Project TALC

Featured Grant OpportunitySchool Emergency Response to Violence (Project SERV) (Funding Opportunity) 

Featured Grant OpportunityShare with Youth: NOAA Student Opportunities Database

Developers

Mary Jane Rotheram-Borus, Ph.D.

Program Summary

Project TALC (Teens and Adults Learning to Communicate) is a 24-session social learning program designed to provide coping skills to HIV-positive parents and their adolescent children. The program seeks to reduce adolescents' emotional distress, problem behaviors, and pregnancy.

Intended Population

The program was designed for youth ages 11 to 18 living with a parent with HIV. It was evaluated with mostly Latino youth 14 to 17 years old.

Program Setting

The program was designed for and evaluated in community centers.

Contact and Availability Information

Mary Jane Rotheram-Borus, Ph.D.
The Center for HIV Identification, Prevention, and Treatment Services (CHIPTS)
University of California, Los Angeles
10920 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 350
Los Angeles, CA 90024
Ph: 310-794-8280
Email: mrotheram@mednet.ucla.edu
Website: http://chipts.ucla.edu/projects/talc-nyc/

See above.

Sample of curriculum available for review prior to purchase

Yes

Adaptation guidelines or kit available

Languages available

English

Program Core Components

Program Objectives

Project TALC seeks to reduce emotional distress, risky behaviors, and pregnancy among adolescents who have a parent with HIV. The program focuses on coping, problem solving, goal setting, and increasing knowledge and skills related to safer sex practices.

Program Content

Project TALC is based on Social Learning Theory. The eight parent-only sessions address:

Adapting to HIV-positive status
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle
Dealing with the emotional reaction and stigma around the disease
How to disclose HIV status to one's children

The sixteen joint adolescent and parent sessions address:

Reducing emotional distress
Maintaining positive family relationships
Avoiding risky behaviors and pregnancy

Additional sessions for adolescents whose parents die from the disease focus on:

Dealing with loss and grief
Adjusting to new relationships
Preventing risky behaviors and pregnancy

Program Methods

The program is delivered through small group discussion, activities, and role play.

Program Structure and Timeline

The 24 small group sessions can be delivered over 12 weeks or can be spread out over four to six years. Sessions are two to three hours in length; however, the length and number of sessions can vary depending on the needs of families. The first eight sessions are delivered only to parents and the remaining 16 sessions are delivered to parents and their adolescent children.

There are additional sessions available for children whose parents die from the disease that involve the new guardian or caregiver.

Staffing

Staff should include at least one trained Project TALC facilitator with at least a B.A. degree.

Program Materials and Resources

The Center for HIV Identification, Prevention, and Treatment Services (CHIPTS) has updated the Project TALC materials since the original evaluation, and provides updated manuals for each session on its website: http://chipts.ucla.edu/projects/talc-la/.

Additional Needs for Implementation

Materials needed for the program activities are:

Raffle tickets
Prizes
A feeling thermometer
Value cards
Strokes/"Thanks" cards (cards participants give to each other to express appreciation)
Handouts
Scripts
Female and male condoms
Lubricant
Models of the female and male reproductive system

Fidelity

There are no written fidelity guidelines or benchmarks for Project TALC.

Staff Training

Implementers should be trained in the skills common across all evidence-based interventions. Providers interested in formal training should contact Dr. Rotheram-Borus.

Technical Assistance and Ongoing Support

Site visits and in-person training can be made available.

Allowable Adaptations

All proposed adaptations must be approved by the developer. The program has previously been adapted for use in seven other countries: Thailand, China, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Kenya, India, and Haiti.

Reviewed Studies

Citation	High-Quality Randomized Trial	Moderate-Quality Randomized Trial	Moderate-Quality Quasi-experiment	Low Study Rating	Did Not Meet Eligibility Criteria
Rotheram-Borus et al. 2003 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2004 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2006 May et al. 2006	✓

Study Characteristics

Citation	Setting	Majority Age Group	Majority Racial/Ethnic Group	Gender	Sample Size
Rotheram-Borus et al. 2003 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2004 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2006 May et al. 2006	After school	14 to 17	Hispanic or Latinx of any race	Youth of any gender	413

Study Findings

Evidence by Outcome Domain and Study

Citation	Sexual Activity	Number of Sexual Partners	Contraceptive Use	STIs or HIV	Pregnancy
Rotheram-Borus et al. 2003 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2004 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2006 May et al. 2006	n.a.		n.a.	n.a.

Detailed Findings

Citation Details

Citation	Details
Rotheram-Borus et al. 2003 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2004 Rotheram-Borus et al. 2006 May et al. 2006	The study evaluated the program using a cluster randomized controlled trial involving adolescents whose parents were living with HIV. The evaluation was conducted in community centers located in New York City. Families were randomly assigned to either a treatment group that received the Project TALC program or a control group that received only the standard services provided by the New York City Division of AIDS Services. The study collected data with surveys that were administered periodically over a 4-year period—every 3 months during the first 2 years of the study and every 6 months afterwards. The study found that four years after the program started, adolescents from families that were assigned to the treatment group were statistically significantly less likely to report being a teenage parent than adolescents from families that were assigned to the control group. The study found no statistically significant program impact on the number of sexual partners. The study also examined program impacts on measures of emotional distress, problem behaviors, self-esteem, and family life stressors. Findings for these outcomes were not considered for the review because they fell outside the scope of the review.

Rotheram-Borus et al. 2003

Rotheram-Borus et al. 2004

Rotheram-Borus et al. 2006

May et al. 2006

The study evaluated the program using a cluster randomized controlled trial involving adolescents whose parents were living with HIV. The evaluation was conducted in community centers located in New York City. Families were randomly assigned to either a treatment group that received the Project TALC program or a control group that received only the standard services provided by the New York City Division of AIDS Services. The study collected data with surveys that were administered periodically over a 4-year period—every 3 months during the first 2 years of the study and every 6 months afterwards. The study found that four years after the program started, adolescents from families that were assigned to the treatment group were statistically significantly less likely to report being a teenage parent than adolescents from families that were assigned to the control group. The study found no statistically significant program impact on the number of sexual partners. The study also examined program impacts on measures of emotional distress, problem behaviors, self-esteem, and family life stressors. Findings for these outcomes were not considered for the review because they fell outside the scope of the review.

Breadcrumb

Lists*