Development of a Quantitative Measure of the Mentorship Experience in College Students

Abstract

Development of a Quantitative Measure of the Mentorship Experience in College Students Rebecca Lakin Gullan (bio), Kathleen Bauer (bio), Pierre Korfiatis (bio), Jennifer DeOliveira (bio), Kelsey Blong (bio), and Meagan Docherty (bio) In a single academic year, nearly two million individuals are projected to receive a bachelor’s degree from a college or university in the United States (Hussar & Bailey, 2013). Many of these graduates will not have the cognitive skills needed to successfully navigate the challenges of modern life (Flores, Matkin, Burbach, Quinn, & Harding, 2012; Kegan, 1994). Yet, emerging adulthood is a crucial time to develop an ability to critically and meaningfully engage with the world, as it is a “period of life that offers the most opportunity for exploration in the areas of love, work, and worldviews” (Arnett, 2000, p. 473). As such, Kegan (1994) suggested that institutes of higher education are ideal “holding environments” wherein emerging adults have the opportunity to develop a “self-authoring mind.” Within this context, Baxter Magolda (2002) recommended mentorship as a powerful means by which college students may develop the “capacity to define their own beliefs, identity, and relationships internally” (p. 3). Specifically, Baxter Magolda (2009) suggested that mentors who provide a balance between challenge (encouraging the development of personal authority) and support (validation and reassurance) help students develop the emotional, cognitive, and interpersonal skills necessary to succeed both within and beyond the college years. Although the importance of mentorship has been widely recognized, operationalizing and measuring critical components of the mentoring relationship has proved to be a greater challenge. As such, relevant assessment tools typically approach this multifaceted construct through in-depth qualitative methodology (Baxter Magolda & King, 2012). Of the few quantitative tools, most are not germane to college students or measure outcomes of mentoring, rather than the process itself. We focused on the development of a quantitative measure of mentoring relationships during the college years. Specifically, we investigated the factor structure of a measure assessing college student perceptions of their mentoring relationships with faculty/professional staff at their university. Questions were designed to reflect critical aspects of mentorship as [End Page 1049] defined by Baxter Magolda (2009) and to explore aspects of both challenge and support, particularly as they relate to the development of self-authorship, that is, the mentee’s internal sense of self and how he or she understands and relates to the world (Kegan, 1994). The measure was expected to serve as a means to effectively identify and assess aspects of the mentoring relationship fundamental to college student development. METHOD A principal components analysis was conducted using data from 321 undergraduate students at a small, private university. Students completed a 66-item measure asking about their experience with a mentor on campus. Participants reflected the overall campus composition in gender (70% female) and age (age mode = 19 years). The largest segment of participants identified as having a major in nursing and allied health (40%), and the second most common majors fell within behavioral and social sciences (34%). Participants represented all 4 years of enrollment, with 28% identifying as freshman, 31% sophomores, 21% juniors, and 20% seniors. Finally, 51% of students indicated that they lived on campus. After providing written, informed consent, each participant was asked to choose one faculty, coach, or other professional staff at the university whom he or she identified as a mentor and to complete a 66-item measure as it pertained to that specific relationship. The measure was created by a group of undergraduate students and one faculty member with the goal of reflecting developmental theory (Baxter Magolda, 2001; Kegan, 1994) and previous qualitative explorations of mentoring and self-authorship during the college years (Baxter Magolda, 2001; Baxter Magolda & King, 2012). In addition to assessing cognitive challenges (e.g., questioning/exploring decision-making) and support (e.g., time, patience, mutual intent), items were also included to assess the scope (e.g., brief/long-term, specific/broad) and formality (e.g., assigned/natural, formal/friendly) of the relationship. RESULTS Of the 333 students who completed a survey, 12 were not included due to incomplete or missing data. The final sample size (N = 321) satisfied the minimum amount of data needed for principal component analysis...