Samenvatting

The Internet offers many opportunities to provide parenting support. An overview of
empirical studies in this domain is lacking, and little is known about the design of webbased
parenting resources and their evaluations, raising questions about its position in
the context of parenting intervention programs. This article is a systematic review of
empirical studies (n = 75), published between 1998 and 2010, that describe resources of
peer and professional online support for parents. These studies generally report positive
outcomes of online parenting support. A number of recent experimental studies evaluated
effects, including randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental designs (totaling
1,615 parents and 740 children). A relatively large proportion of the studies in our sample
reported a content analysis of emails and posts (totaling 15,059 coded messages). The
results of this review show that the Internet offers a variety of opportunities for sharing
peer support and consulting professionals. The fi eld of study refl ects an emphasis on
online resources for parents of preschool children, concerning health topics and providing
professional support. A range of technologies to facilitate online communication is
applied in evaluated websites, although the combination of multiple components in
one resource is not very common. The fi rst generation of online resources has already
changed parenting and parenting support for a large group of parents and professionals.
Suggestions for future development and research are discussed.