Mentees and their mothers: The association between maternal relationship difficulties and targeted outcomes of mentoring.

Maternal relationship characteristics have been found to impact academic and behavioral outcomes for youth. However, less is known about how and through what mechanisms these characteristics impact outcomes for mentored youth. In this study, we examined if mentoring relationship quality mediated the relations between maternal relationship characteristics and academic and behavioral outcomes targeted by mentoring programs. Data were drawn from 205 participants who participated in a mentoring program that pairs adolescent girls with college women mentors for 1 year of mentoring. Mentoring relationship quality was the hypothesized mechanism of change and was included in the analysis as a mediator. Results revealed that maternal relationship characteristics (i.e., maternal quality communication/trust and maternal alienation) were directly related to academic and behavioral outcomes of mentoring. The relationship between maternal relationship characteristics and behavioral outcomes was mediated by mentoring relationship quality. Results suggested that girls with stronger maternal quality communication and trust as well as girls who felt more alienated from their mothers may benefit more from mentoring. Results can be used to inform mentor training to include a focus on relationship development with girls experiencing a variety of relational difficulties with their mothers to help improve targeted mentoring outcomes.

Dyadic connections in the context of group mentoring: A social network approach.

AIMS: The aim of this study was to examine how relational ties among all participants in a group mentoring program related to connections within assigned mentor-mentee dyads. METHODS: College student female mentors (n = 54) and middle school-aged female mentees ( n = 65) in eight mentoring groups completed social network surveys on multiple occasions, rating all groupmates on connection and effort to reach out. RESULTS: Hierarchical linear models (participants nested in groups) revealed mentors who were rated as being highly connected to multiple mentees had stronger connections within their dyad. For mentees, high ratings on efforts to reach out to others related to the stronger dyadic connection. Mentees reported lower dyadic connection in groups with more segregation by role. CONCLUSION: Results suggest group dynamics matter for one-on-one mentoring relationships, but how they matter differs by role. Implications for the use of social network analysis to assess complex settings are discussed.

The culture of mentoring: Ethnocultural empathy and ethnic identity in mentoring for minority girls.

OBJECTIVES: Many mentoring programs place minority group mentees with majority group mentors. These programs aim to promote beneficial outcomes for their diverse participants. The present study explores mentors of color and White mentors' ethnocultural empathy and ethnic identities in association with their minority group mentees' ethnic identities. METHOD: Our study examined 95 mentoring pairs of middle school girls of color and college student women from both majority and minority group cultural backgrounds. RESULTS: A series of linear regressions revealed an association between mentors' ethnocultural empathy and EI exploration/commitment and minority group mentees' ethnic identity exploration, regardless of the mentors' majority group status. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this preliminary study suggest that mentors' cultural identity and empathy may be linked with mentees' willingness to explore their own ethnic identities. We discuss the implications for mentoring programs that seek to build participants' ethnic identities and ethnocultural empathy. (PsycINFO Database Record

The relationship of marital status and clinical characteristics in middle-aged and older patients with schizophrenia and depressive symptoms.

BACKGROUND: This study examines the relationship of marital status to depression, positive and negative symptoms, quality of life, and suicidal ideation among 211 patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders and subsyndromal depressive symptoms. We hypothesized that single participants would have more severe symptomatology than married and cohabitating participants. METHODS: Outpatients, age 40 or older, were diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorders using the MINI Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis 1 Disorders. Participants exhibited a score of >8 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression but did not meet criteria for a major depressive episode. RESULTS: Participants who were married or cohabitating had a later age of onset of first psychotic episode or hospitalization than those who were single (age, 29.35 vs 24.21). Married participants rated their quality of life higher than those who were single (mean Quality of Life Scale scores, 72.28 vs 53.87) and had less suicidal ideation than those who were divorced, widowed, or separated (7.4% vs 29.2%). CONCLUSIONS: In middle-aged and older individuals with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and depressive symptoms, marriage appeared to enhance quality of life and protect against suicidal ideation. Efforts that focus on providing additional support for those who are experiencing divorce or separation could prove to be lifesaving for these individuals.