title: Culturally Diverse Undergraduate Researchers' Academic Outcomes and Perceptions of Their Research Mentoring Relationships.
abstract: Few studies have empirically investigated the specific factors in mentoring relationships between undergraduate researchers (mentees) and their mentors in the biological and life sciences that account for mentees' positive academic and career outcomes. Using archival evaluation data from more than 400 mentees gathered over a multi-year period (2005-11) from several undergraduate biology research programs at a large, Midwestern research university, we validated existing evaluation measures of the mentored research experience and the mentor-mentee relationship. We used a subset of data from mentees (77% underrepresented racial/ethnic minorities) to test a hypothesized social cognitive career theory model of associations between mentees' academic outcomes and perceptions of their research mentoring relationships. Results from path analysis indicate that perceived mentor effectiveness indirectly predicted post-baccalaureate outcomes via research self-efficacy beliefs. Findings are discussed with implications for developing new and refining existing tools to measure this impact, programmatic interventions to increase the success of culturally diverse research mentees and future directions for research.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Center for Women's Health Research University of Wisconsin, 700 Regent Street Suite 301, Madison, WI 53715, phone (608) 263-1731, ambwinst@medicine.wisc.edu.
authors.forename: Angela M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Byars-Winston
authors.affiliation: WISCIENCE, Wisconsin Institute for Science Education and Community Engagement, University of Wisconsin-Madison 445 Henry Mall, Room 109A Madison, WI 53706, phone: 608-262-1182, branchaw@wisc.edu.
authors.forename: Janet
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Branchaw
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Center for Women's Health Research, and Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin-Madison 1025 Johnson St. Madison, WI 53706, phone: 608-263-3451, cepfund@wisc.edu.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pfund
authors.affiliation: Department of Educational Psychology and Center for Women's Health Research, University of Wisconsin, 700 Regent Street Suite 301, Madison, WI 53715, phone (608) 263-2400, pleverett@wisc.edu.
authors.forename: Patrice
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Leverett
authors.affiliation: phone: 320-309-0220, josephrnewton@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Newton
keywords: mentored research experience; mentoring; social cognitive career theory; undergraduates; underrepresented minorities