Questions of Racial Diversity and Mentorship: An Empirical Exploration

Abstract

Despite social work's commitment to promoting equity within the profession and diversity that better represents the pluralistic population that receives social work services (Berger, 1990; Gibelman & Schervish, 1993), the body of knowledge in the social work literature that touches on race and mentorship has largely been limited to anecdotal or conceptual accounts (for example, Berger, 1990; Manoleas & Carrillo, 1991). To begin to address this gap in the knowledge base, this article describes a study that empirically explored the question of racial differences in mentor relationships among white professionals and professionals of color in human services settings. Involvement in mentor relationships has become increasingly recognized as an influential factor in the development of both senior and junior professionals in a number of fields and work settings (Kanter, 1977; Levinson, Darrow, Klein, Levinson, & McKee, 1978; Richey, Gambrill, & Blythe, 1988). Mentorship is thought to facilitate professional development by promoting the capacity to cope with difficulties and develop new competencies at the personal, interpersonal, and institutional levels. Having a mentor has been identified as a positive factor in career choice (York, Henley, & Gamble, 1988) and in retention, promotion, and advancement (Blackwell, 1989; Ezell & Odewahn, 1980; Kram, 1985; Manoleas & Carrillo, 1991; Zunz, 1991). Studies of career outcomes have found the presence or absence of mentor relationships to be related to differences in career satisfaction and success (Burke, 1984; Collins, 1994; Riley & Wrench, 1985) and income level (Collins, 1994; Roche, 1979). However, with few exceptions (for example, Carroll, Feren, & Olian, 1987; Thomas, 1993), little research exists that directly addresses the question of race in mentor relationships. This lack of knowledge is unfortunate because the United States is undergoing a demographic transition; people of color constitute the fastest growing segment of the population. By the year 2056 more than half of U.S. residents will trace their descent back to Africa, Latin America, and Asia - almost anywhere but white Europe (Henry, 1990). Although they come from differing cultural backgrounds, the characteristic common to people of color has been their minority status based on a phenotype and racial heritage that have differed from members of the white dominant group. In 1990 the three largest groups of people of color in the United States were African Americans (12.4 percent), Hispanics/Latinos (8.1 percent), and Asian and Pacific Islanders (3.0 percent) (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1991). Historically, people of color have been disadvantaged because their differences from the white majority were denoted as deficiency or inferiority, which served as a rationale for racial prejudice, discrimination, and oppression within the larger society (for example, Comas-Diaz & Greene, 1994; Rothenberg, 1995). However, increasing numbers of people of color have caused a changing American kaleidoscope (Fuchs, 1990), with cultural pluralism emerging as a more distinct feature of society. Such demographic trends and the ascendancy of cultural pluralism need to be reflected in the planning and delivery of mental health and social services (for example, Comas-Diaz & Green, 1994; Hopps, Pinderhughes, & Shankar, 1995; Pinderhughes, 1989). Thus, questions of race and mentorship among social workers are increasingly relevant in helping ensure that professionals of color are being developed to lend their voices, experience, and perspectives to the task of serving an increasingly diverse client population. A number of recurring questions concerning race and mentor relationships have appeared in the scholarly literature (for example, Carroll et al., 1987; Thomas, 1993) but have yet to be systematically addressed by social workers. The study described in this article represents a preliminary exploration of the following questions: Are mentor relationships more prevalent among white professionals than among professionals of color? …