Bridging the Divide: A Pioneering Culturally-Specific Mentoring Intervention to Increase Support for At-Risk Youth

NCT07050251 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: HSC-MS-24-1243
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 30
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of a culturally-specific mentoring intervention to improve socio-emotional skills, psychological well-being, and social support among at-risk youth and to evaluate the proposed mentoring intervention's impact on academic outcomes, social behavior, and caregiver perceptions of social-emotional competencies. Additionally, it seeks to gather stakeholder feedback to refine the intervention further.

Conditions

Socio-emotional Well-being; Psychological Well-Being

Keywords

at risk youth; Boys and Girls Clubs

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Change in Social Emotional Competence as measured by the Social Emotional Competence Questionnaire (SECQ)

  The SECQ consists of 25 items, divided into five domains:Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Self-Management, Relationship Skills and Responsible Decision-Making.Each domain includes 5 items and each is scored from 1(never) to 5 (always) for a maximum score of 25 for each domain. An average of all 25 item responses is calculated and score range is 1.0-5.0, higher score indicating greater social emotional competence.

  Baseline, post-intervention (at 10 weeks)

• Change in Parenting Sense of Competence as measured by the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale (PSOC)

  The Parenting Sense of Competence Scale (PSOC) contains 16 items and each is scored on a 6-point Likert scale from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 6 (Strongly Agree) for a maximum score of 96, higher scores indicating greater parenting competence.

  Baseline, post-intervention (at 10 weeks)

• Change in Psychological Well-Being as measured by Psychological Well-Being (Ryff's 18-item) assessment

  Ryff's 18-item Psychological Well-Being Scale assesses six dimensions of well-being: autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relations with others, purpose in life, and self-acceptance. Each subscale consists of 3 items, rated on a 6-point Likert scale from "Strongly Disagree" (1) to "Strongly Agree" (6). Maximum score is 108 and higher scores indicate greater psychological well-being.

  Baseline, post-intervention (at 10 weeks)

• Change in depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms as measured by the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21)

  DASS-21) is a validated self-report questionnaire that assesses symptoms across three domains: depression, anxiety, and stress. Each domain consists of 7 items rated on a 4-point Likert scale from 0 (Did not apply to me at all)-3( Applied to me very much, or most of the time). Scores for each domain are summed and then multiplied by 2 to match the original DASS-42 scale for a maximum score of 126. Higher scores indicate greater symptom severity.

  Baseline, post-intervention (at 10 weeks)

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• Change in Academic Self-Efficacy as measured by the Academic Self-Efficacy Scale (ASES)

  Baseline, post-intervention (at 10 weeks)

• Change in emotional and behavioral functioning as measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)

  pre- and post-intervention assessments (at 10 weeks).

• Change in perceived social support as measured by the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS)

  pre- and post-intervention assessments (at 10 weeks).

• Change in well-being as measured by the Multidimensional Well-Being Assessment (MWBA)

  pre- and post-intervention assessments (at 10 weeks).

Study Arms (1)

Mentoring Intervention Delivery

EXPERIMENTAL

Behavioral: Mentoring Intervention Delivery

Interventions

Mentoring Intervention Delivery BEHAVIORAL

The intervention will utilize a culturally specific, socio-emotional learning (SEL) curriculum, adapted based on feedback from the focus groups. The intervention will consist of 10 weekly mentoring sessions lasting 1 hour each. Licensed clinicians will lead sessions and will also serve as mentors.

Mentoring Intervention Delivery

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 12 Years - 16 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Child (0-17)

You may qualify if:

• actively enrolled in the partnering community organization (e.g., Boys and Girls Clubs)
• Participants and their caregivers must be able to provide informed assent/consent in English. Parental Consent: Participants must have parental or guardian consent to participate in the study.
• Self-identifies as a racial-ethnic minority (i.e., Black/African American, Hispanic, etc.)

You may not qualify if:

• Current participation in another mentoring program: To avoid confounding the results, youth currently involved in other mentoring or structured socio-emotional support programs will be excluded.
• Severe cognitive or developmental disabilities: The study will exclude participants with mental impairments that prevent meaningful engagement in focus groups or intervention activities.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston: lead

Study Sites (1)

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

Houston, Texas, 77030, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Psychological Well-Being

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Personal Satisfaction; Behavior

Study Officials

• Jarrad Hodge, PhD

  The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Jarrad Hodge, PhD

CONTACT

(713) 486-2700; Jarrad.D.Hodge@uth.tmc.edu

Funlola Are

CONTACT

(713) 486-2700; Funlola.G.Are@uth.tmc.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: June 25, 2025
• First Posted: July 3, 2025
• Study Start: June 27, 2025
• Primary Completion: July 26, 2025
• Study Completion: August 15, 2025
• Last Updated: July 3, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-06

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)