Mentoring has been proposed as a human resource strategy to encourage recruitment and retention of nurses in Canada. However, very little research exists related to mentoring in nursing. The purpose of this study was to describe the mentoring perceptions of acute care, clinical registered nurses based on their years of nursing practice, age, gender, and education level. A descriptive correlational design was performed on an analysis of a subset of the pre-workshop data gathered as part of the research of Ferguson, Myrick, and Yonge (2006). The conceptual framework used to structure the research questions was Benners Novice to Expert model (Benner, 1984; Benner, Tanner, & Chesla, 1996). The main research question related to the relationship between nursing experience level and mentoring perceptions. More specifically, what is the relationship between age, years of nursing practice, education level, gender, and mentoring perceptions including perceived costs and benefits to mentoring, willingness to mentor, mentoring functions of coworkers, and satisfaction with current mentoring relationships? This research established that age, years of nursing practice on the current unit, and education level had some impact on mentoring perceptions. Older nurses believed that the mentor played a greater psychosocial function in the mentorship than did younger nurses. Nurses with fewer years of practice on their current unit perceived fewer costs to mentoring, were more satisfied with their mentor, and were more willing to mentor. Previous experience as a protégé positively impacted mentoring perceptions. Nurses with prior mentoring experience were more willing to mentor. There were no significant differences between nurses with diplomas or degrees as their basic or highest level of education in nursing and mentoring perceptions. Nurses with a baccalaureate degree in another discipline perceived more benefits to mentoring than their diploma-prepared colleagues. No significant differences were noted when comparing gender with mentoring perceptions. The results of this study will provide healthcare organizations with a deeper understanding of mentoring perceptions and mentorships. From the knowledge acquired by this study, organizations can better encourage and endorse formal and informal mentoring in acute care environments. Retention and recruitment of registered nurses can be facilitated through support for mentoring.

This study examines the relationship between career management and career advancement, and the moderating effects of mentoring support. Organizational career management practices (OCM) includes four dimensions (e.g. potential, feedback, succession, and development), which improve employees¡¦ skills and abilities, prepare them for higher level responsibility within the organization and contribute to career advancement. In addition, individuals, who are willing to manage their careers, have better awareness of themselves, developing appropriate strategies (e.g. networking, self nomination, increase visibility) to attain the opportunities of career advancement. Furthermore, mentoring support, such as providing challenging assignments, suggesting strategies for accomplishing work objectives, would enhance proteges¡¦ networking strength, and increase their visibility to powerful decision maker within the organization. It may moderate the relationship career management and career advancement. In this research, we use empirical data taken from 225 employees and through further data analysis we draw some research conclusions as follows. 1. The experiences of organizational career management facilitate the development of employees, and help them more realized their potential, which is related to career advancement. 2. Individual career management is positive related to career advancement. 3. Though hierarchical regression analysis, the results reveal that mentoring support is a moderator of organization career management, individual career management, career advancement.

As a result of recent social and political pressure and an increase in academic standards, there is a call to address academic and behavioral needs of at-risk students at the secondary level. Currently, many secondary schools are struggling to provide research-based interventions for these students. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a school-based mentoring program utilizing existing school staff and functioning within the constraints of a typical high school schedule, on at-risk students. The study aimed to add to the body of research on interventions in secondary settings and extend research on mentoring. Five at-risk high school students participated in the study which took place during the 2008-09 school year. All of the students received basic mentoring procedures, and three were identified for more advanced mentoring procedures half-way through the school year. Data was collected on academic and social outcomes and the viability of the intervention in the secondary setting. Overall, results of the study were mixed but indicated that the intervention was mildly effective for almost all students in at least one of the areas studied. Limitations of the study and implications for future research and practice are identified and discussed.

The purpose of this descriptive and correlational study was to examine factors to determine if a faculty-centered student advisement program, which was implemented at a rural community college, affects student retention in a positive manner. The Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) was incorporated, and data collected by this group provided the basis for the study. The study was a comparative study of quantitative parameters looking at five benchmarks. The five benchmarks included active/collaborative learning, student effort, academic challenge, student faculty interaction, and support for learners based on teaching, learning and retention in community colleges with regards to personal characteristics of age, gender, ethnicity, and enrollment status. Analysis of variance provided information between the benchmarks and personal characteristics and the quality of advising, and correlations were run using the various benchmarks and personal characteristics in order to determine any connections between the benchmarks themselves and quality of advising. In addition, the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), created by this rural community college, was analyzed from 2004 to 2006 to determine any inferred connection with the benchmarks and the quality of advising because of the implementation of the QEP. Findings show that, even though the survey CCSSE instrument used to determine student engagement and its function in student retention may not provide the most accurate results in general for Navarro College, the implementation of the faculty-centered student advisement program has coincided with an increase in graduation rates, an increase in fall to first fall persistence, and an increase in GPAs as evident at Navarro College.

A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted to determine the perceived levels of effectiveness and barriers for a successful mentoring relationship between mentors and mentees. Specifically, this study explored the formal mentoring relationships within Texas AgriLife Extension's Mentoring Program. Research was conducted on mentoring relationships from mentor and mentee perspectives to determine how they perceived the relationships' effectiveness, which may serve as a model for further research. The population for this longitudinal study was mentors and mentees in a formal mentoring relationship between the years of 2004 and 2008 within Texas AgriLife Extension Service. One hundred-six mentoring relationships were examined over a five year period. The data were gathered from an open-ended evaluation instrument administered at the end of the one-year mentoring relationship. Wells, (1997) served as the conceptual framework for this study. Wells's model is based on the nine roles of value-creating order, inspiring action, and improving performance-and was used to identify skills that could build professional capacity for a mentor and mentee. The findings of this study indicated that mentors and mentees perceived the formal mentoring program to be effective in sharing knowledge, resources, and experiences. Mentors and mentees indicated that the barriers of time, distance, differences, and work load existed and the relationship could have been improved if barriers were minimized. The perceived characteristics that emerged for an effective mentoring relationship were trusting, encouraging, and leadership. Recommendations were made that researchers should continue to look at training and processes for mentors and mentees preparing for a mentoring relationship.

The purpose of this study is to investigate differences found in self-efficacy perceptions regarding mentoring of trained mentors who were trained using a cognitive developmental model of mentor training, with mentor teachers who have received little or no training. The researcher was interested in whether the university based mentors, who participated in a cognitive developmental mentor training, would have a higher sense of self-efficacy and confidence in their mentoring as a result of the training than the campus mentors who received little or no training. Two groups of mentors participated in the study. One group consisted of university mentors who completed the Cognitive Developmental Mentor Training through Texas A&M University’s Mentoring Research Collaborative for Learning and Development. The campus mentors were from a suburban school district and volunteered to mentor. They were required to attend a one time district mentor training session. The university and campus mentors completed three components during the study. The three components included a self efficacy survey, an interview using open ended questions, and the completion of a mentoring narrative. The study followed a mixed method model. The researcher used both qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data. The researcher felt using both methods would offer the best explanation of the phenomenon of mentor self efficacy. The researcher used the basic interpretive approach, which requires constant comparisons of each type of data. The data collected from the self-efficacy survey indicated little or no difference in self-efficacy perceptions in regards to mentoring between the two groups. However, there were differences in the qualitative pieces of the study. The level of knowledge regarding mentoring differed between the two groups resulting in differences in the participants approach and definition of mentoring.

The training programs for a new coming can not only raise the professional capabilities of the employees and also develop the sense of belongings to the enterprise. Guided by a veteran, who can illustrate the norms of the business domain & the instruction the working guide for the rookies, the system is so called the ¡V Mentor and apprentice system. The system helps the new comings melt-into the enterprise quicker and accelerate the pace for the rookies to be familiar with their own workings, even mentally support counts one of the function in this system. Thus, for a rookie; ¡§Mentor¡¨ plays an important role in the cognition for the company, while the transition of the professional technology, the mentor affect the rookie in the mental aspects spontaneously. The study is focused on the group of liaison ¡Vbusiness as the studies target, the ¡§Mentoring¡¨ system as the premise & variations; to probe if the system affects the professions and the attitude for employees to the whole organization and to further aspects to find out the functions of this system, the relations of organization commitment and turnover intentions. The study has proofed as; 1. Demographic statistics variations as the major affects is tenable, to the system, organization & professional commitments and turnover intentions. 2. The system as a remarkable affect to organizational & professional commitment is tenable. 3. The system as a remarkable affects to the job-turnover intention is not tenable. 4. The organizational & professional commitment as remarkable affect to job-leaving is tenable. 5. Through the affect of organizational & Professional Commitment, the system as a remarkable parameter to job-turnover intention is tenable.

China Steel Corporation (CSC), established for more than thirty years, faces a problem of hundreds of middle level managers who will retire from the company in the near future, many successors are needed in the short term. Thus, how to quickly and effectively upgrade the managerment competency of new managers through various learning method becomes an important subject. This study takes CSC as a practical case and uses the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to analyze the connection between the manager core competencies and their enhancement methods .There are four core management competencies, including Planning& organization, Communications, Measurement & Evaluation and Executive Leadership, and there are four different learning methods also, including Job Experince ,Mentoring ,Classroom Lecturing,and Knowledge reading. A total of 24 employees in CSC were interviewed, including eight new (be a mentee), 8 senior managers (experienced persons) and 8 senior directors (be a mentor). It was proceeded by questionnaire supplemented with in-depth discussion.This study also takes the references from both domestic and international literature reviews. Hill (2007), professor of Harvard University, pointed out that there are five misconceptions of managing ability for a new manager,and he also emphasized the importance of an experienced manager¡¦s mentoring role. So, this study take the Mentoring learing method as the main topic to compare with the other enhancement methods. The study found that the Executive Leadership is the most important of four core management competencies in the case company CSC with a weighting 0.430. The Job experience and Mentoring are the most important of four enhancement methods with the weighting 0.357and 0.337. Moreover, The study result also indicates that the Mentoring is the best way to enhancement the competencies of the Executive Leadership. If the mentoring relationship can be set up at the very beginning stage when the new manager have promoted and be kept by one or two years, the learning effect will be more fruitful.

Thesis (EdD)--Open University. BLDSC no. DXN080745.

Thesis (M.S.)--East Carolina University, 2009. / Presented to the faculty of the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies. Advisor: Thomas K. Skalko. Title from PDF t.p. (viewed June 9, 2010). Includes bibliographical references.