Natural mentoring under the microscope: an investigation of mentoring relationships and latino adolescents' academic performance

Bernadette Sánchez; Patricia Esparza; Yarí Colón

doi:10.1002/jcop.20250

Natural mentoring under the microscope: an investigation of mentoring relationships and latino adolescents' academic performance

Journal of Community Psychology ◽

10.1002/jcop.20250 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 36 (4) ◽

pp. 468-482 ◽

Cited By ~ 51

Author(s):

Bernadette Sánchez ◽

Patricia Esparza ◽

Yarí Colón

Keyword(s):

Academic Performance ◽

Latino Adolescents ◽

Mentoring Relationships ◽

Natural Mentoring

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Investigation of the natural mentoring relationships of Latino adolescents

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e628622012-515 ◽

2005 ◽

Author(s):

B. Sanchez ◽

P. Esparza ◽

Y. Colon

Keyword(s):

Latino Adolescents ◽

Mentoring Relationships ◽

Natural Mentoring

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Conferring Kinship: Examining Fictive Kinship Status in a Black Adolescent’s Natural Mentoring Relationship

Journal of Black Psychology ◽

10.1177/00957984211002613 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 009579842110026

Author(s):

Edward D. Scott ◽

Nancy L. Deutsch

Keyword(s):

Cultural Practices ◽

Mentoring Relationships ◽

Relational Context ◽

Mentoring Relationship ◽

Fictive Kinship ◽

Natural Mentoring ◽

Narrative Methodology ◽

Positive Feature ◽

Nonparental Adults

This case study examines the way an adolescent Black boy extends his kinship network as a part of navigating and demonstrating agency in mentoring relationships with nonparental adults. We purposively selected one participant, Bodos, from the sample of a larger mixed-method study involving youth, aged 12 to 18 years, in the southeastern United States. Drawing on narrative methodology, we used a holistic-content approach to analyze Bodos’ responses to semistructured interviews. Bodos used several narratives to describe his experiences. We offer three findings: (a) Fictive kinship is a positive feature of Black adaptive culture that can be leveraged by Black youth as a tool for creating a distinct relational dynamic with their mentors, (b) adolescent Black boys possess skills and knowledge that both preexist and emerge within positive mentoring relationships, and (c) youth agency and expectations manifest in mentoring relationships to inform and influence those adults’ significance. This case study furthers the field’s understanding of how cultural practices can positively influence relational development and create a unique relational context and experience.

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