College Mentors: A View From the Inside of an Intervention to Promote Health Behaviors and Prevent Obesity Among Low-Income, Urban, African American Adolescents

This article examined the views of college mentors who administered Challenge!—a home- and community-based health promotion/overweight prevention intervention that effectively reduced the progression to overweight among African American adolescents. In-depth qualitative interviews among 17 mentors (...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Health promotion practice 2012-03, Vol.13 (2), p.238-244
Main Authors: Black, Maureen M., Arteaga, S. Sonia, Sanders, JoAnn, Hager, Erin R., Anliker, Jean A., Gittelsohn, Joel, Wang, Yan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescence
Adolescent
Adolescents
Adult
African Americans - statistics & numerical data
Black American people
Blacks
Body Mass Index
College health
Diet (effects)
Exercise
Female
Health (practices)
Health Behavior - ethnology
Health promotion
Health Promotion - methods
Humans
Interpersonal Relations
Male
Mentors
Mentors - statistics & numerical data
Obesity
Obesity - ethnology
Obesity - prevention & control
Physical activity
Poverty - statistics & numerical data
Preventive health
Promotion
Surveys and Questionnaires
United States
Universities
Urban Population - statistics & numerical data
Young Adult
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Summary:This article examined the views of college mentors who administered Challenge!—a home- and community-based health promotion/overweight prevention intervention that effectively reduced the progression to overweight among African American adolescents. In-depth qualitative interviews among 17 mentors (81%) conducted 1 year following the intervention yielded four primary findings: (a) the importance of a strong mentor–mentee relationship often extending beyond the issues of diet and physical activity, (b) concern at the adversities the adolescents faced (e.g., poverty and household instability); (c) the personal impact of the mentoring process on the mentors' own dietary and physical activity behavior and career choices; and (d) recommendations regarding subsequent mentoring programs. In summary, college students are a valuable resource as mentors for low-income, African American adolescents and provide insights into the success of health promotion/overweight prevention interventions.
ISSN:1524-8399
1552-6372
DOI:10.1177/1524839910385899