Mentoring Adult Learners Implications for Cooperative Extension as a Learning Organization
A comprehensive summary of the existing literature on mentoring of adult learners, in the context of the Cooperative Extension System as a learning organization, reveals that structured organizational mentoring is needed in Extension to prepare and develop individuals to be future leaders in the organization. Further inquiry is needed regarding Extension as a transformative learning organization, the role of mentees in Cooperative Extension as adult learners, training needed for veteran Extension agents to effectively serve as mentors, and orientation processes for new hires on making the most of the relationship with a mentor. Introduction As defined in the literature, a mentor is a seasoned employee who offers advice about the values, beliefs, norms, and accepted rituals of an organization (Mincemoyer Thomson, 1998) A mentor should also be someone who can teach, guide, and protect his or her mentee (Godwin, Diem, Maddy, 2011) by providing vocational and psychosocial support and serving as a role model for desired behaviors (Gibson, Tesone, Buchalski, 2000; Lankau Chung, 1998) Regardless of industry, it is agreed on by many that mentoring is important to the success of new hires (Foote Solem, 2009; Sorcinelli, 1994) and the Cooperative Extension System is no exception (Kutilek Earnest, 2001; Mincemoyer Thomson, 1998; Nestor Leary, 2000; Ukaga et al. 2002) Smith, Hoag, and Peel (2011) surmised that "all agents could benefit from knowledge about how experienced agents have become and continue to be successful and what is required from the environment around them to cultivate success" "Introduction," para. 4) Placing new hires, without guidance, into positions and environments that may be unfamiliar and complex often leads to increased stress, poor working relationships, and reduced morale, productivity, and quality of work (Godwin et al. 2011; Place Bailey, 2010) Marina D'Abreau Denny Assistant Extension Professor Mississippi State University Starkville, Mississippi mdenny@humansci.m sstate.edu Organizational trends toward competency based training in the workplace have resulted in increased responsibility for providing learning development opportunities and career support to employees (Darwin, 2000) Workplace mentoring is one strategy for facilitating that career development and support (Kram, 1985) and has been shown to effect a wide range of positive outcomes for mentees (Danielson, 2002; Eby, Allen, Evans, Ng, DuBois, 2008) This type of mentoring can be formal or informal, typically occurs in an organizational setting, and fosters mentees' personal and professional growth (Gibson et al. 2000; Kram, 1985) Many institutions develop mentoring tools to facilitate successful relationships between mentors and mentees (Gibson et al. 2000; Kinsey, Carleo, O'Neill, Polanin, 2010) This article aims to provide a comprehensive summary of the existing literature on mentoring of adult learners, first in organizations on a broad scale and then within the context of the Cooperative Extension System. The purpose of this analysis of the current research is to provide suggestions on areas for further inquiry for Cooperative Extension. Mentoring Adult Learners The Learning Organization The learning organization is defined as a place in which employees create and transfer knowledge for the purpose of capacity building and desired behavior change (Garvin, 1993; Senge, 1990) Such an organization would be supported by a well managed mentoring program that could foster a culture of continuous learning and risk taking (Buck, 2004) Bokeno and Gantt (2000) described the environment that is required: Weaving learning practices into everyday organizational life involves methodological assumptions and procedures that thematize the idea of "safe places" where the risk taking and experimentation necessary for learning how to learn can happen without the fear and negative sanction associated with mistakes and failures. (p. 240) Adults Mentoring Adults Adults' mentoring of other adults does not have the same implications as adults' mentoring of children. Success of any adult mentoring relationship depends on several factors, including a mentor willing to commit his or her time and build trust (Zimmer Smith, 1992) a mentee committed to learning and growing personally and professionally (Cohen, 1995) and clear expectations and appropriate nurturing (Godwin et al. 2011) Often, there are ethical issues within mentoring contexts that may challenge the success of the mentor mentee relationship because traditional mentoring practices may come with unchallenged assumptions about knowledge and power (Darwin, 2000; Hansman, 2009) One way to recognize and address this potential for conflict is through honest communication. Both parties in the mentoring relationship have a responsibility to define openly and clearly their roles, goals, and expectations, but doing so can be difficult, especially early in the relationship, until an element of Feature Mentoring Adult Learners: Implications for Cooperative Extension as a Learning Organization JOE 54(3) (c)2016 Extension Journal Inc. 1 trust can be developed and nurtured (Bokeno Gantt, 2000; Cohen, 1995; Hansman, 2009) Functionalist views of mentoring assume that mentoring is a power dependent, hierarchical activity (Darwin, 2000) and may limit or even exclude certain individuals, such as women and minorities, from achieving total benefit from a mentoring relationship. As such, mentors should examine their unspoken power and privilege as a result of longevity, institutional knowledge, and existing relationships and consider how to use those elements to help mentees learn and grow (Hansman, 2009) On the other end of the spectrum, radical humanist perspectives of mentoring challenge power relationships of traditional mentoring and encourage creative risk taking, dynamic dialogue, and peer relationships to create new knowledge for both parties (Bokeno Gantt, 2000; Darwin, 2000; Zachary, 2005) Transformative Learning Cohen (1995) identified mentees in the workplace as adult learners. As such, they should experience learning that is transformative, meaning that they gain new perspectives and become more selfdetermined over time (Franz, Garst, Baughman, Smith, Peters, 2009; Mezirow, 2000) This goal requires mentors to use critical debate and questioning with mentees to encourage open discourse and analysis of personal assumptions (Cranton, 1996; Mezirow, 2000) Additionally, the acquisition of knowledge through mentoring becomes an active process that encourages curiosity and requires a dynamic, participatory approach from both the mentor and mentee (Darwin, 2000) According to Franz et al. (2009) for transformative learning to take place, five specific variables are needed in the learning environment of a mentoring relationship: (a) strong partner facilitation, (b) critical reflection, (c) a critical event, (d) difference between partners, and (e) the coexistence of independence and interdependence. Additionally, peer mentoring, in which colleagues are mutually involved in enhancing reciprocal learning and development without a defined power dynamic or hierarchy, is preferable to a manager subordinate type of mentoring relationship (Kram Isabella, 1985; McDaugall Beattie, 1997) Franz et al. (2009) and Daloz (2000) suggested that mentees should be paired with mentors who have backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences different from theirs; that both mentors and mentees should be trained in facilitation skills to have a more productive learning relationship; and that mentees should engage in critical reflection activities to make the most out of their transformative learning. However, a study by Allen and Eby (2003) on mentor effectiveness found that mentors reported higher quality mentoring relationships and greater reciprocal learning when paired with a mentee who was similar in gender and other demographic characteristics, along with having perceived similarities in attitudes, values, and beliefs. More specifically, Menges (2015) concluded that matching mentors and mentees with similar levels of openness to experience and conscientiousness produced enhanced outcomes of the mentoring relationship for the mentees. Impact of Workplace Mentoring Eby, Allen, Evans, Ng, and DuBois (2008) conducted a quantitative review of existing mentoring research in the three primary categories of mentoring youth, academic, and workplace. They found Feature Mentoring Adult Learners: Implications for Cooperative Extension as a Learning Organization JOE 54(3) (c)2016 Extension Journal Inc. 2 that workplace mentoring was significantly correlated to career attitudes, work attitudes, and some career outcomes, such as situational satisfaction and attachment. This finding was supported by prior research conducted by Allen, Eby, Poteet, Lentz, and Lima (2004) and Underhill (2006) On the other hand, workplace mentoring had less influence on health related outcomes, such as psychological stress and strain, and most career outcomes, including promotions and salaries (Eby et al. 2008) Qualitative research on mentees' positive mentoring experiences indicates that mentors' providing opportunities for networking outside the organization, assignments that offered broad skill development, help in developing relationships within the organization, and personalized feedback and career advice had the most significant impact on mentees (Eby McManus, 2002) However, the existing measures of mentoring functions of adults in organizational settings do not focus on identifying efficiency of many of mentoring behaviors (Allen et al. 2004) While mentees certainly can benefit from a formal mentoring program through increased knowledge, guidance, and support, mentors also benefit from being recognized for their efforts and gaining a sense of personal satisfaction (Darwin, 2000) The benefits to