Mentoring in the army: From buzzword to practice

As in many organizations, mentoring is a common buzzword in the U.S, Army. Yet, it is not dearly defined, and little data document the nature and exte nt of its practice. In addition, concern exists that, if White men are less likely to mentor women and minority members, mentoring may foster a so-cal led glass ceiling to future promotion:for women and minority personnel. Con sequently, surveys and interviews were conducted to examine how Army senior noncommissioned officers (NCOs)and commissioned officers conceptualize men toring, the prevalence of mentoring, and whether women and minorities have different mentoring experiences. Factor analysis showed 3 dimensions of men toring behaviors: Personal Development, Career Sponsoring, and Job Coaching . Most NCOs acid officers had been mentored. Neither women nor minority mem bers were at a disadvantage; no gender or race differences were found in wh ether they were mentored, in the type of assistance they received, and in t he helpfulness of those mentoring behaviors. However, differences occurred as a function of rank and type of organizational unit of those who were men tored.