Some of the larger mentoring programs, for example, may improve the individual's relationship with peers by encouraging the development of necessary social skills. Participants in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters (BB/BS) program, for example, appear to experience this phenomenon. Tierney, Grossman and Resch (1995), described above, studied 959 adolescent mentees in the BB/BS program. After 18 months, mentees were experiencing better quality relationships with, and more emotional support from, their peers than the control group. Programs that use education-driven discourage adolescent violence also appear to promote more positive peer relationships.