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Older and Wiser: New Ideas for Youth Mentoring in the 21st Century
Youth mentoring programs must change in order to become truly effective. The world's leading expert shows how.
2023 Eleanor Maccoby Book Award, Division 7, American Psychological Association
Youth mentoring is among the most popular forms of volunteering in the world. But does it work? Does mentoring actually help young people succeed? In Older and Wiser, mentoring expert Jean Rhodes draws on more than thirty years of empirical research to survey the state of the field. Her conclusion is there is little evidence that most programs―even renowned, trusted, and long-established ones―are effective. But there is also much reason for hope.
Mentoring programs, Rhodes writes, do not focus on what young people need. Organizations typically prioritize building emotional bonds between mentors and mentees. But research makes clear that effective programs emphasize the development of specific social, emotional, and intellectual skills. Most mentoring programs are poorly suited to this effort because they rely overwhelmingly on volunteers, who rarely have the training necessary to teach these skills to young people. Moreover, the one-size-fits-all models of major mentoring organizations struggle to deal with the diverse backgrounds of mentees, the psychological effects of poverty on children, and increasingly hard limits to upward mobility in an unequal world.
Rhodes doesn't think we should give up on mentoring―far from it. She shows that evidence-based approaches can in fact create meaningful change in young people's lives. She also recommends encouraging "organic" mentorship opportunities―in schools, youth sports leagues, and community organizations.
2023 Eleanor Maccoby Book Award, Division 7, American Psychological Association
Youth mentoring is among the most popular forms of volunteering in the world. But does it work? Does mentoring actually help young people succeed? In Older and Wiser, mentoring expert Jean Rhodes draws on more than thirty years of empirical research to survey the state of the field. Her conclusion is there is little evidence that most programs―even renowned, trusted, and long-established ones―are effective. But there is also much reason for hope.
Mentoring programs, Rhodes writes, do not focus on what young people need. Organizations typically prioritize building emotional bonds between mentors and mentees. But research makes clear that effective programs emphasize the development of specific social, emotional, and intellectual skills. Most mentoring programs are poorly suited to this effort because they rely overwhelmingly on volunteers, who rarely have the training necessary to teach these skills to young people. Moreover, the one-size-fits-all models of major mentoring organizations struggle to deal with the diverse backgrounds of mentees, the psychological effects of poverty on children, and increasingly hard limits to upward mobility in an unequal world.
Rhodes doesn't think we should give up on mentoring―far from it. She shows that evidence-based approaches can in fact create meaningful change in young people's lives. She also recommends encouraging "organic" mentorship opportunities―in schools, youth sports leagues, and community organizations.
240 pages, Hardcover
Published August 18, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 9, 2021
Dr Rhodes is brave enough to lay out the real score of the status and effects of mentoring. Helped me in my practice as a researcher and mentor.
June 18, 2021
Brilliant synthesis of where we are at in mentoring research and a pathway toward where we should go....
June 21, 2022
Older and Wiser by Jean E. Rhodes
NO .. it’s not a Self-Help Book
This is a book about youth-mentoring. Considering the number of youths and young adults in our country and status of youth outcomes, it’s an essential area to be aware of.
The background being severe inequality and rampant poverty giving rise to youths gone off the track. It’s about ‘how adults can be most helpful to youth in a society marked by growing inequality. Each year, millions more children and adolescents, through no fault of their own, are born or thrust into poverty, where exposure to toxic levels of stress imperils their capacity to lead healthy and productive life.’
This book is based on empirical researches and experiments in this specific field and discusses about various models and approaches being used across the globe in the field of youth-mentoring. Although, it mostly takes reference of USA, the issues involved here are squarely applicable to India too.
A quote of the famous Psychologist George Albee from the book goes like this:
“ …. way of helping people to develop is to invite them to come along… and to fight the ‘good fight’..”
Great read for interested.👍👍
NO .. it’s not a Self-Help Book
This is a book about youth-mentoring. Considering the number of youths and young adults in our country and status of youth outcomes, it’s an essential area to be aware of.
The background being severe inequality and rampant poverty giving rise to youths gone off the track. It’s about ‘how adults can be most helpful to youth in a society marked by growing inequality. Each year, millions more children and adolescents, through no fault of their own, are born or thrust into poverty, where exposure to toxic levels of stress imperils their capacity to lead healthy and productive life.’
This book is based on empirical researches and experiments in this specific field and discusses about various models and approaches being used across the globe in the field of youth-mentoring. Although, it mostly takes reference of USA, the issues involved here are squarely applicable to India too.
A quote of the famous Psychologist George Albee from the book goes like this:
“ …. way of helping people to develop is to invite them to come along… and to fight the ‘good fight’..”
Great read for interested.👍👍
June 30, 2023
This is a concise, thorough account of the state of mentoring. I found it extremely informative, surprising, and at times inspiring.
That said, it’s important to mention that if you’re a mentor looking for a “mentoring playbook,” this probably isn’t it. I read this book looking for exactly that, and I did find a few chapters with important information on building an effective mentorship. But I would say the focus of this book is much broader, on the organizations that provide mentorship opportunities to mentors/mentees. If you’re a mentor, this book will be an amazing foundation on the field of mentoring itself, and it will definitely help you choose an organization that aligns with Dr. Rhodes’ recommendations. But it won’t prescribe any strategies for 1:1 mentoring.
That said, it’s important to mention that if you’re a mentor looking for a “mentoring playbook,” this probably isn’t it. I read this book looking for exactly that, and I did find a few chapters with important information on building an effective mentorship. But I would say the focus of this book is much broader, on the organizations that provide mentorship opportunities to mentors/mentees. If you’re a mentor, this book will be an amazing foundation on the field of mentoring itself, and it will definitely help you choose an organization that aligns with Dr. Rhodes’ recommendations. But it won’t prescribe any strategies for 1:1 mentoring.
June 13, 2023
Good resource for anyone doing public work involving youth and their community.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews