resulted in
limited reach. Pediatric primary health care (check-ups) can address these barriers by building on routine
family contact from birth to 3, provider relationships, and low cost. While access is a challenge for some rural
families, health care utilization in this population is nonetheless high. However, health-care based primary
prevention of psychosocial disparities in rural children has not been studied. Video Interaction Project (VIP) is
an exemplar program that has been used in urban settings to support ERH in health care. It has potential for
effectiveness in rural settings due to 1) incorporation of strengths-based strategies aligned with cultural
frameworks that address family vulnerabilities that are exacerbated by rural poverty and 2) high feasibility and
impact in diverse populations. VIP (in-person or telehealth models) has not been studied in rural settings.
The primary objective of this application is to support Dr. Roby’s goal of becoming an independent investigator
with the aim of improving 1) parent-child ERH and 2) child psychosocial development. This will be achieved
through training from an expert multidisciplinary mentorship team and formal coursework. She will gain
advanced skills in 1) rural contextual factors that impact ERH 2) telehealth methods 3) qualitative research 4)
Implementation Science, and 5) leadership of clinical trials. There are 3 research aims:
In Aim 1, Dr. Roby will use qualitative methods to identify facilitators/barriers to engagement in a pediatric
primary care parenting intervention for rural families, both broadly and specific to racial/ethnic minority groups.
In Aim 2, Dr. Roby will use Aim 1 findings to adapt VIP for rural families, and to test acceptability, feasibility,
and adoption/engagement in the adapted VIP models across race/ethnicity.
In Aim 3, Dr. Roby will utilize a randomized controlled trial to examine the efficacy of VIP in improving ERH
and short term parent (mental health) and child ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10591794
- **Project number:** 1K01MD017290-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Erin Roby
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $133,528
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-25 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10591794

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10591794, Prevention of disparities in child psychosocial development in underserved rural families through promotion of early relational health in pediatric health care (1K01MD017290-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10591794. Licensed CC0.

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