Interaction of gender, mentoring, and power distance on career attainment: A cross-cultural comparison

Abstract

This article examines how demographics (gender) and cultural values (power distance) differentially moderate the relationship between mentoring (mentor presence) and career attainment (compensation and organizational position) among 390 managers and professionals in two contrasting cultures (Taiwan versus the USA). The four-way interaction of gender x mentor x power distance x country was significant for both dependent variables, supporting our hypotheses based on theories of power distance and gender egalitarianism. In hierarchical cultures such as Taiwan’s, mentored women with high power distance reported higher career returns than did mentored women with low power distance. In contrast, in egalitarian cultures such as the USA’s, mentored women with low power distance reported higher career returns than did mentored women with high power distance. Our findings demonstrate variation in mentoring outcomes, not just across, but also within, cultures for men and women. We discuss results along with implications for mentoring and cross-cultural theory, research, and practice.