The Journal of Early Adolescence, Ahead of Print.
A critical mechanism through which mentors are thought to influence developmental outcomes is the mentee-mentor relationship. Attachment theories suggest that a mentee’s perceptions of other relationships in her life may impact the quality of the mentor-mentee relationship. This study tests this hypothesis. Data were drawn from a sample of 205 early adolescent girls who received a college-aged mentor through the Young Women Leaders Program for one academic year. In this exploratory study, we examine the association between mentees’ relationship characteristics (i.e., perceptions of, feelings about maternal and peer relationships) and mentoring relationship satisfaction. Results of multiple linear regressions revealed that less maternal quality communication and trust was associated with lower quality mentoring relationships (β = .258, p < .05). Higher levels of maternal alienation were associated with higher quality mentoring relationships (β = .241, p < .05). Results can inform mentor training to support strong mentoring relationships with girls experiencing a variety of attachment-related challenges with their mothers.