Entries by Jean Rhodes

Important New Evaluation Highlights the Promise (and Limits) of CBT-Informed Mentoring

By Jean Rhodes A new randomized controlled trial of the YMCA’s Reach and Rise program, led by Roger Jarjoura and colleagues and published in the American Journal of Community Psychology, deserves close attention (Jarjoura et al., 2026). It offers rare experimental evidence that a volunteer mentoring program grounded in cognitive behavioral principles can reduce externalizing […]

A Super Bowl Ad With Psychology Behind It

On Sunday, millions of viewers watched the NFL’s 60-second Super Bowl LX commercial, Champion, featuring a young boy in his bedroom delivering a motivational speech to his action figures and stuffed animals, echoing word for word the speech his coach had given him on the field. “I am a champion,” the boy says, as the scene […]

Why Mentoring Professionals Love Their Work But May Leave Anyway

By Jean Rhodes MENTOR’s newly released Movement Makers report offers a rare glimpse into the perspectives of the mentoring program workforce.  Although decades of research have examined mentoring relationship quality, program practices, and youth outcomes, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the professionals who design, implement, and sustain these programs. This gap is particularly […]

New Survey Highlights a National Crisis of Connection

By Jean Rhodes The recently released Social Connection in America 2025 survey reveals a nation in the midst of a profound crisis of disconnection. Nearly three-quarters of American adults report getting together with close relationships twice a month or less, and 41 percent experience loneliness at least some of the time. Perhaps most troubling, a […]

Invisible Digital Companions: How Mentors Can Help Youth Navigate AI

By Jean Rhodes I recently listened to a fascinating episode of the American Psychological Association’s Speaking of Psychology podcast featuring Dr. Ashleigh Golden and Dr. Rachel Wood discussing AI companions and mental health. The conversation left me thinking about how little many parents and mentors may understand about how teens actually use artificial intelligence, and […]

Everyone wins: The reciprocal benefits of cross-racial mentoring relationships

  Jones, K., Parra-Cardona, R., Sánchez, B., Vohra-Gupta, S., & Franklin, C. (2023). Motivations, program support, and personal growth: Mentors perspectives on the reciprocal benefits of cross-racial mentoring relationships with black youth. Children and Youth Services Review, 150, 106996. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2023.106996 There is a lack of research on how mentors’ motivations, personal experiences, and support from the […]

The five most popular Chronicle posts of 2025

by Jean Rhodes This year has been shaped by a mix of profound challenges and meaningful progress. Cruel and capricious federal policies under the Trump administration, painful geopolitical events, rising mental health struggles among adolescents, and rapid advances in AI technology have created a landscape marked by uncertainty and strain. At the same time, these […]

Do “credible messengers” make better mentors?

By Jean Rhodes In his comprehensive new National Mentoring Resource Center review of credible messenger and lived experience mentoring (LEM) programs, David DuBois explores an under-researched topic in youth development and criminal justice reform. The report evaluates mentoring models in which mentors share meaningful life experiences with at-risk youth, such as previous criminal legal system […]

College’s real edge is social capital, not chatbots

 In a new study, Emily Hersch and colleagues report that students who completed “Connected Scholars,” a semester-long social capital course at UMass Boston, were dramatically more likely to stay enrolled and earn their degrees on time than similar students who did not take the class, even after accounting for many background differences. At a moment […]