Race and Gender Differences in Undergraduate Research Mentoring Structures and Research Outcomes

Abstract

Undergraduate research with mentorship from faculty may be particularly important for ensuring the persistence of women and minority students in science. This study examines whether undergraduate researchers’ outcomes differ in relation to their gender or race/ethnicity and whether the mentoring structures they experience explain the differences.

Testing models of reciprocal relations between social influence and integration in STEM across the college years

“…However, we suspect that refinements to the operationalization of mentor network characteristics may produce stronger effects than were shown in the present study. Specifically, recent research has shown unique benefits associated with having peer mentors, as well as being involved in an undergraduate–postgraduate–faculty triadic mentoring relationship [ 49 , 66 , 67 , 115 ]. Therefore, future research on the effects of mentor networks may need to measure specific network structures and the quality of those relationships, rather than mentor network role diversity, as was done in the present study.…”

“…Third, prior tests of the TIMSI prediction linking mentoring to social influence processes and integration operationalized mentoring as the level of support received from a single (typically faculty) mentor. However, advances in mentorship theory have postulated that developing a diversified network of mentors (i.e., diversity in roles [faculty, post baccalaureate, more advanced undergraduate, peer]) can provide mentees with more comprehensive support for their learning and career development [ 15 , 66 – 72 ]. Mentor network theory suggests individuals benefit from having a diversified network because they are able to rely on the specific strengths of individual mentors serving in a specific supportive role rather than relying on a single mentor providing support across multiple roles.…”

“…Mentor network theory suggests individuals benefit from having a diversified network because they are able to rely on the specific strengths of individual mentors serving in a specific supportive role rather than relying on a single mentor providing support across multiple roles. Although there is scant longitudinal evidence for the theorized link between mentor network characteristics and social influence processes, cross-sectional research indicates that undergraduate STEM majors with larger and more diverse networks of scientific mentors report higher levels of scientific self-efficacy and identity [ 66 , 67 , 73 ]. Thus, testing TIMSI predictions where mentorship is operationalized in terms of both the quality of support from a faculty mentor and mentor network diversity may reveal theoretically important information about the kinds of support that lead to social influence.…”

Impostor phenomenon in STEM: occurrence, attribution, and identity

“…In this study, the role of others was evident only while describing how gender identity added to the impostor feelings among women who received disparaging comments from peers and colleagues. Recent research has described the value of forming closed-mentorship networks or triads among undergraduates, new or advanced graduate students/postdocs and faculty members to provide advice, psychosocial support and mentorship (Aikens et al, 2016(Aikens et al, , 2017Chakraverty et al, 2018). As a follow-up to this research, interviews in Phase 2 of the larger study focus on the role of peers, mentors and advisers in perpetuating the impostor phenomenon.…”

The Supervisory Role of Life Science Research Faculty: The Missing Link to Diversifying the Academic Workforce?

“…Trainees and laboratory members have requested more supervisory training for their principal investigators (PIs), and in our experience, many faculty agree, especially future and junior faculty (45). However, the responsibilities of research faculty towards their trainees are often shared or passed on to graduate students and postdoctoral scholars, resulting in varied outcomes for different HU groups (44,49,50). In particular, undergraduates have reported negative experiences with graduate students and postdoctoral scholars that involve "scapegoating" and described how these negative relationships "hardened [their] shell" (44).…”