Natural Mentors for Young Adults with a History of Foster Care

Background: The transition to independence can be fraught with challenges; for emerging adults with a history of out-of-home care, the transition can be even more tumultuous. Children in foster care typically experience several placement changes during an episode of out-of-home care, and even those who reunify with their biological families are at great risk of living instability and re-entering foster care. This study sought to describe the nature and correlates of support that these young adults receive from natural mentors. 

Methods: A representative sample of children in out-of-home care who were enrolled in the Fostering Healthy Futures study between the ages of 9-11 were re-interviewed as young adults. The cross-sectional data reported in this study are from a 5^th wave of interviews with 93 participants aged 18-22. Slightly over half (55.3%) identified as female, 53.2% identified as Latino/Hispanic, 47.9% as White, 34.0% as Black, and 29.8% as American Indian. Participants reported on the adult supports in their life and identified individuals who helped prepare them for independent living. Participants also completed a 17-item scale measuring how often non-family members provided specific types of support (both instrumental and emotional). A mean “Support” score was calculated. Chi-square and t-tests examined whether having a natural mentor and/or the Support Score were related to educational attainment, employment, financial security, arrests, and pregnancy.

Results: Almost all (90.3%) participants reported that they had an adult in their family that they could “always turn to for support.” Extended family members (36.9%) were identified as the one family member they turned to most often, and 48.4% of respondents said these individuals “helped prepare them to live on their own.” In terms of non-familial mentors, 56.4% of participants endorsed having one, with a family friend/neighbor (32.1%) identified most frequently, followed by someone from work (20.8%). Almost half (45.3%) reported that a non-relative natural mentor helped prepare them for independent living. The presence/absence of a non-relative natural mentor was unrelated to any of the correlates examined, but higher Support Scores were significantly related to greater educational attainment and negatively related to a history of arrest or pregnancy (for females). There were no differences on employment or financial security.

Conclusion: This study found that almost all young adults with a history of out-of-home care had one or more familial and non-familial natural mentors. Extended family members and family friends/neighbors were most often identified as key support people, suggesting that these relationships should be harnessed to support young adults. While the presence/absence of a natural mentor was unrelated to young adult outcomes, the amount of social support from non-family members was related to better functioning in several key domains. These results suggest that natural mentoring may be an important avenue to examine in order to improve the functioning of young adults with risk factors for adverse outcomes.