Social Work: 'Mentoring for young people leaving foster care: promise and potential pitfalls'.

Spencer, Renee ; Collins, Mary Elizabeth ; Ward, Rolanda 等

The needs of young people transitioning out of foster care and the efficacy of mentoring programmes are of central concern to social work. In recent years, these programmes have been enjoying unprecedented growth as their popularity increases. However, the existing empirical literature on the conditions associated with more effective mentoring relationships and the potential for harm in their absence should give one pause, as meeting these conditions may be particularly challenging when working with transitioning young people. The authors review the literature on the effectiveness of youth mentoring programmes and on the psychosocial outcomes and needs of young people leaving foster care. They offer a set of considerations for maximising the potential benefits of mentoring for those in transition. The article suggests that although mentoring may serve as an important component of a larger set of services for transitioning young people, an individual-level intervention such as this does not eliminate the need for more systemic action to meet the many needs of these vulnerable young people.

55:3, July 2010, pp 225-34, USA