NCJ Number
196016
Date Published
February 2002
Length
76 pages
Annotation
This report presents the methodology and findings of a study designed to examine the nature and effects of group mentoring.
Abstract
Group mentoring is an effort to reach more youth with mentoring services. Under group mentoring, volunteers interact regularly with small groups of youth to act as a trusted counselor or guide. Groups can range in size from 2 to 32 youth, but average approximately 10. More than half of group mentors work with at least one other mentor on a team. Groups meet in various settings, most commonly in schools, with the average meeting time being 21 hours a month. In the current study, group activities included social activities and sports; community service, health, and educational workshops; activities that focused on team building, leadership development, and cultural diversity; homework assistance; and discussion of specific subjects such as science or music. This assessment of group mentoring focused on three programs that represented distinct approaches to group mentoring. It drew on data collected in two earlier studies that involved interviews with 291 mentors working with youth in groups and 802 mentors matched with youth one on one. Data were used in the current study to describe characteristics of mentoring groups and their participants. The second study involved interviews with program staff from 722 mentoring programs nationwide. In the current study, this information was used primarily as support for findings from the mentor survey. Although the study's design and small sample precluded analyses of measurable impacts of the programs, potential benefits of group mentoring are outlined. They include improvements in social skills; in youth's relationships with teachers, parents, and friends; and in school performance. The study concludes that mentor-youth relationships can develop in group settings, but the quality of these relationships varied widely in this study; and on average they were not as strong or intense as relationships developed in traditional, one-on-one mentoring relationships. Issues for future research are suggested. 15 tables, 42 references, and appended resources and supplementary information