Understanding the Mentoring Process between Adolescents and Adults

The popularity of mentoring programs for disadvantaged youth is on the rise, but little is known about the processes that underpin successful mentoring relationships. In-depth semistructured interviews were conducted with adolescent and adult pairs who had been in a continuous mentoring relationship for a minimum of 1 year. Using relational theories as the guiding framework, this study examined four relational processes, which are detailed in this article: authenticity, empathy, collaboration, and companionship.

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