Background Mentoring programs (ie, programs that connect youths with adult volunteers) have been shown to improve outcomes across the behavioral, social, and academic domains of youth development. As in other European countries, mentoring programs have few traditions in Norway, where interventions for multicultural youths are usually profession driven and publicly funded. Faced with the risk of disparities in education and health, there is a need to better understand this group’s experiences and requirements relative to mentoring. This would also serve as a basis for designing and implementing digital support. Objective The objective of this study was to gain insight into multicultural youth mentees’ and adult mentors’ experiences and needs in the context of an ongoing mentoring program, how digital support (electronic mentoring) might address these needs, and how such support could be designed and implemented. Methods The study used a qualitative approach, with data from 28 respondents (21 mentees and 7 mentors). In total, 4 workshops with mentees as well as semistructured interviews with mentees and mentors were conducted. The sessions were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed thematically. Results In total, 3 main themes were identified from the experiences and needs reported by the mentees and mentors. These included a need for connection, help in achieving goals, and the need for security and control. Subthemes encompassed a desire to socialize with others, balancing the nature of the relationship, paying it forward, building trust, sharing insights and information with peers, goal-oriented mentees and mentors wanting to assist with goal achievement, and the fundamental need for privacy and anonymity in the digital platform. Conclusions The findings of this study are supported by the literature on traditional mentoring, while also offering suggestions for the design of digital solutions to supplement the in-person mentoring of multicultural youth. Suggestions include digital support for managing the mentee-mentor relationships, fostering social capital, and ways of ensuring security and control. Features of existing electronic health apps can be readily adapted to a mentoring program context, potentially boosting the reach and benefits of mentoring.

Background There are large disparities between immigrants and native Norwegians in domains such as health, education, and employment. Reducing such disparities is essential for individual and societal well-being. Social capital is associated with positive effects on these domains, and mentoring programs have the potential to boost social capital. However, few studies have assessed mentoring as a social capital intervention among youth or the potential barriers and facilitators of implementing digitally augmented mentoring. Objective The goal of this paper is to describe a protocol for assessing the implementation and effectiveness of a digitally augmented mentoring program for immigrant youth as a health intervention to promote social capital. The two-stage analytical framework for a pilot study followed by a randomized controlled trial (RCT) is presented. The pilot aims to assess program fidelity and make necessary intervention adjustments before the RCT. The RCT aims to assess the effects of the implemented intervention program on social capital and the relationship between program fidelity and effects. Methods Both the pilot and RCT will use mixed methods with a process evaluation approach used to structure the intervention and a pre-post test survey component to measure social capital and fidelity of program implementation. Interviews will also be used to enrich the quantitative data from the survey. Results The pilot study is scheduled to begin in fall 2019. Based on data analyses in spring 2020, potential adjustments will be made to the intervention, with findings used in preparation for the full-scale RCT study. Conclusions Digitally enhanced mentoring programs may be a helpful intervention for providing immigrant youth with tools for increasing their social capital and indirectly improving health outcomes. This protocol provides new knowledge about the implementation and evaluation of such programs. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) PRR1-10.2196/16472

This article explores and summarizes the characteristics and findings in Norwegian research on mentoring for inclusion, using a scoping literature review. Mentoring matches younger or less experienced individuals with non-parental mentors to provide support and promote skills, personal development, and/or attainment of specific goals, such as employment. Searches were conducted in databases and in grey literature, with 19 publications included in our final analyses. The included publications encompass various approaches to organizing mentoring: by public sector organizations such as NAV and by non-public organizations (ideal organizations, social entrepreneurships). Over half of the mentoring programs in the included publications had immigrants or individuals with minority backgrounds as target groups. Nearly all the included publications assessed program results, concluding that mentoring generally achieved its (often broadly defined) objectives and/or that participants were satisfied. Notably, a robust assessment of the effects of mentoring remains an area for future inquiry. The included studies provide valuable insights into mentoring for supporting welfare state institutions in inclusion of vulnerable groups. Mentoring represents an individualized and flexible approach with the potential to supplement public services. Based on the findings, future directions for research on mentoring in the welfare state context are discussed.