About Confident Carers Cooperative Kids (CCCK)

CCCK is a manualised 8-week mindfulness and imagery enhanced behavioral parenting group program developed at the University of Wollongong over the past 20 years to assist families with children aged 3 – 12 years who present with behavioural difficulties.

Here is a link to a UOW “Early Start Expert” Podcast talking about parenting based on the CCCK program (recorded 2023) https://on.soundcloud.com/jTmjq

Here is a link to a UOW “Knowledge Series” chat with Mark Donovan about parenting (recorded 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Hrv0UMV9oY

Practitioner Training in CCCK

In-person 2-day CCCK practitioner training guides participants through all aspects of the group program. Participants are provided with hard-copy Practitioner Manuals, Parent Workbooks and can later access free PDFs of all materials required to run the program. Practitioners are also provided with links to online refresher video modules that cover each of the 8 weekly 2hr sessions.

CCCK can also be delivered individually, and specialist training for the 10-session (50 mins) individual CCCK program is currently being developed ready for release in 2026.

Upcoming In-Person Practitioner Training

14-15 July 2026, 9.00am to 4.30pm, University of Wollongong. Cost for all materials and 2-day training (no catering) is $440 or $330 (incl. GST) for provisional psychologists. Please contact markdonovanpsychology@gmail.com for further details.

In-person 2-day CCCK training can also be arranged for your organisation.

Please contact markdonovanpsychology@gmail.com for further details.

Online Practitioner Training

We are also able to offer online training comprised of an initial 2-hour live introductory webinar, 6.5 hours of self-directed learning via pre-recorded modules, and a 2-hour live webinar Q&A consolidation session. Please email markdonovanpsychology@gmail.com for further details. This training is generally organised for small groups of 4-8 practitioners. The current 2020 version of the online modules is being updated and is due for release in 2026.

Research

There have been a handful of published research projects supporting the effectiveness of CCCK for parents of children with behavioural problems.

Mark O. Donovan, Emma Barkus, Judy A. Pickard, Greg Konza & Jane S. Herbert (2022) Mind the Family: Acceptability and Outcomes for a Mindfulness- and Imagery-Enhanced Behavioral Parenting Program, Child & Family Behavior Therapy, DOI: 10.1080/07317107.2022.2137715

Link: https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/T9ABFMH9PETCMW6CT95K/full?target=10.1080/07317107.2022.2137715

Donovan MO, Briscoe-Hough K, Barkus E, Herbert JS, Miller L, Konza G, Pickard JA. Mindfulness and Imagery Enhanced Behavioral Parenting: Effectiveness Pilot of the Confident Carers Cooperative Kids Program. J Child Fam Stud. 2022 Dec 14:1-15. doi: 10.1007/s10826-022-02502-y. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36530565; PMCID: PMC9748389.

Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36530565/

Donovan, M., Barkus, E., Pickard, J., Risi, A., & Herbert, J. (2025). “I’m getting it!”: how parents describe change following attendance at mindfulness-enhanced behavioural parent training. Clinical Psychologist, 29(2), 162–173. https://doi.org/10.1080/13284207.2025.2498397

Link: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13284207.2025.2498397?src=exp-la

Donovan, M.O., Barkus, E., Herbert, J.S. et al. Room to Improve: Predictors of Attendance and Outcomes Within Mindfulness-Enhanced Behavioral Parent Training. Mindfulness 15, 857–871 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-024-02328-3

Link: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-024-02328-3

Parenting Groups

CCCK groups are offered each school term at Northfields Psychology Clinic, UOW. Please contact the Clinic on 02 4221 3747 or nfc-uow@uow.edu.au

There are a range of other organisations also running CCCK groups (e.g., NSW Health, Family Services Australia, Grand Pacific Health).