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Making a Difference: An Impact Study of Big Brothers Big Sisters

NCJ Number
185955
Author(s)
Joseph P. Tierney; Jean B. Grossman; Nancy L. Resch
Date Published
November 1995
Length
68 pages
Annotation
This study examined the effectiveness of the mentoring program of the organization of Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS).
Abstract
Most local BBBS mentoring programs operate in a similar manner. They recruit and carefully screen volunteer applicants for one-to-one matches; they screen youth, who usually come from single-parent households; and they carefully match adult volunteers with youth based on background, the stated preferences of adult volunteers, parents, and youth, and geographic proximity. On average, the adult-youth pair meets for three to four hours three times per month for at least a year. In cooperation with the national BBBS office, eight local, accredited BBBS agencies were selected for this study. The sample youth were between 10 and 16 years old when they were deemed eligible for the BBBS programs. Just over 60 percent were boys, and more than half were from minority groups. The research strategy compared youth who participated in BBBS programs with those who did not. Of the 1,138 youth originally selected, 959 (84.3 percent) completed both baseline and follow-up interviews, thus becoming the sample on which findings were based. Of the 487 youth in the treatment group, 378 were matched with a Big Brother or Big Sister and received the agency support and supervision that would typically be provided. The matched Little Brothers and Little Sisters met with their mentors for an average of almost 12 months, with meetings approximately 3 times per month lasting about 4 hours each time. The aim of the research was to determine whether a one-to-one mentoring experience made a tangible difference in the lives of the youth. The areas examined were antisocial activities; academic performance, attitudes, and behaviors; relationships with family; relationships with friends; self-concept; and social and cultural enrichment. Findings show that program youth were 46 percent less likely than controls to initiate drug use during the study period, and they were 27 percent less likely than controls to begin alcohol use during the study period. Program participants were almost one-third less likely than controls to assault someone, and program participants did better in school performance. Family and peer relationships were better for program participants. There were no statistically significant improvements in self-concept or in the number of social and cultural activities. 11 tables and 9 notes