This dissertation explores issues pertaining to mentorship for women, particularly for those executive women who may be asked to mentor a protégé. It is noted that often, when women are unable to advance in an organization, due to institutional discrimination or otherwise, it leaves the organization at a loss of a significant investment of their time and money. Therefore, organizations should be doing more to consider mentorship and create space for women within their organizations. The work also seeks to explore mentoring strategies of women executives, given that there is very little research into the mentoring relationships between women executives and junior women in their organizations. The work seeks to understand this mentorship relationship, and note when executive women use mentorship strategies to foster upward mobility for junior women in their organizations.
Journal Article – Dissertation
Baby Boomers Versus Generation X: A Study of the Unique Mentor Roles and Functions Perceived by Two Generations of Women
This article explored notions of mentor roles as they were perceived by two generations of women. The study also identified which mentorship roles and functions most impacted their career development. As well, the study examined generational definitions, generational differences, and perceived impact of mentorship roles in career development.
Principles of Cultural Competency and the Implications for Western Evaluators Using the Program Evaluation Standards in Chinese Cultural Context
This dissertation starts by establishing that the kinds of questions that program evaluators ask are inherently shaped by cultural narratives. It is noted that the ways in which evaluators establish and create questions, collect, analyze, and interpret data, as well as how evaluators reported evaluation results are all impacted by the cultural context they operate within. It is then suggested that program evaluators must develop a sense of cultural competency in order to authentically evaluate program outcomes. The main implication is that this must be the case for Western evaluators operating in a different cultural context which, in this instance, is the Chinese culture with the perspective of Confucianism included in the approach to evaluation. The paper finishes by suggesting strategies for Western evaluators to increase their competency in a Chinese cultural context when evaluating programs and success.