Bridging Disciplinary Boundaries (January 11 - 14, 2007)

Purpose: Research on natural mentoring has suggested that supportive relationships with adults are protective for at-risk youth (Werner & Smith, 1992). However, few studies have examined natural mentoring among youth involved in the foster care system. This study of 339 older youth nearing their exit from the foster care system looks at the relationships between natural mentoring and depression symptoms, perceived stress, life satisfaction, substance use and current employment. In addition to assessing the presence of a mentor, this study also considers the duration and quality of the mentoring relationship on outcomes.

Methods: As part of a larger NIMH funded longitudinal study surveying older youth in foster care, 339 18-year olds from Missouri were asked whether they had a natural mentor, defined as “an adult who is not related to you that is older than you, and is willing to listen, share his or her experiences, and guide you through some part or area of your life (Adapted from Liang et al., 2002).” Youth who identified a natural mentor were asked how long they have known this individual and responded to a relationship quality scale (RHI-M; Liang et al., 2002). In addition, youth were also assessed on current depression, (DOM; Smith et al. 1994), past year substance use (i.e., “Have you used alcohol in the past year?”), and their current employment status. Six months later, current depression symptoms, perceived stress (PSS; Cohen et al., 1983), and life satisfaction (SLSS; Hubner, 1991) were measured. Ordinary least squares, hierarchical and logistic regression were utilized to analyze study relationships.

Results: Cross sectional data revealed that the presence of a mentor at 18 years old was significantly associated with fewer depression symptoms (b=-0.09, SE=0.03, t=-3.47, p<.001), after controlling for covariates; however, it was not associated with behavioral outcomes (e.g., use of alcohol, use of marijuana, and current employment). Hierarchical regression was utilized to examine outcomes at a six month follow-up, adding the variable presence of a mentor to the second model. Results suggest that the presence of a mentor remained associated with fewer depression symptoms (b=-0.12, SE=0.03, t=-4.09, p<.001) at 18.5 years of age and was also associated with lower perceived stress (b=-3.05, SE=0.91, t=-3.34, p<.01) and higher life satisfaction (b=1.38, SE=0.57, t= 2.43, p<.05), after controlling for covariates. Having reported a relationship duration of at least one-year was related to fewer depression symptoms at 18.5 (b=-0.07, SE=0.03, t=-2.08, p<.05). Relationship quality was not related to outcomes.

Implications for practice and policy: Long term relationships with supportive adults may be critical to the psychological lives of older youth as they move from the foster care system toward adulthood. Results suggest that programs that help support natural mentoring relationships for these older youth may be important for improved outcomes. Furthermore, results from this study highlight the value of examining individual characteristics of mentoring relationships.