Impact of mentoring on practicing engineers: a meta-synthesis
ISSN: 1366-5626
Article publication date: 8 August 2018
Issue publication date: 23 October 2018
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present a literature review to examine the career development outcomes on practicing engineering novices who are being mentored at work, and factors of mentoring that contribute to those career development outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a meta-synthesis, the research premises and findings of 12 articles identified through a systematic search of nine databases were examined and synthesized, to identify the most common career development outcomes and the most influential factors contributing to these outcomes.
Findings
The most common contributing factors were found to be job characteristics, career development mentoring support, psychosocial mentoring support and mentoring methods. The most frequent career outcomes were career satisfaction and promotion.
Research limitations/implications
The sample consisted of only 12 articles; however, according to the guidelines of meta-synthesis and Critical Appraisal Skills Program (CASP), the sample size was ideal. Further, articles were all of high or very high quality, and, in all studies, multiple contributing factors were measured to investigate the relationships among those factors and career outcomes. The factors and outcomes can be considered by researchers as study variables in future studies.
Practical implications
Organizations and practitioners can use factors that influence mentoring outcomes and the mentoring outcomes found in this study to develop more effective mentoring programs.
Originality/value
To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first systematic review of prior research regarding mentoring for practicing engineers. This paper allows researchers and practitioners to identify key findings and trends in past works, recognize research gaps and propose future research directions.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would also like to express their gratitude to Ms Janet True, SPHR for reviewing this article. Janet is the Director of Talent Development at Fluor Corporation. The opinions, findings, conclusions and recommendations provided in this article are from the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Fluor Corporation.
Citation
Wong, S.S.K., Cross, J.A. and Mueller, P.S. (2018), "Impact of mentoring on practicing engineers: a meta-synthesis", Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol. 30 No. 6, pp. 415-441. https://doi.org/10.1108/JWL-10-2017-0097
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited