The Need for Adolescent Mentoring

Although adolescent mentoring isn't always popular among parents, there is a growing need among teens for relationships with adults outside the family circle. This is true not only because of the developmental stage that teens are in - teens are beginning to find their own sense of self and pull away from the family to do so - but for many other reasons. This article will discuss the need for adolescent mentoring and the benefits that come with it.

During adolescence, teens are faced with a wide number of challenges. They may experience symptoms of mental illness, experiment with drugs and alcohol, question their sexual orientation, go through a significant heartbreak, and more. Because of these challenges and the potential dangers they bring, teens could use the support of an adult relationship. Some parents may fear that that relationship may take the place of their role in the child's life. However, in many cases, the opposite is often true. An adult in a person's life can help facilitate a teen's independence, confidence, resilience, and strength. In turn, this can support a teen's ability to have positive relationships, including with their parents.

In the past, adolescent mentoring may have been easily found through neighbors, teachers, and extended family. However, the lifestyle has changed for many Americans. For instance, sadly, in many homes, parents are raising children on their own. Because of the work obligations of single parents, teens may not have the opportunity to spend very much time with their parents. Also, it's common for families to move away from extended relatives like grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins who might have naturally served as a mentor and guide in a teen's life. Instead, teens are looking at their friends and the media for guidance. And often these sources are not healthy or lead a teen down a destructive path.

In other cases, some ethnic families move into culturally mixed neighborhoods but where segregation may still exist, leaving a teen feeling isolated and unable to make friends in their community. At times, neighbors might have also served as a guide or mentor for a teen. Even teachers may not be able to be a guide or mentor because of the increased responsibilities of their profession.

In summary, the following list expresses the need for mentoring in a teen's life:

• Work obligations of single parents and little time to spend time with their teens.
• A teen's distance from their extended relatives who might have served as a mentor.
• Inability for teens to find friendships and mentors in neighborhoods that are segregated.
• Inability for teens to receive guidance and mentoring from teachers.

For all these reasons, more and more organizations are providing adolescent mentoring as means to provide support to teens. And research shows that adolescent mentoring can provide a significant boost to a teen's emotional and psychological well being. When teens feel supported, have a guide that can lead them through the challenges of adolescence, and feel seen and understood by others, they are more likely to succeed academically and professionally.

Adolescent Mentoring Can Turn a Teen's Life Around

For anyone in recovery, life is already turned upside down. A teen who is recovering from addiction has stopped using, attended addiction treatment, and likely chosen a new set of friends. Yet, if a teen were to add adolescent mentoring to his or her recovery, there's a good chance that life would skyrocket to new heights.

Mentoring in general has great success. In music, for instance, the following is a list of mentors who provided guidance to famous songwriters and musicians:

• Ron Richards was a mentor to Graham Nash, of Crosby, Still, and Nash.
• Jerry Wexler of Atlantic Records was a mentor to Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Linda Ronstadt, and Willie Nelson.
• Jerry Garcia was a mentor to Carlos Santana and Bob Dylan.
• Don Henley was a mentor to Sheryl Crow.

In the world of acting:

• Phyllis Diller was a mentor to Joan Rivers.
• George Carlin was a mentor to Jon Stewart.
• Mike Nichols was a mentor to Kevin Spacey and Stephen Spielberg.
• Stella Adler, an acting coach, was a mentor to Marlon Brando.
• Mel Gibson was a mentor to Heath Ledger.

In the movies, there are many examples of mentorships. Here are a few:

• Louanne Johnson (played by Michelle Pfeiffer) is a mentor to a group of troubling students in Dangerous Minds.
• Mickey Goldmill (played by Burgess Meredith) is a mentor to Rocky Balboa (played by Sylvester Stallone) in the 1976 film Rocky.
• Mrs. Ninny Threadgoode (played by Jessica Tandy) mentors Evelyn Couch (played by Kathy Bates) in Fried Green Tomatoes.
• Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence) is mentored by Haymitch Abernathy (played by Woody Harrelson) in The Hunger Games.

Just as these mentoring relationships depict, when a mentor guides a person in his or her life, the results can be significantly greater than if that person attempted to reach a goal on his or her own. Having someone believe in you, guide you, and point out the often unspoken rules of getting ahead can make all the difference in a teen's life.

Furthermore, teens are at a critical time in their life. In fact, psychologically speaking, their goal is to find their uniqueness and their independence. For this reason, they may not turn to their parents for guidance. In fact, most teens are pulling from their parents. At the same time, they need someone to model for them what's it's like to be an adult. They need an example of the traits necessary to succeed in life. Because of the existing relationships teens have with teachers and parents, they may not be interested in seeking advice from them. Instead, an adult a teen can trust, look up to, and who has achieved what a teen is after is frequently the perfect mentor for an adolescent.

If you are an adolescent in early recovery, you might feel drawn to the idea of mentoring. Or if you are a parent who has a son or daughter with addiction-related issues or a teen who is having trouble staying sober, you might consider getting a mentor for your child.