Anchoring Relationships at Work: High‐Quality Mentors and Other Supportive Work Relationships as Buffers to Ambient Racial Discrimination

Applying a unifying theoretical framework of high‐quality work relationships, we conducted a set of 3 complementary studies that examined whether high‐quality mentoring relationships can buffer employees from the negative effects of ambient discrimination at work. Integrating relational mentoring with relational systems theory, we first examined whether the presence of a high‐quality mentoring relationship buffers employees in a sample of 3,813 workers. In support of the “mentors‐as‐buffers” hypothesis, we found that employees who witnessed or were aware of racial discrimination at work had lower organizational commitment than those not exposed, but employees with high‐quality mentoring relationships experienced less loss of commitment than those lacking mentors. We then examined the specific buffering behaviors used by mentors in high‐quality relationships and whether these behaviors were effective for other work relationships and outcomes. Applying Kahn's typology, we developed and validated a measure of high‐quality relational holding behaviors in a sample of 262 workers. Using this measure in a third sample of 557 workers, we found that mentors buffer by providing holding behaviors, but we did not find this buffering effect when supervisors or coworkers provided holding behaviors. This potent mentor buffering effect held across a range of outcomes, including organizational commitment, physical symptoms of stress, insomnia, and stress‐related absenteeism. These studies suggest that mentoring may be a singularly effective relationship that offers a safe harbor for employees faced with ambient discrimination at work.     

Examining career-related mentoring and managerial performance across cultures: A multilevel analysis

The benefits of the mentoring relationship for protégés have been a primary focus in the mentoring literature. Researchers have recently begun to examine how mentoring can benefit the mentor. The purpose of the present study is to examine whether direct report-ratings of a manager’s career-related mentoring behaviors are related to boss-ratings of that manager’s performance. In addition, this study assesses whether the cultural background of the manager moderates the career-related mentoring-performance relationship via multilevel methodology. Results reveal that managers who are rated by their direct reports as engaging in career-related mentoring behaviors are perceived as better performers by their bosses. Moreover, the GLOBE societal culture dimension of Performance Orientation was a significant cross-level moderator of the career-related mentoring-performance relationship. Implications for the practice of mentoring in cross-cultural contexts across multiple disciplines are discussed.     

多水平导师指导行为对员工结果的影响机制

作为一种促进员工社会化和职业发展的工具, 导师制已在各类企业中得到了广泛应用。然而, 近些年员工工作需求以及组织工作方式的变化分别对导师指导行为的作用结果和指导内容产生了冲击。一方面, 传统导师指导行为作用的研究大多限于员工职业结果; 另一方面, 传统导师制的研究仍停留在一对一的指导, 忽略了针对徒弟群体的指导。为此, 将在现实观察和理论回顾的基础上, 首先提出多水平导师指导行为的概念, 包括为徒弟群提供“一致性”指导的“群体水平指导行为”与为单个徒弟提供“差异化”指导的“个体水平指导行为”; 然后, 检验自我效能与群体认同在多水平导师指导行为对徒弟个体和徒弟群体的工作绩效与非职业结果影响的中介机制, 以及不同水平导师指导行为对徒弟(群)结果的跨层交互效应。以期填补过去导师制在作用结果(仅仅关注职业结果)和指导内容(忽略群体水平)研究上的不足, 并为企业有效实施导师制提供启示与帮助。     

Self-initiated mentoring and career success: A predictive field study

There is a growing recognition of the proactive role of individuals in the world of work. Therefore, the roles of self-initiated mentoring and networking behaviors at the work place were investigated in a longitudinal study over two years with 121 early career employees in administrative and managerial jobs. As expected, after controlling for age, gender, and general intelligence, self-initiated mentoring predicted mentoring received, income, and hierarchical position. The relationship between self-initiated mentoring and career ascendancy was not meditated by mentoring received but by networking behaviors at the work place. The receipt of mentoring can be a part of the early career success yet it is not its critical mediator. Implications and limitations are discussed.     

Enhancing School Engagement in At-Risk,Urban Minority Adolescents Through a School-Based,Adult Mentoring Intervention

ABSTRACT

The current study investigated whether a 5-month, adult mentoring intervention delivered by school personnel could enhance the school engagement of ninth grade urban minority adolescents. Compared to 20 at-risk students who did not receive an intervention, 20 at-risk students who were randomly assigned to mentoring exhibited significantly less decline during the first year of high school in perceived teacher support and decision making and were less likely to enter the discipline system. The effects were stronger and included sense of school belonging for participants who were “mentored as intended.” Moreover, mentee and mentor reports of relationship quality were associated with changes in mentored participants' school-related cognitions and behaviors. The findings indicate that adult mentoring may help to prevent normative declines in urban minority youths' school engagement.     

Formal Mentoring in Military Academies

We examined the relationship between mentoring functions and protégé outcomes in formal mentoring relationships in military academies. A total of 424 (listed as 424 under Method) freshmen and 659 senior cadets from six different military academies participated in the survey. Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses suggest that career mentoring was positively related to mentor satisfaction and participants' provision of career mentoring to their protégés. Surprisingly, career mentoring was negatively related to freshmen's commitment to a military career. We found that psychosocial mentoring was positively related to mentor satisfaction and participants' commitment to a military career, leadership competency, and provision of psychosocial mentoring to their protégés. Furthermore, psychological mentoring was negatively related to stress. We discuss these findings and their implications for mentoring research and practices in the military.     

PROTÉGÉS NEGATIVE MENTORING EXPERIENCES: CONSTRUCT DEVELOPMENT AND NOMOLOGICAL VALIDATION

Two studies were conducted to operationalize the construct of negative mentoring experiences, establish content validity, and test theory-based predictions associated with a nomological network of related variables. As predicted, the negative experiences of mentor Distancing Behavior and Lack of Mentor Expertise were more often reported in the separation phase and among protégés in formally arranged mentoring relationships. All types of experiences were related to career-related support, psychosocial support, and learning, with Distancing Behavior being most highly related to career support and learning. Significant correlations were also found with relational complementarity, social exchange perceptions, intentions to leave the relationship, depressed mood, and psychological job withdrawal. Negative mentoring was also distinct from positive mentoring, general workplace stress, and dissatisfying social relationships at work, providing discriminant validity evidence. Finally, negative mentoring had explanatory power in predicting protégéoutcomes over and above positive mentoring. The findings are discussed in terms of future research on mentoring as well as applied practice.     

The Role of Familial Incarceration and Ethnic Identity in Suicidal Ideation and Suicide Attempt: Findings from a Longitudinal Study of Latinx Young Adults in California

Suicide is a leading cause of death among young adults; however, contextual risks and cultural factors are rarely studied in the context of ethnic minority suicidal ideation (SI) and suicidal attempt (SA). This study assessed the association between familial incarceration and suicide behaviors and examined ethnic identity as a potential moderator. Data from a longitudinal study of health among Hispanics (n = 1,094) in California were used to test associations between familial incarceration, ethnic identity, and SA and SI, adjusting for demographic factors and covariates. Approximately 18% and 8% of respondents reported SI and SA, respectively. Compared to no incarceration, or the incarceration of a relative, parental incarceration was associated with higher odds (AOR: 2.09, 95% CI: 1.23–3.34) of SI whereas higher affective ethnic identity reduced the odds (AOR: 0.52, 95% CI: 0.31–0.89) of SA. Ethnic identity moderated the association between parental incarceration and SI (AOR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.13–0.79). Incarceration of a family member can set the stage for exclusion from critical institutions and can have long‐term consequences for adult mental health. Promoting a positive ethnic identity may be a promising prevention strategy that could bolster resilience among at‐risk, urban minority youth.     

A Field Experiment Demonstrates Near Peer Mentorship as an Effective Support for Student Persistence

The attitudes and behaviors of peers can predict an individual’s own behaviors, particularly during adolescence. However experimental studies have not demonstrated how slightly older near peers can exert a positive influence on important aspects of school motivation that predict student academic achievement over time. We designed and evaluated the effects of a randomized controlled field experiment where 8th-grade participants were randomly assigned to either a mentoring treatment group or a tutoring control group, both led by randomly selected and trained high school students. As predicted, participants in the treatment group increased in their tendency to value and persist through academic difficulty compared to those in the control group, with important potential implications for academic achievement and peer mentoring programs.     

Mentoring Youth with Psychiatric Disorders: The Impact on Child and Parent Functioning

ABSTRACT

This study examined the effectiveness of a behavioral mentoring program aimed at serving youth with psychiatric disorders. Participants included 30 youth (8–12 years old) receiving services in a mentoring program for a mental health population and 30 wait-listed youth and their maternal caregivers. Participating in mentoring services was related to higher family functioning across a number of domains including child behavior, parenting stress, perceived parent social support, and perceived parent-child relationship quality. As predicted, parenting stress mediated the relationship between mentoring and children's externalizing behavior problems. Results suggest that mentoring services may be a useful adjunct service for highly stressed families with children with emotional and behavioral disorders.     

A Two-way Street: Mentor Stress and Depression Influence Relational Satisfaction and Attachment in Youth Mentoring Relationships

Over the past two decades, youth mentoring programs have increased in popularity as an intervention for children exposed to a range of stressful life circumstances. Such programs have been shown to promote positive youth development and reduce risk for emotional and behavioral problems; yet, the effect size of youth gains remains small. The current study examined the influence of college student mentors’ history of early life stress and baseline depressive symptoms on their effectiveness in youth mentoring relationships using 340 randomized mentor–youth pairs from College Mentors for Kids, a well-established mentoring program with chapters across the United States. Hierarchical linear models revealed that mentors with higher levels of depressive symptoms reported lower relationship satisfaction and increased avoidance in the mentoring relationship. In contrast, mentors who experienced higher levels of early life stress had youth who reported greater satisfaction in the mentoring relationship and decreased relational anxiety. These findings are some of the first to examine the impact of mentor characteristics on mentor–youth relationships and highlight the importance of considering factors relevant to psychosocial functioning and emotional distress when recruiting, training, and supporting college student mentors.     

Investigating Occupational Stress,Racial Identity,and Mentoring for African American Women in Health Care

This study examined the influence of racial identity and mentoring experiences on occupational stress among African American women in health care (N = 76). The women were surveyed about their occupational stress (role stress, psychological strain, and personal resources), racial identity, demographic information, and mentoring experiences. Results indicated that racial identity was negatively related to role stress and psychological strain, and level of education was closely related to personal resources. Mentoring was not found to have a significant impact on occupational stress as hypothesized. The implications for enhancing occupational satisfaction were discussed in relation to advocacy for career development professionals.     

Predictors of Premature Match Closure in Youth Mentoring Relationships

Although mentoring is a popular and effective means of intervention with youth, the positive effects of mentoring can be diminished by premature match closure of relationships. Program, mentor, and mentee characteristics were examined as predictors of premature match closure. Secondary data analyses were conducted on a large national database of mentoring programs consisting of match and youth risk information from 170 mentoring programs and 6468 matches from across the U.S. Premature closure was associated with mentee age at match inception and 19 individual mentee characteristics. The set of mentee characteristics were examined as part of a cumulative risk index encompassing seven conceptually combined categories including family background characteristics, school functioning problems, engagement in risky health behaviors, self‐regulation difficulties, engagement in illegal or criminal activities, and internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. Both the age of mentees when matched and the cumulative risk index score significantly predicted premature closure. Results are discussed in terms of directions for future research and suggestions for enhancing mentoring program practices.     

Mentoring in China: Enhanced Understanding and Association with Occupational Stress

Purpose  

Given the increased usage of mentoring programs in multi-cultural settings, including the Chinese workplace, the present study examined Chinese employees’ understanding of mentoring relationships and whether mentoring played a role in their occupational stress process.     

The Impact of Youth Risk on Mentoring Relationship Quality: Do Mentor Characteristics Matter?

Although mentoring is a widely used intervention strategy, effect sizes for at‐risk youth remain modest. Research is therefore needed to maximize the impact of mentoring for at‐risk youth who might struggle to benefit from mentoring relationships. This study tested the hypothesis that different types of youth risk would have a negative impact on mentoring relationship quality and duration and explored whether mentor characteristics exacerbated or mitigated these negative effects. Results showed that elevated environmental stress at a youth's home and/or school predicted shorter match duration, and elevated rates of youth behavioral problems, such as poor academic performance or misconduct, predicted greater youth dissatisfaction and less positive mentor perceptions of relationship quality. Mentors with greater self‐efficacy and more previous involvement with youth in their communities were able to buffer the negative effects of environmental stress on match duration. Similarly, mentors' previous involvement with youth buffered the negative effects of youth behavioral problems on mentor perceptions of relationship quality. Findings have important implications for the matching of mentors and at‐risk youth in a way that improves mentoring outcomes.     

Mentorship behaviors and mentorship quality associated with formal mentoring programs: closing the gap between research and practice

Formal mentoring programs continue to gain popularity within organizations despite limited empirical research regarding how these programs should be designed to achieve maximum effectiveness. The present study examined perceived design features of formal mentoring programs and outcomes from both mentor and protégé perspectives. The outcomes examined were career and psychosocial mentoring, role modeling, and mentorship quality. In general, the results indicated that perceived input into the mentoring process and training perceived as high in quality were consistently related to the outcome variables. Implications for the design of formal mentoring programs and future theory development are discussed.     

Mentoring college-age women: a relational approach

Despite the popularity of mentoring programs, the relational dimension of mentoring has not been elucidated. Traditional conceptions of mentoring may exclude factors that are particularly important for women and girls, thus limiting the efficacy of mentoring programs for female adolescents. We suggest that the presence of relational qualities in the mentoring relationship (e.g., empathy, engagement, authenticity, and empowerment) strongly influences the success of mentoring in the lives of young women. In this study, we use a promising new measure of mentoring, the Relational Health Index – Mentor, to explore the impact of relational aspects of mentoring in female college students. We found that mentoring relationships high in relational qualities were associated with higher self-esteem and less loneliness.     

Using Systems of Care to Reduce Incarceration of Youth with Serious Mental Illness

Youth with serious mental illness come into contact with juvenile justice more than 3 times as often as other youth, obliging communities to expend substantial resources on adjudicating and incarcerating many who, with proper treatment, could remain in the community for a fraction of the cost. Incarceration is relatively ineffective at remediating behaviors associated with untreated serious mental illness and may worsen some youths' symptoms and long-term prognoses. Systems of care represent a useful model for creating systems change to reduce incarceration of these youth. This paper identifies the systemic factors that contribute to the inappropriate incarceration of youth with serious mental illness, including those who have committed non-violent offenses or were detained due to lack of available treatment. It describes the progress of on-going efforts to address this problem including wraparound and diversion programs and others utilizing elements of systems of care. The utility of systems of care principles for increasing access to community-based mental health care for youth with serious mental illness is illustrated and a number of recommendations for developing collaborations with juvenile justice to further reduce the inappropriate incarceration of these youth are offered.     

Aggressive Behaviors and Suicide Ideation in Inpatient Adolescents: The Moderating Roles of Internalizing Symptoms and Stress

The present study examined a conceptual model in which the association between aggressive behaviors and suicide ideation is moderated by internalizing symptoms and ongoing stress. Participants were 304 psychiatric inpatient adolescents (65.8% girls) ranging in age from 12 to 17 years (Mean age = 14.69). The association between aggressive behaviors and suicide ideation was significantly moderated by internalizing symptoms and ongoing stress; the association was positive in adolescents low in internalizing symptoms or high in ongoing stress, but negative in adolescents high in internalizing symptoms or low in ongoing stress. The three‐way interaction between aggressive behaviors, internalizing symptoms, and ongoing stress was not statistically significant. The current findings indicate that in adolescents who display high levels of aggressive behaviors, the presence of high ongoing stress provides a more useful indicator of levels of suicide ideation than the presence of high internalizing symptoms. Implications for case identification and prevention are discussed.     

Mentoring support and power: A three year predictive field study on protégé networking and career success

Career success of early employees was analyzed from a power perspective and a developmental network perspective. In a predictive field study with 112 employees mentoring support and mentors’ power were assessed in the first wave, employees’ networking was assessed after two years, and career success (i.e. income and hierarchical position) and career satisfaction were assessed after three years. Networking was the most robust predictor of career success. Mentoring received predicted career satisfaction and its effects on objective career success were mediated by networking. Further, mentoring by a powerful mentor predicted objective career success beyond networking. Based on previous findings we argue that these findings underscore the critical relationship between early career employees’ networking behaviors and mentoring received.