Results suggested that mentors’ depressive symptoms negatively affected mentor, but not youth, relationship satisfaction. The current study used a rigorous, randomized design to explore whether certain mentor characteristics influence the quality and impact of the mentor–youth relationship. Implications (Reprinted from the Discussion) These findings are some of the first to examine the impact of mentor characteristics on mentor–youth relationships and highlight the importance of considering factors relevant to psychosocial functioning and emotional distress when recruiting, training, and supporting college student mentors. In contrast, mentors who experienced higher levels of early life stress had youth who reported greater satisfaction in the mentoring relationship and decreased relational anxiety.
Hierarchical linear models revealed that mentors with higher levels of depressive symptoms reported lower relationship satisfaction and increased avoidance in the mentoring relationship. The current study examined the influence of college student mentors’ history of early life stress and baseline depressive symptoms on their effectiveness in youth mentoring relationships using 340 randomized mentor–youth pairs from College Mentors for Kids, a well‐established mentoring program with chapters across the United States. Such programs have been shown to promote positive youth development and reduce risk for emotional and behavioral problems yet, the effect size of youth gains remains small. Over the past two decades, youth mentoring programs have increased in popularity as an intervention for children exposed to a range of stressful life circumstances. Introduction (Reprinted from the Abstract) Study findings demonstrate the importance of considering mentors’ baseline psychosocial backgrounds when mentor training is conducted and when mentor-mentee matches are made.Youth paired with mentors who had greater exposure to early life stress reported higher overall relationship satisfaction and less anxiety within the mentoring relationship. Results indicate that mentors with elevated symptoms of depression exhibit greater avoidance and report lower relationship satisfaction in their mentoring relationship.This study examined how college student mentors’ early life stressors and baseline depressive symptoms impact the effectiveness of the mentoring relationship.Although youth mentoring programs are becoming popular forms of interventions that contribute to positive youth development, little is still known about how the backgrounds and characteristics of mentors affect the mentor-mentee relationship.American Journal of Community Psychology, 65 (3–4), 455–466. A Two-way Street: Mentor Stress and Depression Influence Relational Satisfaction and Attachment in Youth Mentoring Relationships.
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