Influence of mentoring on the proactive behavior of new employees: moderated mediation effect of agreeableness

Objective

In recent years, faced with a complex economic development environment and the evolving dynamics of the Chinese workplace, talent has become a precious resource that is invaluable yet scarce for every enterprise. As Generation Z employees have gradually entered the labor market, they contribute new perspectives and energies to various enterprises and pose unique challenges. The traditional step-by-step approach no longer meets the needs of today's businesses. Companies require more proactive talents to drive superior performance. Individuals with proactive behavior can effectively plan their career paths and are better equipped to fulfill core organizational tasks. Therefore, it is crucial for organizations to effectively mitigate the perceived negative impacts of proactive behavior, encouraging individuals to exhibit more positive proactive actions.

Methods

Based on the proactive motivation model, this study investigates the effects of mentoring, balanced psychological contract, proactive behavior, and agreeableness on the proactive behaviors of new employees. The research surveyed 417 new employees from Guangdong Province, China, who had graduated within the last three years, with a gender distribution of 49.4% male and 50.6% female.

Results

Structural Equation Modeling was used for data analysis, and the following results were obtained: First, mentoring positively affected the balanced psychological contract and new employees' proactive behavior. Second, mentoring positively affected the new employees' proactive behavior through the balanced psychological contract. Third, agreeableness played a moderating role in the relationship between mentoring and new employees' proactive behavior, and in the relationship between mentoring and the balanced psychological contracts. Finally, the positive indirect effect of mentoring through the balanced psychological contract on new employees' proactive behavior is positively moderated by agreeableness.

Conclusion

The results of this study offer new insights into mentoring research for new employees and provide practical guidance for fostering the balanced psychological contract and proactive behavior among new employees. This research enriches the existing literature on mentoring for new employees by demonstrating the integral roles of agreeableness and a balanced psychological contract in fostering proactive behavior, offering valuable insights for organizational practices aimed at enhancing employee proactivity.

Mentorship reconsidered: A case study of K-12 teachers' mentor-mentee relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic

This study critically examined the impact of a crisis context (COVID-19 pandemic) on K-12 teachers by placing emphasis on the mentor-mentee dyad through the perspective of the mentee in a large United States public school system. A phenomenological case study was undertaken that used semi-structured interviews to examine 14 early career teachers (mentees) participating in a formal mentoring program during the 2020-2021 school year. The study focused on mentor-mentee relationships by accounting for the single most traumatic and transformative event of the modern era of K-12 public education. The analysis yielded three findings highlighting the impact of COVID-19 on the mentor-mentee dyadic experiences of first- and second-year teachers engaged in a mentoring relationship. The findings indicate that (a) e-mentoring allowed for avoidant behaviors from mentors (b) successful mentoring involves the development of personal relationships between a mentor and mentee, and (c) peer and reverse mentoring became commonplace during the COVID-19 pandemic. Public school systems can use these findings to help develop positive mentor and mentee relationships that go beyond the traditional dyadic roles and help reduce stress in a crisis context, while developing a culture where superiority bias is improved. Research implications offer mentoring literature a view to pay more attention to temporal influences during environments of high stress, which may provide more explanatory power on mentorship roles, cultural influences, and social interactions in the course of mentor-mentee practices.

Improvement of individual learning with mentoring programs for first-year undergraduate students

Introduction

This study presents a brief analysis of Spanish universities that promote mentoring programs with students. These mentoring programs are divided into different categories depending on the persons (faculty or students) involved in the process and their characteristics (for novice, senior, or international students). The case of the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria is presented, where first-year students from all undergraduate degrees are involved in an annual course where the core part is related to formal mentoring activities.

Methods

This study analyzes undergraduate degree students' outcomes and results from 10 different degrees for a period of 4 academic years (from 2016–2017 to 2019–2020). This first analysis corresponds to students' activities and marks awarded on the assessment of the assigned mentoring tasks related to the competencies of critical thinking, proactivity, personal knowledge (with the objective of acceptance and improvement), and the ability to ask transcendental questions. Then, a reliable and valid survey, conducted every year to all senior students, was used to get feedback from students.

Results

After a quantitative and qualitative analysis of students' results, it was noticed that they become more confident in their studies when they engage in mentoring-based courses and sessions, and this benefits their lives. All this information led to the improvement of the mentoring process.

A systematic scoping review of communication skills training in medical schools between 2000 and 2020

BACKGROUND

Communication skills training (CST) remains poorly represented and prioritised in medical schools despite its importance. A systematic scoping review (SSR) of CST is proposed to better appreciate current variability in their structure, content, and assessment. This is to guide their future design in medical school curricula.

METHODS

The Systematic Evidence-Based Approach (SEBA) was used to guide concurrent SSRs of teaching and assessment in CST. After independent database searches, concurrent thematic and content analysis of included articles were conducted separately. Resultant themes/categories were combined via the jigsaw perspective to provide a more holistic view of the data. These were then compared to tabulated summaries of the included articles to create funnelled domains.

RESULTS

52,300 papers were identified, 150 full-text articles included, and four funnelled domains were identified: Indications, Design, Assessment, and Barriers and Enablers of CST. CSTs confer numerous benefits to physicians and patients. It saw increased confidence, improved diagnostic capabilities and better clinical management, as well as greater patient satisfaction and treatment compliance. Skills may be divided into core, prerequisite competencies, and advanced skills pertinent to more challenging and nuanced scenarios - such as population or setting-specific situations. CST teaching and assessment modalities were found to align with Miller's Pyramid, with didactic teaching gradually infused with experiential approaches to enhance their understanding and integration. A plethora of CST frameworks, teaching and assessment methods were identified and are presented together.

CONCLUSION

While variable in approach, content and assessment, CST in medical schools often employ stage-based curricula to instil competency-based topics of increasing complexity throughout medical school education. This process builds on the application of prior knowledge and skills, influencing practice and, potentially, the students' professional identity formation. In addition, the institution plays a critical role in overseeing training, ensuring longitudinal guidance and holistic assessments of the students' progress.

Exploring learning outcomes for managers who coach

Purpose

As a part of a larger study, the purpose of this study is to explore the learning outcomes for the “manager as coach” when exemplary managers are engaged in coaching their respective employees.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative, multi-case study using an adaptation of the critical incident technique and semistructured interviews was employed with 12 managers and their respective direct reports totaling 24 interviews. Content and constant comparative analyses were used to analyze the data.

Findings

A total of five themes and 19 subthemes were identified regarding managers’ learning outcomes from managers’ perspectives. From the perspectives of their employees as coachees regarding their managers’ learning outcomes, one theme with three subthemes emerged.

Originality/value

Limited empirical research has explored the developmental outcomes for managers who serve as coaches for their employees. This study examined the outcomes associated with managerial coaching from both the perspectives of the managers who coach and their direct reports. The findings of this research provide more insight into the benefits managers derive from coaching their employees.

Intentional mentoring: maximizing the impact of underrepresented future scientists in the 21st century

Mentoring is a developmental experience intended to increase the willingness to learn and establish credibility while building positive relationships through networking. In this commentary, we focus on intentional mentoring for underrepresented mentees, including individuals that belong to minority racial, ethnic and gender identity groups in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM) fields. Intentional mentoring is the superpower action necessary for developing harmony and comprehending the purpose and value of the mentor/mentee relationship. Regardless of a mentor's career stage, we believe the strategies discussed may be used to create a supportive and constructive mentorship environment; thereby improving the retention rates of underrepresented mentees within the scientific community.

Are self-leaders more willing to mentor others? A study among Indian and Spanish university teachers

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand the influence of self-leadership on the intention to mentor among university teachers considering the mediating role of self-efficacy and the moderating role of individualism-collectivism dimensions.

Design/methodology/approach

A standardized questionnaire was used to collect data from Indian (n=88) and Spanish (n=105) university teachers. The hypothesized relationships were analyzed using structural equation modeling and hierarchical multiple regression analysis.

Findings

Self-leadership strategies influence the intention to mentor through university teachers’ self-efficacy. The positive relationship between self-efficacy and intention to mentor becomes stronger when the respondents are inclined toward vertical collectivistic or horizontal individualistic values.

Research limitations/implications

The study extends mentoring literature since it incorporates both individual and cultural variables, allowing observing their interplay and giving a holistic understanding of the issue. The main limitation of the study is its cross-sectional survey design, which is the use of data collected from a single-sitting, self-reporting measure. Different procedures were used to control method biases.

Practical implications

Intention to mentor can help university teachers (especially the younger staffs) and students to establish the process that can reinforce their commitment toward realistic goals. In the long term, entering into a mentoring relationship might boost self-efficacy and self-leadership qualities of the mentors themselves.

Originality/value

The comprehensiveness and relevance of the variables in the context chosen is the primary strength of this research. In the scenario of increasing professionalization and globalization, the cross-cultural nature of this study brings in a global perspective of the research problem.