Abstract
Background: Peer mentorship is a promising approach to support full participation in individuals living with spinal cord injury (SCI). Peer mentorship occurs when a peer mentor with lived experience of SCI provides knowledge, counsel and/or guidance to a mentee living with SCI. Little is known about strategies peer mentors use to support mentees. Understanding characteristics that differentiate high-quality from low-quality peer mentors may provide insight into the mechanisms that underlie quality peer mentorship. Objective: The aim of this study is to understand characteristics that differentiate high-quality and low-quality peer mentors in hospital and community settings. Methods: A thought-listing technique was completed by 25 peer mentors and 18 mentees (mean age: 46.7 years +/- 11.84; 48% female). Participants were asked to visualize quality peer mentors in hospital and community settings. Participants were then prompted to freely list any characteristics thought of during visualization. Final lists of characteristics were screened for duplicates and synonyms. Refined lists were thematically analyzed inductively to create distinct categories. Results: After screening, 276 characteristics (50% hospital-setting) were listed. The most frequently identified themes of effective peer mentors were similar in hospital and community settings which included: "knowledgeable", "listening ability" and "empathetic". Identified themes of ineffective peer mentors in hospital settings included "poor listening ability" and "judgmental"; and "rude" and "aggressive" in community settings. Implications: Ensuring all peer mentors are knowledgeable, empathetic and have strong listening skills may improve their ability to provide quality peer mentorship. Findings from this study will inform future training for peer mentorship programs.Acknowledgments: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council; Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research