Formal youth mentoring relationships in the context of risk: What is the role of caregiver–mentor collaboration?

Abstract

Most research on youth mentoring relationships has focused on the mentor–mentee dyad, yet caregivers play an important role in supporting these relationships. Drawing on a large, multisite sample of youth in formal mentoring programs (N = 2165), this study investigated associations between caregiver–mentor collaboration and mentoring relationship outcomes in the context of environmental and individual youth risk factors. Analysis of novel quantitative measures assessing caregivers' experiences of the mentoring relationships revealed two factors reflecting caregivers' collaboration with mentors (caregiver involvement and mentor backing), and three factors reflecting caregivers' perceptions of mentor effectiveness (meeting youth needs, advocating for youth, and supporting youth behavior). Results indicated that greater caregiver involvement was associated with higher‐quality and longer‐lasting mentoring relationships. Few associations between risk and mentoring relationships were observed; however, indirect effects indicated that youth environmental risk was positively associated with caregiver involvement, which, in turn, was positively associated with mentoring relationship outcomes.

Unlocking the transformative power of mentoring for youth development in communities, schools, and talent domains

“…For example, Uebler et al (2023) investigated the dynamic processes of mentoring with the help of survival analyses and showed that changing patterns (e.g., a sudden change of frequency and focus shift from program content) of mentees' communication to mentors from 1 month to another predicted premature match closure. Parnes et al (2023) employed a design-based mediation analysis to examine caregivers' role in at-risk youths' mentoring relationships and found that the involvement of caregivers was associated with mentoring quality and match length. These results help program staff understand individual, contextual, and program-level factors contributing to the mentoring success and can provide guidance in the selection and matching processes, as well as program monitoring.…”