
Emotion Coaching programme
Feasibility study. Domestic abuse. Violence against women and girls. Youth Endowment Fund. Solace Women's Aid.
About the Emotion Coaching programme
The Emotion Coaching programme is a parenting programme for non-abusive mothers and children aged 6-14 who have been exposed to domestic violence and abuse (DVA). It is delivered across 12 weekly group skills-based sessions. The programme was developed by Dr Lynn Katz at the University of Washington and originally delivered in a community setting in the US. The programme was adapted by Solace Women’s Aid for delivery in their UK domestic abuse refuge settings.
The programme aims to:
- Foster emotion regulation in both mothers and children.
- Minimise harsh parenting practices.
- Strengthen emotional connections between parent and child in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV).
About the feasibility study
The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) funded a feasibility study for the impact evaluation of the Emotion Coaching programme as delivered by Solace Women’s Aid.
The study followed two preparatory research phases:
- Co-design phase (June–July 2023) – Involved collaboration with key stakeholders to refine the programme for UK contexts.
- Adaptation phase (August–December 2023) – Tailored the programme for delivery in UK domestic abuse refuge settings.
Prior to the feasibility study phase, a study protocol was developed to help set out how it will be delivered. The feasibility study took place across three Solace Women’s Aid refuges in London between February and October 2024.
The feasibility study employed a mixed-methods approach, including:
- Quantitative data: monitoring data on participant characteristics, activity, dosage, and outcome measures.
- Qualitative data: Fidelity forms, workshop observations, and interviews with: (a) mothers and children participating in the programme; (b) operational and strategic staff from Solace Women’s Aid; and (c) wider stakeholders, including external violence against women and girls (VAWG) stakeholders such as prospective commissioners and referrers.
Programme delivery
The programme was delivered by three Solace Women’s Aid Family Support Workers across three London boroughs between February and July 2024 and was offered to mothers living across five refuges with children aged 6-14, with a total of fifteen mothers and one child per mother participating.
Key findings
- The theory and design behind Emotion Coaching is evidence-based and rigorous. There is evidence that mothers and children accessing Solace Women’s Aid refuges can benefit from an intensive parenting programme with a focus on domestic abuse in the same way that domestic abuse survivors in the U.S. benefitted from the programme.
- The programme successfully recruited 15 mother-child pairs, representing 100% of eligible participants. However, recruitment numbers were lower than anticipated due to the limited number of eligible participants living in the refuges. While high engagement rates were observed, many mothers struggled to complete all 12 sessions, meaning that the success criteria for full session completion were not met. Additionally, dosage levels varied across refuge sites, reflecting differing implementation challenges.
- The programme was delivered with high fidelity to the original model. Minor adaptations were made to better suit the unique needs of the refuge settings.
- Participating mothers reported high levels of satisfaction with the programme. Preliminary evidence indicates positive changes, including improvements in child emotion regulation, reductions in externalising behaviours, increased parenting confidence, and enhanced parent-child interactions.
- The findings are based on a small sample size, so they should be interpreted with caution. Additionally, the outcome measurement tools used in the study require further refinement to better suit the diverse participant base.
A full report of the Emotion Coaching feasibility study can be found below and here.
For more information about the Emotion Coaching feasibility study, please contact Dr Angela Collins or Louise Ashwell.
Resources