Mentoring Research

The importance of attachment styles in both adolescents and professional caregivers

Zegers, M., Schuengel, C., van IJzendoorn, M., & Janssens, J. (2006). Attachment  representations of institutionalized adolescents and their professional caregivers:  Predicting the development of therapeutic relationships. American Journal of  Orthopsychiatry, 76 (3), 325-334.  Introduction: The quality of a therapeutic relationship has long been emphasized as one of the most  important predictors of positive change. Much […]

Perfectionism: What it is and 5 ways mentors can help their mentees shake it

Written by Justin Preston “Anything worth doing, is worth doing right,” according to Hunter S. Thompson, and many would be inclined to agree. What happens, though, when we cross the line between wanting to do something right and needing to do it perfectly? Unfortunately, according to a new study perfectionism is on the rise. In […]

Support in transition: The characteristics of natural mentors for youth in foster care

Duke, T., Farruggia, S. P., & Germo, G. R. (2017). “I don’t know where I would be right now if it wasn’t for them”: Emancipated foster care youth and their important non-parental adults. Children and Youth Services Review, 76, 65-73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.02.015 Summarized by Justin Preston Introduction As of 2015 in the United States, nearly 428,000 […]

The three pillars of trauma-informed care: Implications for mentoring

  Bath, H. (2008). The three pillars of trauma-informed care. Reclaiming children and youth, 17(3), 17-21. Summarized by Elyssa Weber Introduction:  There is a growing awareness of the pervasive impact of trauma on children.  In particular, it is known to affect brain functioning and change the neurological systems that govern stress responses.  Trauma is also […]

Informal mentors increase help-seeking behavior in young male apprentices

  Corney, T., & du Plessis, K. (2016) Apprentices’ mentoring relationships: The role of ‘significant others’ and supportive relationships across the work-life domain. Youth Studies Australia, 29 (3), 18-26. Introduction: The workplace and vocational training setting can be a stressful environment for young men. Due to their own hesitancy to engage in help-seeking behavior, as […]

Study suggests that teens prefer adult mentors to peer mentors

Kendal, S., Keeley, P., & Callery, P. (2011). Young people’s preferences for emotional well-being support in high school – a focus group study. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 24, 245-253. Summarized by Laura Yoviene. Problem: The promotion of emotional well-being (EWB) of youth is a central focus of youth work in the U.K. […]

How positive youth development programs foster self-regulation

Mueller, M., Phelps, E., Bowers, E., Agans, J., Urban, J., & Lerner, R. (2011). Youth development program participation and intentional self-regulation skills: Contextual and individual bases of pathways to positive youth development. Journal of Adolescence, 34, 1115-1125. Problem: Quality youth development (YD) programs have been shown to be a strong context for promoting positive outcomes. […]

New research identifies benefits, and cautions, of mentoring organizational youth engagement

Ramey, H. L., Rose-Krasnor, L., & Lawford, H. L. (2017). Youth-adult partnerships and youth identity style. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 46, 442-453. doi: 10.1007/s10964-016-0474-6 Summarized by Justin Preston Introduction Youth-adult partnerships, or collaborations between youth and adults sharing work in order to promote social justice, strengthen organizations, and tackle issues facing their communities, can […]

New research highlights role of STEM making in addressing equity in historically marginalized communities

Calabrese Barton, A., & Tan, E. (2017). FABLEARN 2017 Proceedings. In Proceedings of FABLEARN Conference 2017, Stanford, USA, 4 pages. https://doi.org/0000001.0000001 Summarized by Justin Preston Introduction Inequality and underrepresentation of youth from historically marginalized communities have been stubbornly persistent in STEM fields. However, with the advent of maker spaces, and the associated maker movement, there […]

New research highlights importance of mentor expectations in sustaining relationships

Spencer, R., Drew, A. L., & Kanchewa, S. S. (2017). Girls (and boys) just want to have fun: A mixed-methods examination of the role of gender in youth mentoring relationship duration and quality. Journal of Primary Prevention. doi: 10.1007/s10935-017-0494-3 Summarized by Justin Preston Background The findings from the literature on youth mentoring have shed light […]