Reciprocal Benefits of Mentoring: Tracing the Civic and Social Growth of University Mentors

Marino, C., Christens, B. D., Lenzi, M., Galeotti, T., Gaboardi, M., Tubertini, E., Canale, N., Vieno, A., Bonichini, S., Bergamin, M., Cavell, T. A., & Santinello, M. (2025). Perceived influences of mentoring on mentors’ social well-being: Social self-efficacy and civic engagement as mediators of long-term associations. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 35, e70050. https://doi.org/10.1002/casp.70050

Introduction

While youth mentoring is widely recognized for its benefits to mentees, the potential developmental outcomes for mentors are understudied. Marino and colleagues (2025) address this gap by examining how participating in a university-based mentoring program influences mentors’ long-term social well-being, civic engagement, and social self-efficacy. Drawing from literature on service-learning and community engagement, the study investigates whether mentoring experiences shape mentors’ future choices, behaviors, and perceptions of social contribution.

Methods

The study involved 203 former mentors (83% women, average age 26) from Mentor UP, a voluntary, service-learning mentoring program in Italy. Mentors supported at-risk youth, including immigrants and students at risk of school dropout, over one academic year.

A retrospective, cross-sectional survey assessed the perceived influence of mentoring on work, volunteer choices, and community participation (3-item ad hoc scale), as well as social well-being, civic engagement, and social self-efficacy.

Path analysis with bootstrapping (n = 5000) tested whether perceived influence of mentoring predicted social well-being directly or indirectly via social self-efficacy and civic engagement.

Results

While direct effects of perceived mentoring influence on social well-being were not significant, indirect effects were robust. Mentoring’s influence on community participation significantly predicted social self-efficacy, which in turn predicted civic behavior and social well-being. Civic behavior, not attitudes, was more proximally linked to self-efficacy and mediated the path to well-being. Lastly, Work and community participation influences were associated with civic behavior, while volunteer choices were related to civic attitudes.

Discussion

These findings suggest that mentoring fosters long-term psychosocial development in mentors by strengthening social self-efficacy, which supports civic engagement and ultimately enhances social well-being. Mentors who felt their experiences influenced their community involvement or career direction were more likely to remain civically engaged and feel socially integrated years later.

This supports a socialization model where engagement behaviors shape attitudes and identity—contrasting with traditional models that treat behavior as a result of attitudes. Mentoring, particularly within a service-learning framework, provides relational and civic experiences that enhance mentors’ skills and purpose.

Implications for Mentoring Programs

To maximize mentor development, programs should adopt service-learning structures that include reflective practices, consistent supervision, and opportunities for community immersion, as exemplified by the Mentor UP model. Evaluating mentor outcomes is also critical; specifically, assessing social self-efficacy and civic behaviors can provide meaningful insights into mentor development and program effectiveness. Additionally, mentoring can serve as a gateway to lifelong civic involvement, so programs should create pathways that connect mentors to long-term community engagement.

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