Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

The Family Mentoring Program (FMP), which provided approximately 1 year of mentoring for at-risk, 10-year-old Latino children and their parents, offered individual mentoring, group educational sessions for children and parents, and group social/recreational activities. This study examined mothers' perceptions of the parent–child relationship and of family strength as measured by the Parent–Child Relationship Inventory (PCRI) and the Family Hardiness Index (FHI). Analysis focused on factors expected to contribute to variance in the outcome measures. Regression results indicated that involvement in parent group education predicted higher scores on the Support and Communication measures. Compared to the standardized samples used in the development of these measures, mothers, at the beginning of the program, scored lower on six of seven PCRI subscales and on the FHI. By the end of the program, mothers' scores on Support and Limit Setting had improved, no longer differing from the standardized norms. The overall findings suggest that parents of children in mentoring programs need services and parent education and that they can benefit from these. Future research should focus on careful design and evaluation of multifaceted mentoring programs that include parents.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Balcazar

F. E.

, Majors

, Blanchard

K. A.

, & Paine

(1991). Teaching minority high school students to recruit helpers to attain personal and educational goals. Journal of Behavioral Education, 4, 445–454.

Blechman

E. A.

(1992). Mentors for high-risk minority youth: From effective communication to bicultural competence. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 21, 160–169.

Blum

D. J.

, & Jones

L. A.

(1993). Academic growth group and mentoring program for potential dropouts. School Counselor, 40, 207–217.

Freedman

(1991). The kindness of strangers: Reflections on the mentoring movement. Philadelphia, PA: Public Private Ventures.

Flaxman

, Ascher

, & Harrington

(1988). Mentoring programs and practices: An analysis of the literature. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University, Institute for Urban and Minority Education.

Garmezy

(1985). Stress-resistant children: The search for protective factors. In Stevenson

J. E.

(Ed.), Recent research in developmental psychopathology (pp. 213–223). Oxford, UK: Pergamon.

Gerard

A. B.

(1994). Parent–Child Relationship Inventory (PCRI): Manual. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services.

Gresham

F. M.

, & Elliot

S. N.

(1991). Social Skills Rating Scales Manual. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.

Grossman

J. B.

, & Tierney

J. P.

(1998). Does mentoring work? An impact study of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Program. Evaluation Review, 22, 3, 403–426.

10.

Johnson

C. A.

, Pentz

M. A.

, Weber

M. D.

, Dwyer

J. H.

, Baer

, MacKinnon

D. P.

, Hansen

W. B.

, & Flay

B. R.

(1990). Relative effectiveness of comprehensive community programming for drug abuse prevention with high-risk and low-risk adolescents. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58, 447–456.

11.

Johnson

, Strader

, Berbaum

, Bryant

, Bucholtz

, Collings

, & Noe

(1996). Reducing alcohol and other drug use by stengthening community, family, and youth resiliency: An evaluation of the Creating Lasting Connections program. Journal of Adolescent Research, 11, 36–67.

12.

LoSciuto

, Rajala

A. K.

, Townsend

T. N.

, & Taylor

A. S.

(1996). An outcome evaluation of Across Ages: An intergenerational mentoring approach to drug prevention. Journal of Adolescent Research, 11, 116–129.

13.

McCubbin

H. I.

, & Thompson

A. I.

(Eds.) (1991). Family assessment inventories for research and practice. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press.

14.

Mech

E. V.

, Pryde

J. A.

, & Ryecroft

J. R.

(1995). Mentors for adolescents in foster care. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 12, 317–328.

15.

Payne

V. H.

, Cathcart

E. J.

, & Pecora

(1995). The Seattle Mentorship Project: Evaluating the effectiveness of social tutors. Community Alternatives International Journal of Family Care, 7(2), 1–21.

16.

Powers

, & McConner

(1997). Project SOAR 1996–1997: Evaluation Report. Tuscon, AZ: Creative Research Associates, Inc.

17.

Putting America's Communities Together: Nebraska. (1994). Governor's Interim Report. Lincoln, NE: State of Nebraska.

18.

Rhodes

J. E.

(1993). Easing postpartum school transitions through parent mentoring programs. Prevention in Human Services, 10, 169–178.

19.

Roberts

, & Cotton

(1994). Note on assessing a mentor program. Psychological Reports, 75, 1369–1370.

20.

Roth

, Brooks-Gunn

, Murray

, & Foster

(1998). Promoting healthy adolescents: Synthesis of youth development program evaluations. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 8, 423–459.

21.

Royse

(1998). Mentoring high-risk minority youth: Evaluation of the Brothers Project. Adolescence, 33(29) 145–158.

22.

Slicker

, & Palmer

D. J.

(1993). Mentoring at-risk high school students: Evaluation of a school-based program. The School Counselor, 40, 327–334.

23.

Townsel

K. T.

(1997). Mentoring African American youth. Preventing School Failure, 41(3), 125–127.

24.

Zippay

(1995). Expanding employment skills and social networks among teen mothers: Case study of a mentor program. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 12, 51–69.

Mentoring At-Risk Latino Children and Their Parents: Analysis of the Parent–Child Relationship and Family Strength

Abstract

Get full access to this article

References