Nachwuchsförderung durch Mentoring — eine kritische Bestandsaufnahme

Despite a high number of publications about mentoring there is still a lack of an overall accepted definition for this conception. In this paper different views of mentoring are compared and are critically analysed. Kinds of mentoring relationships, theoretical approaches concerning mentoring functions and relevant predictors of mentoring outcome are considered. Especially the change of the mentoring concept from a one-to-one-relationship to a supportive network is discussed and several approaches to highlight mentoring from a theoretical perspective are described. Finally a survey of empirical results is given about the effectiveness of mentoring and determinants are resumed which support a positive or negative mentoring outcome. The paper finishes with conclusions for further research.     

Mentoring in the social context: Mentors' experiences with mentees' peers in a site-based program

The primary mechanism by which mentoring promotes positive outcomes is typically considered to be the one-to-one relationship between mentor and youth. However, many mentoring relationships, particularly those in site-based programs, unfold within and are influenced by the larger contexts in which mentoring takes place. In the present study, we examined 161 first-person accounts written by college students serving as Lunch Buddy mentors in an elementary school-based mentoring program. This examination aims to glean insights into mentors' experiences of and responses to their mentees' peers as they carried out the mentoring relationship in a school cafeteria setting, and the ways that mentors' engagement of mentees' peer networks might have influenced the mentoring process. Our analyses delineate the different approaches taken by mentors to engage mentees' peers, and the challenge of focusing on the mentoring relationship while also managing interactions involving mentees' peers. Findings shed light on how the contexts in which mentoring relationships occur shape the course and function of mentoring, and expand our understanding of the processes through which mentoring relationships can promote positive change for mentees.     

Student Training Promotes Mentoring Awareness and Action

Student training is a critical but often overlooked aspect of the mentoring process. Composite mentoring, involving the strategic selection of a diverse set of mentors, is proposed to guide students to take a more active role in their own mentoring experiences. A mentoring program with composite mentoring as a guiding framework was designed and implemented for college women pursuing science careers. The effectiveness of the program is illustrated, and students reported enhanced mentoring and career‐related experiences. Implications for advising, career counseling, and mentoring program design are discussed.     

North Central Sociological Association 2018 Teaching Address: John F. Schnabel Lecture Teaching as Mentoring; Mentoring as Teaching

Graduate student mentoring is widely considered a critical element of postbaccalaureate education, yet the mentoring of undergraduates is a frequently neglected topic in academic discourse. The benefits of mentoring are all too often reaped by only a small group of students who demonstrate academic promise. Yet the impact of mentoring on undergraduate student persistence is resoundingly positive, especially for students in the academic middle and the students most at risk of abandoning the pursuit of higher education. Much of the academic discussion of mentoring undergraduate students focuses on the possibilities presented via independent research projects, academic advising, and more formal mentoring programs. Although substantial debate exists regarding what mentoring is, and how or whether it is achievable en masse, I propose that teaching itself can exist as a form of mentoring, and vice versa, especially within the small liberal arts university environment.     

It's good to know that you got somebody that's not going anywhere: Attitudes and beliefs of older youth in foster care about child welfare-based natural mentoring

This exploratory study is the first to investigate the attitudes and beliefs of older adolescents in foster care toward the implementation of a child welfare-based natural mentoring intervention designed to promote enduring, growth-fostering relationships between youth at risk of emancipation and caring, supportive nonparental adults from within the youth's existing social network. Six focus groups were conducted with 17 older youth in foster care attending a specialized charter high school for young people in out-of-home care in a large, urban city in the Northeast United States. Focus group data were transcribed and analyzed using a conventional content analysis approach. The following significant themes emerged related to natural mentoring for older foster youth emancipating from care: (1) need for permanent relationships with caring adults, (2) youth conceptions of natural mentoring, (3) unique challenges related to natural mentoring for youth in foster care, (4) role of a natural mentoring intervention in child welfare, and (5) challenges for implementing a child welfare-based natural mentoring intervention. Overall, our findings suggest that these young people are cautiously optimistic about the potential of a child welfare-based natural mentoring intervention to promote their social and emotional wellbeing. Future studies are needed to better understand the experiences of older foster youth with an actual natural mentoring intervention, including challenges, opportunities, and outcomes.     

Cultural Variants and Social Work Practice in India

In social work field education, mentoring is underused and lacks research data. There is a paucity of research that examines the effect mentoring has on social work field directors who administer field programs at the undergraduate and/or graduate level. This exploratory study fills this void by examining the mentoring opportunities and experiences of field directors. The results show that there is a desire by field directors to receive assistance and collaborate with mentors on scholarly activities. The most helpful aspects of mentoring include having a mentor who acted as a sounding board, gave advice on administering the field program, and provided strategies for success. Suggestions for future research on mentoring field directors are presented.     

Critical feminist analysis of STEM mentoring programs: A meta-synthesis of the existing literature

We conducted a meta-synthesis review of existing literature on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) mentoring programs for women. Critical feminist theory (CFT) was used to understand how mentoring programs support retention and occupational advancement of women in traditionally male-dominated STEM fields. Four primary strands of CFT were explored: gender, oppression/patriarchy, social institutions, and systemic change. Traditional models of mentoring encompass varied approaches, including institutionally enforced programs, formal and informal programs, paired peer grouping, as well as face-to-face and online forums. However, low levels of retention and self-stated lack of professional satisfaction for women in STEM fields continue to plague those professions. This study reviews the literature on mentoring programs that have been implemented to support women in STEM, thus adding to the epistemology of mentoring women in STEM through feminist discourse.     

Feminist Mentoring and Female Graduate Student Success: Challenging Gender Inequality in Higher Education

There has been much research on gender inequality in higher education and the benefits of mentoring. However, since mentoring has been a predominantly male experience, most research with female students focuses on advising relationships. For women, there is a significant difference between experiences of advising and mentoring with problematic effects for them. Attrition rates are high for both men and women but the causes of female attrition are unique and possibly related to their mentoring experiences. Mentoring remains largely an informal activity in most graduate departments, and due to the patriarchal nature of graduate education, it has been a predominantly male experience ( Lovitts 2001 ). In this paper, I provide an overview of the different types of advising/mentoring relationships for women in doctoral programs and the benefits of these for them. The paper concludes with a discussion of policy implications for graduate departments, suggestions for future research, and a call for developing and implementing feminist models of mentoring for all graduate students.     

Structuring a multi-site evaluation for youth mentoring programs to prevent teen alcohol and drug use

Despite mentoring's rapidly increasing popularity as an intervention for the prevention of teen alcohol and drug abuse and associated problems, there is little research consensus on its overall effectiveness or on the core principles and components that define effective mentoring. To advance knowledge concerning this important prevention intervention, the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention has designed and funded a multi-site cooperative agreement involving seven mentoring programs. The programs are designed to provide a rigorous outcome evaluation that allows comparisons of differing approaches to organizing and delivering mentoring services to adolescents at high risk for substance abuse. The cooperative agreement guidelines set service parameters and options that focus on issues that are grounded in past research on mentoring prevention interventions. The cooperative agreement includes a quasi-experimental, longitudinal multi-site evaluation that provides evidence-based recommendations to advance the effective use of mentoring as a prevention strategy.     

Challenges in mentoring at-risk young adults: caseworkers’ perspective

ABSTRACT

This exploratory study examines the barriers, challenges and needs of 30 caseworkers who mentor at-risk young adults during the transition to adulthood. Professional mentoring relationships are an important source of support for at-risk young people. However, literature concerning the mentoring relationship from the perspective of the mentors is scarce. The theoretical thematic analysis revealed two major themes. The first theme- included challenges related to the young adults’ personal histories and characteristics. The second major theme related to the mentors’ expertise within their own services. The most dominant needs during the mentoring process were broad and current knowledge and ongoing training and support. The findings are discussed in relation to the mentoring literature and emerging adulthood theory. Implications for practice highlight the importance of the design and assimilation of programs that enable the promotion of meaningful mentoring relationships via organisational modifications.     

Reducing Risk for Youth Violence by Promoting Healthy Development with Pyramid Mentoring: A Proposal for a Culturally Centered Group Mentoring

This article proposes ways to promote healthy psychosocial development among at-risk young African American males with a multigenerational culturally centered group mentoring intervention. The potential for addressing commonalities of risk factors for both internalized and externalized responses to environment stressors is discussed. The authors propose an innovative group intervention that is influenced by social learning theory, the triadic theory of influence, identity, and cognitive development theory. The article also highlights research that suggests benefits of culturally and therapeutically centered group mentoring. The focus of the proposed intervention is on psychosocial assets that are utilized to nurture life skills developed within the framework of a culturally centered multigenerational group mentoring process called pyramid mentoring.     

The Impact of Gender Characteristics on Mentoring in Graduate Departments of Sociology

There has been much research on gender inequality in graduate education and the benefits of mentoring. However, most of this research focuses on how mentoring addresses female graduate students’ experiences of gender inequality instead of how the gender characteristics of departments impact the level of mentoring they offer. In particular, I examine how the gender composition of departments in terms of faculty and administration as well as faculty awareness of gender inequality or feminist issues influences the types of mentoring structures found in graduate departments of sociology. Bivariate correlations indicated that these characteristics (gender characteristics in particular) had significant relationships with mentoring structures in departments. This study concludes with a discussion of these relationships, an overview of policy implications, and suggestions for future research.     

Mentoring Improves Acceptance of a Community Intervention For Court-Referred Male Persons in Need of Supervision (PINS)

Despite excellent community-based interventions for court-referred adolescent boys, low rates of retention in the initial phase of treatment often lower overall effectiveness. This study assessed the contribution of mentoring towards improving compliance with a community-based intervention for court-referred adolescent male Persons in Need of Supervision (PINS). Charts on 79 court-referred adolescent boys (mean age=14.28; SD=1.37) admitted to a community based intervention in a large metropolitan area were systematically reviewed for patterns of service utilization (mentoring and group treatment), familial history, and substance use and psychopathology. Male adolescent PINS who utilized mentoring were ten times more likely to remain in the community-based intervention during the initial 6 months. Following the initial 6 months period, utilization of group treatment, but not mentoring, was associated with retention in the community-based intervention and positive outcome. Community-based intervention for court-referred adolescents might include mentoring during the initial 6 months of treatment to improve compliance.     

Natural mentoring among older youth in and aging out of foster care: A systematic review

Due to their histories of caregiver maltreatment, living instability, and potential attachment challenges associated with out-of-home care, older foster youth represent a particularly vulnerable group of adolescents at increased risk for a number of poor well-being outcomes. However, research supports the notion that a relationship with a competent, caring adult, such as a mentor, may serve protectively for vulnerable youth, and a nascent yet growing body of literature suggests that naturally occurring mentoring relationships from within youth's social networks are associated with improved outcomes among young people in foster care during adolescence and the transition to adulthood. This systematic review is the first to comprehensively identify, synthesize, and summarize what we currently know from nearly a decade of theories, concepts, and research findings pertaining to natural mentoring among adolescent youth in foster care. A bibliographic search of seven databases and personal outreach to mentoring researchers and practitioners through a national listserv yielded 38 English-language documents from academic sources and the gray literature pertaining to natural mentoring among older foster youth. We identified quantitative studies that have been conducted to test the theories and hypotheses that have emerged from the qualitative studies of natural mentoring among youth in foster care. Together, this literature suggests that natural mentoring is a promising practice for youth in foster care. Based on our findings from the systematic review, we make practice recommendations to encourage the facilitation of natural mentoring within child welfare contexts and outline an agenda for future research that more rigorously investigates natural mentoring among older youth in foster care.     

Letter to the Editor

In a telephone survey 18 new social work educators responded to questions about their perceptions of mentoring in their first years as faculty members. Results indicate that new social work faculty believe mentoring relationships provide them with multiple benefits, including improved teaching and research performance. Data also suggest that programs must be carefully developed and supported if protégés, mentors, and their organizations are to fully realize these benefits. Factors such as mentor-protégé matching, mentor characteristics, the roles of mentors, organizational support, and the mentoring process must be considered if a successful mentoring program is to be implemented.     

Understanding How Peer Mentoring and Capitalization Link STEM Students to Their Majors

This study investigated the role of peer mentoring and voluntary self‐development activities (i.e., capitalization) in anchoring science, technology, engineering, and mathematics students to their college majors. Online data were collected from 214 undergraduate students. As hypothesized, mentoring was positively related to capitalization, and both mentoring and capitalization were positively related to satisfaction with one's major, affective commitment to one's major, involvement in one's major, and willingness to be a mentor. Contrary to expectations, capitalization did not mediate the relationship between peer mentoring and student outcomes, suggesting that these constructs contribute independently to positive outcomes. Implications and future research directions are discussed.     

The Impact of Superior-Subordinate Gender on the Career Advancement of Public Relations Practitioners

Mentoring relationships may affect career advancement opportunities for public relations practitioners, which in turn may impact role enactment and professional growth of practitioners. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to measure differential treatment of men and women in public relations with regard to mentoring and to assess the impact of mentoring on the career advancement of both groups. Findings indicate that subordinates and superiors of the same sex tend to have a more active and intense mentoring relationship than mixed-sex pairings. Female supervisors in public relations offer more active and intense mentoring to their subordinates than do male supervisors. Paradoxically, superior mentoring by female superiors yields fewer career advancement opportunities for their subordinates. Male supervisors seem more effective than female supervisors in providing subordinates career advancement. Practitioners with male mentors, regardless of gender, tend to have greater access to management advancement and have more opportunities to enact the manager role.     

Mentoring in social work: key findings from a women's community-based mentoring program

Based on a social intervention research study into mentoring with women from socioeconomically disadvantaged communities, this study considers some of the key differences between traditional workplace and community-based mentoring when used as a social work intervention. The study involved 18 women who participated in a preparation-for-mentoring groupwork program for 12 months. Eleven of these participants were then matched with a mentor and supported in this relationship for a further 12 months. Qualitative analysis points to three key factors likely to enhance the success of community-based mentoring relationships: (i) relational qualities, such as trust, engagement, and authenticity; (ii) mentees' readiness for change and ability to overcome adversity; and (iii) mentors' practical assistance with tasks and overcoming obstacles. Social workers implementing a community-based mentoring program need to be mindful of the importance of these factors in order to ensure that mentees are supported to engage effectively in any mentoring relationship and overcome structural, community, and familial barriers that may adversely affect them.