Natural Mentoring Relationships Research Articles

A mixed-methods exploration of autonomy-supportive parenting, confidence, and natural mentoring relationships among Black adolescents.

The current study examined whether autonomy-supportive parenting practices may be associated with Black adolescents' quantity of natural mentors (i.e., adults from youths' everyday lives who youth go to for support and guidance) via adolescents' confidence. This study employed survey data from 216 Black youth and qualitative interviews from a subsample of youth (n = 25), their primary caregivers (n = 25), and one nonparental adult relative with whom the youth reported feeling close (n = 25). Comparative analyses were then completed among a subset of 10 family triads corresponding to youth from the qualitative subsample who had the highest (n = 5) and the lowest (n = 5) scores on a survey measure of adolescents' confidence. Study findings suggest that Black adolescents' confidence may be an explanatory link in the association between autonomy-supportive parenting practices among primary caregivers and Black adolescents' quantity of natural mentoring relationships. Moreover, we found that a range of autonomy-supportive parenting practices may be associated with youth confidence, which may, in turn, inform how Black adolescents engage with adults in their social networks.

Increasing resilience among LGBTQ youth: The protective role of natural mentors

Based on the minority stress model, which emphasizes the unique risk stressors that impact LGBTQ youths’ lives, and the resilience perspective, which emphasizes the interaction between protective and promotive factors in youth and their surroundings, we investigated in this exploratory study the mechanism by which natural mentoring relationships contribute to LGBTQ youths’ hope. A web sampling of LGBTQ youth aged 12–25 (N = 198) was used, and participants answered a self-report questionnaire to assess their hope, mentor support, risk factors (i.e., internalized homophobia, anti-LGBTQ harassment, level of outness, gender identity and sexual orientation) and personal characteristics. Findings showed that the support of mentors, particularly mentors as autonomy promoters, contributed significantly to LGBTQ youths’ hope. Results also revealed that transgender youth had lower levels of hope than did LGBQ cisgender youth. The mediation analysis revealed that the support of mentors mediated the link between risk factors (e.g., antigay harassment, internalized homophobia) and higher levels of hope. The discussion suggests considering both risk and protective factors as an integral part of LGBTQ youth intervention programs in the contexts of their lives (e.g., school). Also discussed are the possible explanations for the contribution of natural mentoring and the mechanism involved in risk and protective factors. Implications for practice emphasize the importance of increasing LGBTQ youths’ hope via their social ties with mentors in their environments.

A Mixed Method Investigation of Associations Between Caregiver Attachment and Natural Mentoring Relationships Among Black Adolescents

An integral change that occurs during adolescence is the development of independent close relationships outside of the immediate family unit. In addition to relationships with peers, adolescents are commonly engaged in natural mentoring relationships. Natural mentoring relationships are organically formed mentoring bonds between youth and adults in their pre-existing social networks. In an effort to better uncover factors that contribute to the development of natural mentoring relationships among Black adolescents, the current study examined a pathway between adolescents’ attachment to their parents and the quantity of natural mentors they possessed via their perceptions of adults as helpful. Survey data from 217 Black adolescents and interview data from a subsample of participants ( n = 25) and their parents ( n = 25) were utilized. Our findings document how parent-adolescent attachment is experienced among Black families and how attachment may shape adolescents’ willingness to pursue supportive relationships with non-parental adults. In addition, our findings indicate that more secure parent-adolescent attachment predict greater quantity of natural mentoring relationships indirectly via greater perceptions of adults as helpful. Implications of study findings for the promotion of natural mentoring relationships among Black youth are discussed.

“Those Bridges That Help You Get There”: How Natural Mentors Improve Social Support and Social Capital of Unaccompanied Immigrant Youths Leaving Residential Care

ABSTRACT The increasing arrival of unaccompanied immigrant youth to Europe has been challenging for established political and social interventions. A range of social and educational services have been developed to help young immigrants in their transition to adulthood and these programmes are often spaces where they can meet supportive adults. Twenty semi-structured interviews with unaccompanied immigrant youth residing in the Barcelona Metropolitan Area were carried out. This qualitative study explores the prevalence and role of natural mentors in their lives. Furthermore, we go deeper into the functions and dynamics developed through two relationships where young people shared in-depth explanations of their meaning for their lives. Our findings suggest that natural mentors provide various types of social support and social capital, which fulfil the emotional or educational needs of young people. Facilities and obstacles for building natural mentoring relationships are presented in order to provide social and political implications. We conclude that there is a need for providing services to reinforce or promote natural mentoring relationships for unaccompanied immigrant youth leaving residential care.

How informal mentoring by teachers, counselors, and coaches supports students' long-run academic success

We document a largely unrecognized pathway through which schools promote human capital development – by fostering informal mentoring relationships between students and their teachers, counselors, and coaches. Using longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample of adolescents, we explore the nature and consequences of natural mentoring relationships by leveraging within-student variation in the timing of mentorship formation as well as differences in exposure among pairs of twins, best friends, and romantic partners. Results across difference-in-differences and pair fixed-effect specifications show consistent and meaningful positive effects on student attainment, with a conservative estimate of a 9.4 percentage point increase in college attendance. Effects are largest for students of lower socioeconomic status and robust to controls for individual characteristics and bounding exercises for selection on unobservables. Smaller class sizes and a school culture where students have a strong sense of belonging are important school-level predictors of having a K-12 natural mentor.

"It's going to help me in life": Forms, sources, and functions of social support for youth in natural mentoring relationships.

Social support is associated with positive physical and psychological health outcomes for youth. We took a qualitative approach to examine the sources, forms, and functions of social support youth receive from natural mentoring relationships in their lives. Based on in-depth interviews with 40 adolescents participating in a study of youth-adult relationships and natural mentoring processes, we found that (1) different types of adults had the capacity to provide different types of support and were likely to provide overlapping supports; (2) emotional, informational, and instrumental support qualitatively differed depending on the adult's role (e.g., teacher), while companionship and validation were consistent across adults; and (3) youth were able to identify benefits attached to the social support received from adults. Our findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of aspects and characteristics of effective youth-adult mentoring processes and call for fuller assessments of social support in youths' lives so we may better meet their developmental needs.

Historically underrepresented college students and natural mentoring relationships: A systematic review

Historically underrepresented college students experience barriers during college. One source of support that may help students manage these challenges is natural mentors. However, research on historically underrepresented college students’ natural mentoring relationships is limited. The aim of this systematic review was to examine studies of historically underrepresented college students’ natural mentoring relationships during college and to provide recommendations for future research. The research questions that guided the review were (a) What are the characteristics of these relationships? (b) What factors are associated with these relationships during college? and (c) Are the outcomes associated with having these relationships moderated by type of mentor? Examined studies demonstrated that natural mentors offer a variety of support in various aspects of students’ lives. Relationships were linked to multiple benefits for this population, including psychological well-being, positive academic outcomes, improved self-concept, increased motivation, and development of interpersonal skills broadly. This review showed that there are still many gaps in the literature on the nuances of these relationships and the development of the relationships for historically underrepresented college students.

The Roles of Cultural Mistrust and Mentoring in Latinx Adolescents’ Attitudes Toward School

Using the frameworks of Latino Critical Race Theory (LatCrit) and an integrative model of developmental competencies, this study examined the roles of cultural mistrust toward education and natural mentoring relationship quality in the academic outcomes of Latinx adolescents. Participants were 294 Latinx students (52.9% female; mean age 15 years in 9th grade; 21% first‐generation, 63% second‐generation, and 6% third‐generation immigrants) who completed surveys in 9th and 10th grades. The negative effect of cultural mistrust on educational aspirations was greater for students who had poorer quality mentoring relationships. This study addresses gaps in the literature related to cultural mistrust as a coping strategy and discusses the ways in which mentors can serve a protective role.

The roles of ethnic identity and stressors in natural mentoring support among Latinx adolescents

This study explored whether Latinx adolescents’ ethnic identity and stressful experiences predicted characteristics of their naturally-occurring mentoring relationships with non-parental adults. Ninth-grade Latinx students completed surveys about ethnic identity, stress exposure, and their natural mentoring relationships during 9th and 10th grade. Youth who showed greater ethnic identity exploration in 9th grade perceived more support from mentors who were family members at follow-up. In addition, Latinx youth who experienced more stressors were less likely to identify familial mentors and to retain familial and Latinx mentors from baseline to follow-up. Youth who were exposed to more stressors also reported receiving significantly more support from their natural mentors at follow-up, but this association was only observed for non-Latinx mentors. Findings are some of the first to identify predictors of mentor retention and perceived mentoring relationship support among Latinx youth, and have implications for understanding intergenerational relationships that may promote resilience in this population.

The Formation and Benefits of Natural Mentoring for African American Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents: A Qualitative Study

This study explored how mentoring begins and the benefits provided for African American sexual and/or gender minority (SGM) youth. Participants were mentors and mentees living in three Mid-Atlantic cities. Mentees (ages 15–21, n = 14) identified as African American; cisgender male, transgender female, or non-binary assigned male; and had sexual interest in men. Mentor participants (ages 18+, n = 13) mentored such youth. Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with mentoring relationship partners (both partners did not necessarily participate). All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and imported into Atlas.ti. Using a basic interpretive qualitative analysis, a codebook was developed through inductive and deductive techniques. Analysis focused on mentees’ and mentors’ descriptions and interpretations about how they formed a mentoring relationship and any observed benefits that arose. Themes showed mentoring relationships were formed through introductions via social circles or social media. Mentoring was described as providing a trusted confidant and support with identity formation, relationships, transitioning to adulthood, and health. Results indicate a potential for natural mentoring relationships to provide trusted adult support to SGM adolescents in ways that are experienced as authentic and beneficial to the mental health of African American SGM male youth.

Latinx adolescents' trust in adults: A precursor to psychological well-being via mentoring relational quality and self-esteem.

This study aimed to test a longitudinal model of trust in adults and psychological well-being among Latinx adolescents, a population that has received little attention in the trust literature. The participants were urban, low-income Latinx (N = 294) students at two urban, Midwestern high schools who indicated they had at least one natural mentor in 9th grade. Participants completed surveys at two-time points, in 9th and 10th grade, and responded to measures of their feelings toward adults, quality of their natural mentoring relationships, self-esteem, intrinsic academic motivation, and coping self-efficacy. More trust in adults was indirectly, but not directly, associated with higher coping self-efficacy via higher mentoring relational quality and self-esteem. Positive expectations of adults may open Latinx youth to closeness in natural mentoring relationships and positive self-perceptions, which may, in turn, bolster coping ability.

Historically underrepresented college students and institutional natural mentors: An ecological analysis of the development of these relationships at predominantly White institutions.

Despite studies examining outcomes associated with having a natural mentoring relationship with an institutional agent in a higher education setting, few studies have investigated the formation of these relationships among historically underrepresented college students. Institutional agents refer to any instructor, staff, or administrator on the college campus. This cross-sectional study used an ecological approach to explore the factors associated with natural mentoring relationships between historically underrepresented college students and institutional agents. Participants were 521 college students (75% female, Mage = 20.27) across two predominantly White institutions. Multiple logistic regression demonstrated that older age, more positive help-seeking attitudes toward adults, stronger instructor relationships, having an off-campus mentor, and a higher sense of belonging on campus were associated with having an institutional natural mentor. Findings from this study contribute to the growing area of research on mentoring relationships of historically underrepresented college students. Implications are discussed.

Effects of Natural Mentoring Relationships on College Students’ Mental Health: The Role of Emotion Regulation

The transition to college involves a number of novel stressors for young adults and represents a period of heightened risk for the onset or worsening of diverse mental health problems. The presence of natural mentors may be one factor which alleviates risk for mental health problems in college first-year students. Using a diverse sample of 275 first-year college students, the present study examined the effects of different types of natural mentors within students' support networks on internalizing symptoms during the first semester of college. In addition, analyses explored whether different student approaches to emotion regulation were one mechanism by which natural mentors influence internalizing symptoms. Path analyses indicated that students with a greater number of close family member/family friend mentors reported less emotion suppression, which in turn accounted for the associations between these mentoring relationships and reduced depressive symptoms and worry at follow-up. In contrast, less emotionally close mentors, such as teachers or coworkers, did not significantly shape emotion regulation strategies or internalizing symptom outcomes. Results have implications for the design of more targeted interventions that promote emotional well-being in college first-year students.

Natural Mentoring and LGBTQ Youth: A Systematic Review

LGBTQ youth have a greater likelihood of lacking accepting, supportive, and affirming adult relationships that will help them transition successfully into adulthood. Natural mentoring relationships have been shown to be a corrective attachment experience and to mitigate negative health outcomes among at-risk youth. The purpose of this systematic review is to critically examine studies regarding natural mentoring relationships among LGBTQ youth to understand their potential as a prevention and intervention strategy. Through a PRISMA-guided search of five databases, eight eligible peer-reviewed studies were found. The studies were published between 2009 and 2018, cross-sectional, and were of quantitative (n = 4), qualitative (n = 3), and multiple-method (n = 1) design. Qualitative analyses highlighted their characteristics and functions, and the processes by which natural mentoring relationships are formed. Quantitative analyses assessed the effects of natural mentoring relationships on a variety of outcomes (e.g., substance use, suicidality, educational attainment) and the likelihood of having a natural mentoring relationship according to demographics such as race, gender, and sexual orientation. Overall, analyses revealed that natural mentoring relationships significantly buffered risk and increased the likelihood that LGBTQ youth graduated high school and attended college, particularly if the natural mentoring relationship was emotionally close and with a nonparental family member. Recommendations for future research are provided, which include a stronger integration of developmental and critical theories, a focus on assessing natural mentoring relationships among a variety of LGBTQ youth populations (e.g., sexual minority females of color and transgender youth), and the examination of these relationships over time.

The role of natural mentoring and sense of belonging in enhancing resilience among youth in care

• We examined adolescent's resilience as manifested by their hope and current life skills. • We examined the role of mentoring and sense of belonging as promotive factors. • Mentoring relationships were positively correlated with better economic status. • Sense of belonging mediated the association between mentoring and resilience. Based on resilience and ecological perspective models, which emphasize the interaction between protective and promotive factors in youth and in their surroundings, this study explored the mechanism by which natural mentoring relationships and sense of belonging contribute to youths' life skills and hope. The participants comprised 213 adolescents in out-of-home placement placements in Israel (16–19 years old). Structural equation modelling revealed sense of belonging mediated the association between youths’ mentoring relationships and youths' resilience as manifested by their hope and current life skills. The discussion suggests considering these factors as an integral part of youth intervention programs in the context of residential care. Also discussed are the possible explanations for the mechanism linking youths' life skills, hope, and sense of belonging, in relation to which mentoring relationships operate. Implications for practice emphasize the importance of considering instrumental aspects as well as mental and motivational aspects to enhance youths' resilience in their transition to adulthood.

Developing natural mentoring relationships among Latinx youth: the roles of trust in adults and stressors

Mentoring is one avenue to support Latinx adolescents in their positive development. The current study examined the roles of stressors and interpersonal trust toward adults in the formation and quality (instrumental and relational) of natural mentoring relationships. Participants were 347 Latinx adolescents who were surveyed in the 9th and 10th grades. Analyses demonstrated that more trust toward adults in 9th grade was not significantly associated with the formation of a new mentoring relationship in 10th grade but was associated with higher instrumental and relational mentoring quality in 10th grade. Furthermore, reporting more life stressors in 9th grade significantly predicted the formation of new mentoring relationships but lower relational quality in 10th grade. This study fills gaps in the literature on youth and environmental characteristics that predict the development of new natural mentoring relationships over time in a Latinx sample. Implications for future research and interventions are discussed.

Natural mentoring relationships among survivors of caregiver childhood abuse: findings from the Add Health Study.

Social support promotes resilience to adverse childhood events, but little is known about the role of natural mentors-caring, nonparental adults-in the lives of childhood abuse survivors. The current study draws from a large, longitudinal, nationally representative sample (Add Health) to examine the prevalence and characteristics of natural mentoring relationships for adolescents with a history of caregiver childhood abuse, and the extent to which these relationships are associated with psychological and health outcomes in adulthood. Among the sample (n=12,270), 28.82% and 4.86% reported caregiver childhood physical and sexual abuse, respectively. Youth who reported caregiver childhood physical abuse were more likely than those who did not endorse abuse to report having a natural mentor, but their mentoring relationships were characterized by lower interpersonal closeness, shorter duration, and less frequent contact. Exposure to caregiver childhood abuse was associated with adverse outcomes during adulthood, including antisocial behavior, physical health limitations, and suicidality; the presence of a natural mentor did not buffer the negative impact of trauma on adult outcomes. However, longer mentoring relationships during adolescence buffered the strength of the association between both caregiver physical and sexual abuse during childhood and suicidality during early adulthood.

Cultivation of Natural Mentors to Strengthen Resiliency in Youth: A Program Theory of Youth Initiated Mentoring (YIM)

Natural mentoring relationships are supportive relationships that form organically between youth and important non-parental adults (e.g., friends, teachers, athletic coaches, extended family members) from within their existing social networks. These relationships are thought to foster positive youth development and buffer against risks, particularly those associated with the transitions that characterize adolescence. Providing youth with the opportunity to identify and engage a non-parental adult from their social network in a mentoring relationship constitutes the Youth Initiated Mentoring (YIM) approach. The current article describes the aim and context of this new approach, its target population, the intended individual and societal outcomes, and how these outcomes may be achieved. We also describe various YIM program models addressing universal, Dr. Levi Van Dam researcher at the University of Amsterdam and founder of the Dutch YIM foundation 4 Journal of Social Intervention: Theory and Practice – 2020 – Volume 29, Issue 1 Cultivation of Natural Mentors to Strengthen Resiliency in Youth selective, and indicated preventative approaches. Our goal is to provide social work practitioners with the tools to carry out their work and to provide direction for researchers to test hypotheses about YIM.

“[My counselor] knows stuff about me, but [my natural mentor] actually knows me”: Distinguishing characteristics of youth’s natural mentoring relationships

Adults play important roles in the lives of adolescents, serving as role models, sources of social support, and providers of social capital. Natural mentoring relationships (NMRs), relationships between adults and youth that rise to a level of significance for the youth, have a positive impact on youth outcomes in a number of academic, socioemotional, and health related areas. Yet despite the importance of NMRs to youth development, there is little research on how NMRs develop or what factors are associated with a relationship becoming an NMR. This study uses in-depth qualitative interviews with adolescents across five time points to explore the characteristics of youth-adult relationships that develop into NMRs, and the psychosocial processes and actions which transform a naturally occurring relationship into an NMR. Findings from our study suggest that by intentionally using time and space with youth as an opportunity to cultivate safe and authentic spaces and build trust, adults can encourage the development of NMRs with adolescents.

Helping me helps us: The role of natural mentors in the ethnic identity and academic outcomes of Latinx adolescents.

This research investigated the potential contributions of natural mentoring relationships and ethnic identity to the academic attitudes and performance of Latinx high school students. In a sample of 347 urban Latinx students in grades 9 and 10, analyses examined the presence and quality of mentoring relationships as well as ethnic identity exploration and affirmation as predictors of changes in grade point average and the perceived economic value of education. Analyses included tests for a hypothesized role of ethnic identity in mediating associations of mentoring measures with the academic outcomes. The presence of a mentoring relationship was not significantly related to ethnic identity or change in academic outcomes over time. However, mentoring relationship quality was associated with a more positive ethnic identity, and support was found for the hypothesis that ethnic identity mediates the association between the quality of mentoring relationships and change over time in the economic values toward education among Latinx adolescents. Study findings suggest the importance of supportive adults in the ethnic identity and academic outcomes of Latinx adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).