The Bogeyman and the Bathwater
Youth Mentoring . . . and the Hidden Value of the Summer Camp Experience

By Stephen G. Wallace, M.S. Ed.

To the untrained eye, the real value of a summer camp experience may be hidden behind well-timed opportunities for swimming, s'mores, and songs around the campfire. While no one would contest the allure of each, the truth is that children gain much more: residual, life-changing results related to identity, skill building, socialization, and spirituality.

These benefits spring from unique, informal, and less-stratified environments that nurture important relationships among young and old alike and hold the promise of influence when it comes to choices about personal behavior.

Youth Development and Decision-Making
Research makes clear that, working together, parents and camp professionals have achieved success toward realization of critical youth development goals.

Yet, given recent well-publicized cases of child exploitation, perhaps it is no surprise that the age-old practice of mentoring may be yielding to modern-day concerns about youth safety. But throwing the baby out with the bathwater, regardless of how sullied, may do more harm than good. 

Consider that more than half (56 percent) of middle and high school students say that not having a mentor would negatively affect them, according to a new Teens Today study from SADD and Liberty Mutual Group. Indeed, teens able to identify at least one influential mentor in their lives, such as a teacher, coach, counselor, or neighbor, report a higher Sense of Self and are more likely to take positive risks that promote overall development and mental health.

Just as important, the breadth and depth of the mentoring a young person receives correlates strongly with decision-making. For example, teens who report high levels of mentoring are significantly more likely than those who report low levels of mentoring to avoid alcohol, other drugs, and early sexual behavior. 

Despite clear evidence of the positive effects of mentoring on youth, a startling number of teens (53 percent) say their parents discourage them from participating in organizations or activities where such mentoring might occur, including one in five who specifically cites parental concern for their teen's personal safety when spending time with a mentor.

Can something so good really be so bad? Sometimes … but maybe not as often as we think. In The Blessing of a Skinned Knee, psychologist Wendy Mogel points out that the world may not be quite so dangerous after all, referring to media scare-mongering in which "the most disturbing stories are given the most attention and our sense of impending danger becomes exaggerated."

The Bogeyman Effect
This "bogeyman effect," brought about by the overamplification of select incidences of child abuse, appears to be chilling important relationships proven effective in fostering growth and discouraging poor choices.

While surging fears about harm directed at youth may impair support for mentoring relationships, adolescents need, and very much want, consistent exposure to caring, supportive adults. And with good reason.

Studies related to youth development, protective factors, and resiliency suggest the efficacy of mentoring in prevention and positive outcomes across a broad spectrum of functioning.

Kids and Camp
More to the point, young people who have attended a day or overnight summer camp are less likely to drink (26 percent vs. 36 percent), use marijuana (8 percent vs. 18 percent), or engage in sexual behavior, such as intercourse (29 percent vs. 40 percent) or oral sex (29 percent vs. 39 percent) than are their noncamper peers.

While parents clearly play the most influential mentoring role in the lives of their children, it is also clear that other "significant" adults can, and do, affect educational achievement, social and emotional well-being, and health and safety.

What Parents Can Do
For sure, parents are wise to be wary. And there are some simple steps they can take to be sure their children remain safe.

• Stay involved. Know with whom your child is spending time and what they are doing.
• Get to know your teen's mentors, including their camp directors and counselors. Building those relationships will benefit your child and give you a better sense of his or her safety.
• Encourage your child's involvement in organizations, such as summer camps, that conduct employee or volunteer screenings and/or criminal and sexual offender background checks.

In The Shelter of Each Other, The New York Times bestselling author Mary Pipher warns, "A culture in which children fear adults and adults are uneasy around children is an unhealthy and dangerous place." Thus, the real bogeyman may not be lurking in the bushes outside the door but rather behind a climate of fear that threatens from both ends the very type of adult-child relationships that nurture healthy development and decision-making.

Let's throw out the bogeyman with the bathwater … and keep the baby.

Stephen Wallace has broad experience as a school psychologist and adolescent counselor. He serves as chairman and CEO of SADD, director of counseling and counselor training at the Cape Cod Sea Camps, and adjunct professor of psychology at Mount Ida College. For more information about SADD or the Teens Today research, visit www.sadd.org.

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