How School Mentoring Programs Help Prevent And Reduce Juvenile Delinquency?

How after-school mentoring programs and general after school programs work to prevent and reduce juvenile delinquency? “Mentoring programs for at-risk youth are growing at a rapid pace” in the United States (Keating et. al, 2002, p. 717). These programs are designed to provide support to at-risk youth who usually “come from single-parent homes, who show signs of emotional or behavioral problems, and who lack the support to navigate developmental tasks successfully” (Keating et. al, 2002, p. 717). Mentoring programs may have different curricula, but most accentuate “the relationship between a disadvantaged or troubled youngster and a caring adult” (Keating et. al, 2002, p. 717). The relationship usually requires for the youngster and the caring adult to spend “quality time together,” and provide “support and guidance,” with the purpose to assist the at-risk youth to better deal with life adversities (Keating et. al, 2002, p. 717). One of the main purposes of mentoring programs is to have mentors functioning as models for juveniles who lack “appropriate role models in their environment” (Keating et. al, 2002, p. 718). In other words, mentors can serve as the appropriate model that can positively lead at-risk youth to develop “socially appropriate behavior” (Keating et. al, 2002, p. 718). Moreover, mentoring programs are aimed to reach at-risk youth because children who usually “survive abusive and neglectful upbringings are those who seek healthier relationships outside