RESUMEN
Youth mentoring programs are an increasingly popular intervention, and although successful mentoring relationships can promote a range of positive developmental outcomes, relationships that fail can lead to decrements in a youth's functioning and self-esteem. The present research develops and validates a youth mentoring relationship quality inventory, based on data from a national evaluation of Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) mentoring programs (N = 347 youth). This tool can be administered to adolescents who have been assigned mentors in order to assess the quality of the relationship as it is forming and to identify dyads that may need additional support before those relationships fail. Implications of such a tool for mentoring interventions and research are discussed. Editors' Strategic Implications: Reliability and validity data are presented for a measure of youth's perceptions of the quality of their mentoring relationship. This measure shows promise as a tool for research and evaluation of a wide array of mentoring programs due to its brevity, demonstrated psychometrics, and straightforward focus on the mentoring relationship.
Asunto(s)
Afecto , Relaciones Interpersonales , Tamizaje Masivo/métodos , Mentores , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Adaptación Psicológica , Adolescente , Niño , Análisis Factorial , Femenino , Humanos , MasculinoRESUMEN
Enduring and supportive mentoring relationships can powerfully influence the course and quality of adolescent lives. As mentoring continues to expand, community agencies are implementing alternatives to the traditional one-on-one mentoring mode. Such efforts may help to reach youth who might otherwise fall through the cracks.
Asunto(s)
Promoción de la Salud , Relaciones Intergeneracionales , Mentores , Adolescente , Promoción de la Salud/métodos , Promoción de la Salud/normas , Desarrollo Humano , Humanos , Desarrollo de ProgramaRESUMEN
Many dangers and challenges face inner-city minority children during their after-school hours. Youth development programs provide an alternative to spending this time unsupervised. We examined the relationship between children's experiences in selected urban Boys and Girls Clubs and child functioning. Because the sample (N = 296) consisted of African American and Hispanic boys and girls, aged 10-18, we were able to compare these relationships across race, gender, and age groups. There was no relationship between simple participation levels and child functioning, but significant linkages were identified between specific elements of the club experience and functioning. Relationships with club staff members and participation in club activities were associated with better functioning for older boys, a subgroup that is at considerable risk for delinquency. In addition, enjoyment of the club and not feeling badly treated there were associated with better functioning for all groups of children.
RESUMEN
The challenges of early adolescence are intensified for girls of color who live in disadvantaged urban communities. One response to the needs of these girls comes from the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA), a youth development organization that has a long-standing presence in inner-city neighborhoods. A gender equity initiative designed to strengthen programming for minority girls at a BGCA affiliate in a major urban center was examined. Drawing on initial qualitative findings, a conceptual framework is presented for understanding the ways in which the clubs can affect urban early adolescent girls' self-esteem. Several strategic choices confronting this initiative then are considered. The authors emphasize the creation of a "home place" that enables the development of self via organizational responsiveness to girls' voices, strong bonds between girls and staff, adaptive peer friendship cliques, and the development of programs that fuse the interests of girls and adult staff.