The Formation and Benefits of Natural Mentoring for African American Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents: A Qualitative Study

This study explored how mentoring begins and the benefits provided for African American sexual and/or gender minority (SGM) youth. Participants were mentors and mentees living in three Mid-Atlantic cities. Mentees (ages 15–21, n = 14) identified as African American; cisgender male, transgender female, or non-binary assigned male; and had sexual interest in men. Mentor participants (ages 18+, n = 13) mentored such youth. Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with mentoring relationship partners (both partners did not necessarily participate). All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and imported into Atlas.ti. Using a basic interpretive qualitative analysis, a codebook was developed through inductive and deductive techniques. Analysis focused on mentees’ and mentors’ descriptions and interpretations about how they formed a mentoring relationship and any observed benefits that arose. Themes showed mentoring relationships were formed through introductions via social circles or social media. Mentoring was described as providing a trusted confidant and support with identity formation, relationships, transitioning to adulthood, and health. Results indicate a potential for natural mentoring relationships to provide trusted adult support to SGM adolescents in ways that are experienced as authentic and beneficial to the mental health of African American SGM male youth.

The Scavenger Hunt: An Educational Technique for Preceptors and Athletic Training Students

Context Entry-level athletic trainers (ATs) often lack tools necessary to help build confidence and professional networks, especially if they are the only clinicians in their facility. One-way athletic training education can help is to encourage preceptors to assist in mentoring athletic training students (ATSs) as they navigate the shift from student to AT. Objective To describe 1 educational technique developed by a preceptor that showcases effective mentoring, networking, volunteer opportunities, and communication. Background Mentorship is important for all entry-level ATs. By providing opportunities before graduation and assisting ATSs in learning how to network and communicate with potential mentors, future ATs can then continue the mentoring pipeline as they accept preceptor positions. Description This activity was developed by a preceptor while the ATS was in her immersive setting. It provided the ATS an opportunity to develop networking skills while still having support from the preceptor as mentor and while also growing the number of colleagues in her network. By providing a self-discovery activity, the ATS learned how to effectively maneuver through a large conference while gaining confidence, contacts, and a better understanding of the profession. Clinical Advantage(s) The preceptor developed a mentoring relationship with the ATS while also giving her the opportunity to build connections and identify characteristics that she would like to have in future mentors. Conclusion(s) Networking is often a difficult skill for new professionals. By creating this scavenger hunt, the preceptor demonstrated effective mentoring in addition to pushing the ATS outside of her comfort zone to develop her own professional network and observe how professionals can give back to their association.

Mentoring Research Through the Years: A Brief Review

Mentoring relationships involve a more experienced individual who provides support for the career and personal development of a less experienced coworker. The focus of mentoring research has evolved over the years. Early on, investigators were interested in learning about the outcomes of the mentoring relationship for the protégé, who is the primary beneficiary of the relationship. Risks for the protégé were not acknowledged in the initial research on mentoring relationships. There were questions about how individuals identify appropriate mentoring partners and about the course of the relationship. Attention then turned to the motivations and potential benefits to the mentor, the other party in the relationship. However, scholars recognized that while there were positive outcomes from serving as a mentor, there were also costs associated with the role. Given that so much empirical focus was on the benefits of voluntary developmental relationships, scholars became interested in more formal, organizationally controlled approaches to encouraging mentoring relationships. However, mentoring relationships are not uniformly positive and beneficial to the parties so engaged. Just as would be the case in any relationship, there is a “dark side” to mentoring relationships that has emerged as the focus of empirical attention. Finally, the influence of diversity of the mentoring participants has been explored. That exploration has largely focused on gender issues, with limited attention devoted toward ethnicity. With the advent of greater diversity in the workforce in the United States and elsewhere, diversity represents an area ripe for investigation. Overall, despite the wealth of research on mentoring relationships, there are questions that remain under-researched or unexplored in each of the areas of research.

An Examination of Mentors’ Interpersonal Behaviors and Mentees’ Motivation, Turnover Intentions, Engagement, and Well-Being

Using self-determination theory among a sample of student employees, the present cross-sectional study ( N = 358) examines how mentors’ interpersonal behaviors relate to both motivation at work and motivation for a mentoring relationship and how these two contexts of motivation can differentially relate to mentees’ work outcomes. Results revealed that mentors’ need-supportive interpersonal behaviors were associated with greater autonomous motivation at work and in the mentoring relationship and, in turn, to greater well-being and work engagement, and to lower turnover intentions. In contrast, need-thwarting interpersonal behaviors were associated with greater controlled motivation at work and in the mentoring relationship and, in turn, to lower well-being and work engagement, and to greater turnover intentions. Overall, this study illustrates the impact of the mentor–mentee relationship on motivation for work and for the mentoring relationship and provided support for the contribution of both motivational contexts in the work-related outcomes of employees in the workplace.

One size does not fit all: the role of mentoring context in proactive individuals' scholarly impact

PurposeMentoring relationships have been proposed as a potential intervention to alleviate gender disparities in scholarly output. Yet, previous research has not provided a systematic understanding of the relationship between mentoring and scholarly output. The authors propose that individuals with a proactive personality are especially suited to leverage mentoring relationships to enhance scholarly outcomes. Structural features of mentoring relationships – gender composition, mentor supervisory status, and mentoring relationship length – provide cues that encourage the expression of proactive personality and result in higher scholarly impact.Design/methodology/approachData were collected via surveys from faculty members in a US university and were matched with objective scholarly impact data. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used for hypothesis testing.FindingsThe impact of proactive personality on scholarly impact was more positive for women protégés with women mentors than for all other mentor-protégé pairings. Results also showed support for two hypothesized three-way interactions with mentor status and mentoring relationship length.Originality/valueThis research provides insights into the contexts where mentorship makes the most difference in protégés' scholarly achievement. Gender composition of mentoring dyads and mentor status are important boundary conditions that impact the effect of proactive personality on scholarly output.

Feeling Better: Experiences and Needs of Adolescents and Professionals Regarding Their Mentoring Relationship in Residential Youth Care

Background In residential youth care, group care workers and teachers often serve as a mentor for individual adolescents. Although favorable mentoring relationships are associated with positive adolescent outcomes, few studies examined the role of mentoring in residential youth care. Objective The present study aims to assess adolescents’, care workers’ and teachers’ mentoring relationship needs in terms of their one-on-one conversations during residential care. Methods We conducted structured interviews with eleven adolescents, ten group care workers and two teachers and content analysis to assess the data Results All respondents are rather satisfied with their conversations, which are often concerned with how the adolescent is doing. Adolescents mostly consider their family and home-situation as difficult topics, while care workers mostly consider sexuality as a difficult topic to talk about. Although ‘improvement’ with the youth is often the aim, most adolescents report that they do not (know if they) show changes because of these conversations. Moreover, only one of the twelve professionals thinks that it is his core task to achieve behavior change with the adolescents. According to the professionals, conversations often aim at building a good relationship, coaching, determining treatment goals, and gaining insight into the adolescent. Adolescents prefer a mentor who is calm, has respect, listens, and is reluctant in giving advice. Most professionals do not use a specific method and doubt whether they want to have conversations according to a manual or support tool. Conclusions Despite being rather satisfied, adolescents and professionals indicate several points for improvement of one-on-one conversations.

An Interview with Gerald Cupchik

In this interview, a leading figure in the realm of aestheics, higher education and mentoring responds to some questions about mentoring, the mentoring relationship and the mentoring process.

Developing bonds: An exploration of the development of bonds between mentors and young people

The article describes a piece of research exploring young people’s experience of a mentoring service (PROMISE). The scheme has been developed to offer vulnerable young people a supportive relationship to assist their lives. This article explores the nature of the mentoring relationship, including how mentors and mentees view its development. Conjoint interviews were conducted which also permitted an analysis of the nature of the conversational processes between the pairs, including how they constructed shared meanings of the development of their relationship. This provided a window into the emotional dynamics of their mentoring relationships. Implications for similar mentoring programmes are discussed alongside wider implications for assisting this group of young people.