Effects of the Reach & Rise® mentoring program on problem behavior and social‐emotional and academic outcomes: A randomized controlled trial

Some mentoring programs for youth have incorporated principles or strategies from cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), but research addressing the effectiveness of such programs is limited. This research is an evaluation of the impact of participation in Reach & Rise®, a program in which all mentors are supported in using CBT principles in their relationships with youth. Researchers randomly assigned youth either to be matched with a mentor through Reach & Rise® (i.e., treatment group; n = 316) or a waitlist control group (n = 284). We examined intent-to-treat effects using youth and caregiver survey data 15 months after study enrollment. Relative to the waitlist control group, we found treatment group youth to be significantly less likely at follow-up to report delinquent behavior (Treatment: 8%, Control: 15%, respectively) and substance use (28% and 43%, respectively). Treatment group youth also had significantly greater self-reported connectedness to school (Cohen's d = 0.267) and caregiver-reported academic performance (d = 0.214) and, at borderline significance (p = .05), greater reported connectedness to their families (d = 0.177). The groups did not differ on the remaining measures, which included youth reports of depressive symptoms, happiness, hope for the future, life satisfaction, and quality of peer relationships. Reach & Rise® shows promise for reducing problem behavior among youth while also positioning them for success and positive adaptation in contexts that are important for adolescent development. In the future, researchers should investigate avenues for broadening the scope of benefits to include aspects of emotional well-being. In view of the support established through this research for the effectiveness of the overall program, another logical next step would be to examine the unique contribution of the CBT principles embedded in the program to youth outcomes.