Mentoring Bibliography (revised 5



MENTORING BIBLIOGRAPHY (Revised 11.15.05) 

This list has been compiled by Jennifer Lee Peterson. The resources on this list have been assigned a relevance rating (from 1-5) specifically for library staff identifying resources which could best inform a mentoring program design process.

Beyene, T., Anglin, M., Sanchez, W. & Ballon, M. (2002) Mentoring and relational mutuality: protégés’ perspectives. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education and Development, 41(Spring), 87-102. The authors present the results of a study which surveyed protégés to determine the nature of their mentoring relationships with special focus on mentoring as a mutually beneficial relationship. The results suggest that mentoring is indeed perceived as such and “that neither race nor gender were perceived as critical influences on the process but that friendship, nurturance, open-mindedness, and trustworthiness are key to mentoring relationships.” Relevance rating: 4

Bhatta, G. & Washington, S. (2003). 'Hands up': Mentoring in the New Zealand public service. Public Personnel Management, 32(2), 211-227. This article presents the results from the 2000 Career Progression Survey of public service employees regarding their perceptions of mentoring in New Zealand.  As research of mentoring practices tends to focus on the business sector, this provides a unique view of public service employee mentoring. The results provide evidence of the benefits of mentoring, but they also reinforce the assertion that mentoring has not yet come to be fully seen as a useful tool by public service employees in their career paths. Relevance rating: 3

Borchert, C. & Martin, J. (2002) Developing a Mentor Program at the University of South Florida. The Southeastern Librarian 50(2), 3-11. This article outlines a mentoring program for library school students who are paired with librarian mentors. The appendix contains a bibliography of further resources. Relevance rating: 2

Burke, R. & McKeen, C. (1989). Developing formal mentoring programs in organizations. Business Quarterly, 53(3), 76-80. This short but highly informative article provides a list of questions to ask in the process of developing a mentoring program. Included are strategies for encouraging mentoring relationships, ideas for the structure and requirements of the program, and a list of potential problems. Relevance rating: 5 

Clutterbuck, D. (2003) David Clutterbuck and Associates is the “world’s leading provider of mentoring programme support.” The following 10 articles can be downloaded from the Mentors Forum but does require registration for free access to articles .  Many are very short, but all are defined sufficiently by their title and provide relevant information to inform the program design process. Relevance ratings: 5

The Benefits of Mentoring

Coaching and Mentoring at the Top

Designing and Sustaining a Mentoring Programme

Developing Mentor Competencies

Formal v Informal Mentoring: Time to Shift the Debate?

How to Make the Most of Group Mentoring

Making your Mentoring Scheme Work

Mentoring for Diversity

Why Mentoring Programmes and Relationships Fail

Winding Up and Winding Down a Mentoring Relationship

Cole, P. (2004). Mentoring Relationships as a Tool for Creating a Professional Development Network. A paper submitted at the Information School, University of Washington, supplied by the author. This paper provides a good overview of literature which emphasizes developing peer mentoring relationships as a part of a developmental network.  The author provides an example matrix in the appendix to be used by employees to identify their needs and those in their work environment who can help address these needs. Relevance rating: 4

Dahle, D. (1998). Women’s Ways Of Mentoring. Fast Company, 17, p. 186. Retrieved on May 22, 2005 from This article shatters many of the stereotypes about mentoring with examples of women practicing “wo-mentoring.” Relevance rating: 4

Dansky, K. (1996). The effect of group mentoring on career outcomes. Group & Organization Management, 21(1) 5-22. This research focuses on group mentoring and the types of mentoring behaviors which arise out of group mentoring. These types of behaviors include: role modeling, inclusion/belonging, networking, and psychosocial support.  Skills development did not occur as much in the group mentoring situations studied by the author. Relevance rating: 2

Earl, M., Mack, T. & Southern, J. (2004) Mentoring at a Distance: Successful Matching of Experienced Librarians with School of Information Sciences Students via Electronic and Traditional Means. Technical Services Quarterly, 21(3), 53-65. This article focuses on a distance-mentoring program where students are paired with LIS alumni.  The authors used a needs assessment tool and evaluations to measure the effectiveness of the program. The tool can inform our survey and evaluation processes. Relevance rating: 3

 

Fisher, B. (1994). Mentoring. London: Library Association Publishing. This 63 page book, specifically on mentoring program development for libraries, covers definitions, roles, and skills and qualities of the mentor.  Relevance rating: 5

Geiger, A. (1992). Measures for mentors. Training & Development, 46(2), 65-68. This article outlines a mentoring program at McDonnell Douglas, a part of their “people policies.” There they seek to highlight the importance of continuous learning, improvement and innovation. They encourage everyone to be a mentor and to have one or more mentors. The article outlines the role of the mentor and provides details about their evaluation tool. Relevance rating: 4

Greengard, S. (2002). Moving forward with reverse mentoring. Workforce, 83(3), 15. Reverse mentoring is being utilized by many in corporate America to tap in to the technology skills of entry-level workers who often have a better understanding of technology than their managers. While not defined as reverse mentoring, newer librarians are often teaching new technology skills to their cohorts. This offers a reminder that everyone has something to offer in the network of learning. Relevance rating: 3

Hale, M. (1995). Mentoring women in organizations: practice in search of theory. American Review of Public Administration, 25(4), 327-340. The first half of this article specifically addresses gender issues in mentoring. The second half focuses on six areas of inquiry which the author uses to increase our understanding of how mentoring helps individuals and organizations grow. They deal with how mentoring intersects with organizational values and goals, quality, different organizational models, motivation, experiential differences, and strategic change. Relevance rating: 4

Hallam, G., Seymour, K. & Gissing, C.  What’s in it for me? Mentoring as a bridge to span personal and career development. Retrieved on October 23, 2004, from . This paper presented by members of the Australian Library and Information Association offers one of the few examples of a mentoring program for public library staff. It provides a good overview of mentoring, program development and evaluation. Relevance rating: 5

Hendricks, W., Editor. (1996). Coaching, Mentoring and Managing. Franklin Lakes, NJ: Career Press. Written primarily for the individuals working as managers, mentors or coaches, this book does identify key qualities necessary for successful mentoring. Relevance rating: 3

Higgins, M. & Kram, K. (2001). Reconceptualizing mentoring at work: a developmental network perspective. Academy of Management. The Academy of Management Review, 26(2), 264-288. The well respected Kram and Higgins provide a thorough investigation of mentoring within the changing contexts of our work cultures. They expand on Kram’s original proposition that individuals rely upon not just one but multiple individuals for developmental support, a phenomenon she calls “relationship constellations” or “developmental networks.” The multiple factors that shape the emergence of developmental network types are examined within informal relationships. Relevance rating: 5

Johnson, W.B. & Ridley, C. (2004). The elements of mentoring. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. This book is a concise presentation of all the information available on the subject of being a mentor. It could provide material for the training modules provided to interested mentors. Relevance rating: 3

Jones-Quartey, T. (2000). Mentoring - Reflections of a special librarian. Information Outlook Online, Retrieved on October 30, 2004, from This article presents a brief overview of mentoring before highlighting the mentoring experiences of the author. Roles and benefits are covered in addition to defining 3 types of mentors: Zap, Tutor and Vision mentors. Relevance rating 2.  

Kaye, B. & Jacobson, B. (1996). Reframing mentoring. Training and Development, 50 (8), 44-48. This article provides unlimited lessons in how to reframe mentoring based on past successes and failures.  The authors encourage utilizing “learning groups” and “learning leaders” in mentoring relationships and also highlight the role of the “development-minded manager” in making the relationships beneficial to all involved. Relevance rating: 5

Kochan, F., editor. (2002). The organizational and human dimensions of successful mentoring programs and relationships. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing. The first volume in the “Perspectives in Mentoring” series. This collection of essays addressed a variety of facets of mentoring: definitions, functions, purposes, lessons learned, research, descriptions of particular programs, and numerous personal perspectives of those engaged in mentoring relationships. Relevance rating: 4

Kochan, F. and Pascarelli, J., editors. (2003) Global perspectives on mentoring: transforming contexts, communities, and cultures. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing. The second volume in the “Perspectives in Mentoring” series. This volume explores the relationships between mentoring, culture and context in 19 different international programs. Relevance rating: 3

Kram, K. & Isabella, L. (1985). Mentoring alternatives: the role of peer relationships in career development. Academy of Management Journal, 28(1), 110-132. Another informative article from Kram, this study compares the developmental functions of mentoring relationships versus peer relationships.  “This study suggests that there are a variety of peer relationships- information peer, collegial peer, and special peer- that can support individual development of successive career stages.” The article describes these relationships as the way in which they change to fulfill the individual needs of different career stages. There is further comparison of peer relationships with more traditional mentoring relationships, emphasizing greater occurrences of reciprocity and mutuality in peer relationships. Relevance rating: 4 

Kuyper-Rushing, L. (2001). A Formal Mentoring Program in a University Library: Components of a Successful Experiment. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 27(6), 440-6. This is an excellent outline of the step-by-step process used in setting up the mentoring program for the library at Louisiana State University. It includes definitions, introduction of the program to staff, conducting a mentoring workshop, and evaluation. Relevance rating: 5

Lipton, L., Wellman, B. & Humbard, C. (2001) Mentoring matters: a practical guide to learning-focused relationships. Sherman,CT: Mira Via, LLC. Designed for teacher mentoring relationships, this book offers some great lessons in developing collaborative and learning-centered programs. Especially applicable are some of the tools. They suggest a rubric for self-assessment used to identify and qualify the desired characteristics of a mentoring relationship. Learning-focused growth plans and reflection journals are among the other tools they suggest. Relevance rating: 3

Martin, G., Reed, G., Collins, R. & Cortz, D. (2002). The road to mentoring: paved with good intentions. Parameters, 32(3), 115-128. The authors of this article were asked to consider adoption of a mentoring policy as a way to address the Army’s leadership development.  They conclude “that due to the competing definitions, unclear expectations, and perceived inequities associated with mentoring, the Army would be well-advised to resist reaching for a faddish solution reducible to a buzzword like mentoring.” Relevance rating: 3

Metz, R. (2001). Coaching in the library: a management strategy for achieving excellence. Chicago: American Library Association. Though this book focuses on the coaching relationship, it provides useful information specific to the needs of library organizations. Training suggestions for coaching can be applied to mentor roles.  Relevance rating: 3

Munro-Turner, M. (2003). Mentoring on purpose. Retrieved on October 30, 2004, from “This article explores how mentoring can be used to uncover purpose, what the impact on the individual of increased purposefulness can be, and how individual and organisational purpose can be aligned to the benefit of both.” The ideas presented here can inform the self-assessment and training modules. Relevance rating: 3

Murray, M. (2001). Beyond the myths and magic of mentoring: how to facilitate and effective mentoring process. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. This is the best comprehensive resource I found on mentoring program design. Part one addresses the concepts, benefits and pitfalls of mentoring for the staff and the organization and part two describes “facilitated mentoring” and how to make it work. The book includes useful mentoring models and addresses such aspects as recruitment, training and evaluation. Relevance rating: 5+

Nemanick Jr., R. (2000). Comparing formal and informal mentors: Does type make a difference? Academy of Management Executive, 14(3), 136. This is an excellent summary of the study done by Ragins and Cotton (1999, see below) which confirms the benefits of informal mentoring.  Relevance rating: 5

Parker, V. & Kram, K. (1993). Women mentoring women: Creating conditions for connection. Business Horizons, 36 (2), 42-52.  This article points out the obstacles women encounter in developing mentoring relationships. As women dominate the library profession, our experience may differ, but the article provides 5 helpful strategies for organizations to remove the obstacles to women’s connections: Increase Self-Awareness, Make Undermining Dynamics Discussible, Challenge Untested Assumptions, Build Multiple Relationships, and Create a Supportive Culture. Relevance rating: 3

Parris, C. (2000). A library mentoring program for the Millennium. Kentucky Libraries, 64 (2), 11-14. This article describes the development and early days of the Kentucky Library Association’s mentoring program.  The author emphasizes the importance of pilot projects and the flexibility of guidelines in the development process.  E-mentoring is also addressed. Relevance rating: 3

Phillips-Jones, L. Enhanced Informal Mentoring. Retrieved on October 4, 2004, from This short article describes “enhanced informal mentoring” and provides a list of suggestions for introducing and maintaining such a mentoring program. Relevance rating: 4

Ragins, B. & Cotton, J. (1993). Gender and willingness to mentor in organizations. Journal of Management, 19 (1), 97-112. This article presents the results of a study confirming that “women expressed equivalent intentions to mentor as men, even though they anticipated more drawbacks to becoming a mentor.” The authors encourage organizations to support women in mentoring relationships by providing training aimed at increasing women’s self-perceptions of their qualifications and by legitimizing and rewarding mentoring relationships. Relevance rating: 2

Ragins, B. & Cotton, J. (1999) Mentor functions and outcomes: A comparison of men and women in formal and informal mentoring relationships. Journal of Applied Psychology, 48 (4), 529-550. This article is often cited for the authors’ research confirming the benefits of informal mentoring relationships. The study compares a variety of mentor relationship types along with different gender combinations and concludes that informal mentoring relationships provide greater protégé satisfaction, greater compensation and provide more career outcomes than formal mentoring or non-mentoring relationships. Relevance rating: 3

Rutherford, L.H. (1999). Taking Charge of Your Professional Life: a Special Librarian’s Guide to Greater Work Satisfaction. Information Outlook, 3(9), 17-22.

Senge, Peter. (1990). The Fifth Discipline: the Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New York: Doubleday/Currency.

Small Business Association. Online Women’s Business Center. (Ohio Women's Business Resource Network, Columbus, Ohio and Women's Business Development Center, Chicago, Illinois, 5/97). Mentoring - What goes around, comes around. Retrieved on November 15, 2005, from This article clearly outlines the roles and responsibilities of mentors and protégés, provides a list of “do’s and don’ts” for mentors, and debunks some of the myths about the mentor/protégé relationship. Relevance rating: 4.

Sosik, J., Godshalk, V. & Yammarino, F. (2004). Transformational leadership, learning goal orientation, and expectations for career success in mentor–protégé´ relationships: A multiple levels of analysis perspective. Leadership Quarterly, 15, 241-261. This study looks closely at the type relationships that occur between mentors and protégés and supports the need for establishing and maintaining an organizational culture that encourages an awareness of the mutual learning opportunities for developmental relationships. The results emphasize that the goals and expectations of the relationship are based on the differences between the individuals in the relationship. Relevance rating: 2

Stone, F. (2004). The Mentoring Advantage: Creating the Next Generation of Leaders. Chicago, IL: Dearborn Trade Publishing. An excellent manual for any organization designing a mentoring program. Divided into four parts, this book includes: Building mentoring relationships, the effective mentor, and team mentoring, and the how-to of facilitated mentoring. Relevance rating: 5+

Tepper, B. (1995). Upward maintenance tactics in supervisory mentoring and nonmentoring relationships. Academy of Management Journal, 38(4), 1191-1206. This study provides support for informal mentoring as it relates to the ways in which protégés communicate with their mentors. The findings “imply that informal supervisory mentorships provide a nonthreatening context in which protégés can directly question and challenge their mentors and not have to perform ‘emotion work’ to maintain relational stability.” The report includes comparisons between supervisory, non-supervisory and non-mentoring relationships in addition to further comparisons between formal and informal mentoring. Relevance rating: 3

Trotta, M. (1995). Successful Staff Development. New York: Neal Schuman Publishers, Inc. This book includes a short chapter on mentoring with an overview of mentoring, a helpful survey for potential mentors to use to evaluate their qualities for mentoring, and a few lists with hints for and characteristics of good mentors. Relevance rating: 2

Turban, D. & Dougherty, T. (1994). Role of protégé personality in receipt of mentoring and career success. Academy of Management Journal 37(3), 688-703. This presents the results of a research study which confirms that the protégés’ personality characteristics are important determinants of the amount of mentoring they receive and whether they initiate the mentoring relationship. The authors conclude that there is a positive relationship between mentoring receive and career attainment. Relevance rating: 3

Wareing, I. Formal vs. informal mentoring: what’s the difference? Retrieved on October 30, 2004 from, the Growth Connection at This article summarizes the differences between formal and informal mentoring in a handy chart. The author also makes suggestions for how an organization can support informal mentoring. Relevance rating: 4

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