Associations of youth mentoring with parent emotional well-being and family functioning: longitudinal findings from a study of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada

Abstract

This study explores the association between child's participation in a community-based mentoring program and parents' emotional well-being and perceived family functioning. 553 parents and their children were recruited through 20 Big Brothers Big Sisters Canada agencies. Assessments were completed at the time of program referral and 6-, 12-, 18-, 24-, and 30-month post-baseline. Controlling for parent and child demographic characteristics, child's behavioral difficulties and physical health problems, and baseline scores of parents’ mental health, family functioning, and social support, growth curve modelling was conducted to compare parents with mentored (n = 352) and non-mentored children (n = 201) in their reports of depression, social anxiety, hostility, and family functioning across the six time points. Findings indicated a greater rate of improvement over time in family functioning of parents with mentored children as compared to parents with non-mentored children. Parents with mentored children reported lower levels of depression, social anxiety, and hostility/aggression than parents with non-mentored children, but the group differences were marginally non-significant at p <.10. Effect sizes (Cohen's d) were small in magnitude. Sensitivity analyses with growth curve models suggested that the findings were robust for family functioning and parental social anxiety. Findings provide preliminary evidence for the potential of one-on-one mentoring relationships between children and community volunteers that are established through formal programs to benefit the parents and families of participating children.