Motivations and Expectations of Peer Mentors Within Inclusive Higher Education Programs for Students With Intellectual Disability

Abstract

Although peer mentors play a prominent role in supporting higher education experiences for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), little is known about these college students and the factors leading to their decision to become involved in this particular experience. We examined the motivations, experiences, and expectations of 250 peer mentors attending five diverse universities offering inclusive postsecondary programs for students with IDD. Nearly all (93.7%) of the entering peer mentors had prior disability-related experiences and almost all identified a combination of personal and professional reasons for involvement. Peer mentors anticipated an array of personal benefits as a result of their participation, although beliefs about some areas of potential impact were more mixed (e.g., improvements in grades, study skills, social status). Views regarding the extent to which students with IDD can participate in different aspects of campus life reflected high expectations; predictions about these students’ postgraduation experiences were more modest and mixed. We offer recommendations for research and practice aimed at identifying and engaging peers in supporting inclusive college experiences.

Peer Perspectives Within the Inclusive Postsecondary Education Movement: A Systematic Review

“…Most studies reported either the age ( n = 15 studies) and/or academic year ( n = 18 studies) of these peers; nine studies reported neither. Only two studies (Carter et al, 2019; Farley et al, 2014) made reference to whether any peers themselves had disabilities. Most studies ( n = 21) provided some summary of the different areas of study peers were pursuing (e.g., majors, minors, colleges).…”

“…Peers without IDD have served as a common source of support for students enrolled through these IPSE programs (Carter et al, 2019; Grigal et al, 2019). The nature of their involvement, however, varies widely within and across campuses.…”

Applying the self‐determination theory to develop a school‐to‐work peer mentoring programme to promote social inclusion

“…Similar to other post-secondary education peer mentoring programmes, a goal of the SPS-PM programme is to provide the mentees with a samesex peer mentor to whom they may more closely relate (Carter et al, 2018;Griffin et al, 2016). First, despite the widespread efforts to recruit peer mentors across campus, the SPS-PM programme continues to struggle with issues of diversity related to gender, race/ethnicity and field of study.…”

“…Education, Psychology, Pre-Medicine, Nursing and Social Work; Carter et al, 2018;Farley et al, 2014). For example, the SPS-PM core team strives to recruit undergraduates majoring in Human concerns about low productivity or poor quality of work performance due to lack of qualifications or necessary job skills (Kaye et al, 2011;Nota, Santilli, Ginevra, & Soresi, 2014); (c) concerns about how to provide accommodations and/or handle support needs of individuals with IDD (Kaye et al, 2011;Zappella, 2015);…”

“…For example, although over half of the mentees are male, the majority of peer mentors are female. Similar to other post-secondary education peer mentoring programmes, a goal of the SPS-PM programme is to provide the mentees with a samesex peer mentor to whom they may more closely relate (Carter et al, 2018;Griffin et al, 2016). In addition, while the mentees come from relatively diverse racial backgrounds, the majority of peer mentors are White.…”