Grow Together, Thrive Together: A Feasibility Study of a Brief Relationship Intervention for Emerging Adults and Their Caregivers

Plain-language summary

Background. Emerging adulthood is a period of major change in young people's lives, including increased independence, new responsibilities, and shifting relationships with parents or caregivers. During this time, disagreements between emerging adults and caregivers are common and may become more frequent or emotionally intense. How families manage these disagreements may affect relationship quality and emotional well-being for both emerging adults and caregivers. However, there are few brief, accessible programs designed to support emerging adults and caregivers together during this transition. Grow Together, Thrive Together (G2T2) is a brief, online, writing-based relationship program designed for emerging adults and their caregivers. The program encourages participants to reflect on disagreements using a neutral, outside-observer perspective, with the goal of helping families approach conflict in healthier ways. G2T2 is designed to be low-intensity, self-directed, and accessible, and can be completed remotely using secure online platforms. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the G2T2 program and study procedures, rather than to test effectiveness. This feasibility clinical trial will examine whether emerging adult-caregiver dyads can be successfully recruited and retained, whether participants complete the writing sessions as planned, and whether participants find the program acceptable, easy to use, and understandable. The study will also explore whether participants report using the conflict reappraisal strategy outside of the writing sessions and examine changes in relationship and conflict-related outcomes before and after the program to inform future research. Participants will take part as emerging adult-caregiver pairs. Each participant will complete an online baseline survey, three brief online writing sessions completed over approximately nine weeks, and a follow-up survey one week after the final session. Each writing session includes brief questions about recent disagreements, a short instructional video, brief questions to check understanding of the strategy, and guided writing exercises focused on reflecting on disagreements and planning how to use the strategy in future interactions. All activities are completed independently and online. Findings from this study will be used to refine the G2T2 program and study procedures and to inform the design of a future, larger randomized controlled trial.

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