The Role of a Mentorship Program on the Relationship between Neglect and Depression among Adolescents in Low-Income Families

Abstract

This study examines the moderating effect of a mentorship program on the relationship between parental neglect and depression among adolescents from low-income households since COVID-19. A total of 264 participants from all provinces in South Korea were registered for a mentorship program provided by the Korea Development Bank [KDB] Foundation, which is a charitable and non-profit organization. Two-hundred fifty-five middle and high school students from low-income families were included in the final sample. The mentorship program was provided to students based on mentors’ advice and feedback. A bootstrap method using the PROCESS macro 3.4 for SPSS was utilized to examine the moderating effect of satisfaction with the mentorship program. Neglect was positively related to depression among low-income students. Satisfaction with the mentorship program moderated the relationship between low-income students’ neglect and depression. Visits from social workers or other advocates or volunteers to low-income families with children may be helpful to address depression among low-income students. High quality mentorship programs should be provided to more low-income students for their mental health, funded particularly in the context of corporate social responsibility. Particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic, financial contributions by corporations would be valuable to reconstruct the damage to quality of life and psychological well-being among low-income adolescents.

Factors Predicting the Quality of Life of University Students in Japan Amidst COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Moreover, being forced to stay home and restricted from forming close relationships with classmates and peers has affected students' quality of life (QoL). Similar to the reports on university students in Croatia (Dragun et al, 2020 ), the G20 countries (Nurunnabi et al, 2020 ), India (Shailaja et al, 2020 ), Spain (Garvey et al, 2021 ), and South Korea (Lee et al, 2021 ), the national and regional lockdowns and travel bans have had a negative influence on the QoL of Japanese university students (National Federation of University Cooperative, 2020 ). In addition, an international study reported that Japanese students showed more depressive symptoms than Korean and Chinese students (Zhao et al, 2020 ).…”

Financial Disruption and Psychological Underpinning During COVID-19: A Review and Research Agenda

“…The education sector is highly vulnerable to a pandemic. The education disparities ( Jiang et al, 2021 ) and financial challenges of students ( Galanza et al, 2021 ; Li et al, 2021 ; Schröpfer et al, 2021 ; Kokkinos et al, 2022 ) are important issues to be addressed and institutional support ( Poma et al, 2021 ; Schmits et al, 2021 ) and mentoring ( Lee et al, 2021 ) can be a good move in this regard.…”

“…Mentorship can be an alternative to coping with psychological challenges due to financial distress during pandemics among low-income students. Such innovative interventions can enhance mental strength among financially vulnerable students during pandemics ( Lee et al, 2021 ). University support to the student community can help to reduce the psychological challenge related to financial distress during pandemics ( Poma et al, 2021 ) and long-term initiatives for supporting students and improving their mental health ( Schmits et al, 2021 ).…”

The Moderating Effect of Age on Low-Income Students' Relationships With Mentors and Their Self-Efficacy Since COVID-19

“…Across several studies, mentorship programs have found to positively affect low-income students in diverse ways (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13). In one study, low-income students in South Korea who were satisfied with their participation in a mentorship program showed lower levels of depression than those students who were less satisfied with the program (10). The remaining studies focused primarily on academic-related outcomes.…”

“…Mentorship programs have been regarded as an important way to bring about high self-efficacy and positive behavioral changes among students (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13). However, little attention has been given to students' relationships with mentors, which is a key factor to determine the quality of a mentorship program.…”