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  • Academy of Management Journal

Learning Down to Train Up: Mentors Are More Effective When They Value Insights from Below

By: Ting Zhang, Dan Wang and Adam D. Galinsky
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Abstract

Although mentorship is vital for individual success, potential mentors often view it as a costly burden. To understand what motivates mentors to overcome this barrier and more fully engage with their mentees, we introduce a new construct, learning direction, which captures the beliefs people have about which individuals within a hierarchy—upward, lateral, or downward—are valuable sources of knowledge. Although most mentors believe knowledge resides higher up in hierarchies, the current research demonstrates mentors are more engaged and effective when they value insights from below. Our first three studies found that downward learning predicted mentor engagement (Study 1) because downward learning-directed mentors viewed mentoring as a worthwhile opportunity for their own learning (Studies 2A-B). A field study examined downstream consequences on mentees’ learning outcomes, finding that downward learning-directed mentors trained more hireable mentees (Study 3). A final experiment established causality while also demonstrating that learning direction is open to intervention: reflecting on a downward learning experience increased mentor engagement, which enhanced the mentorship experience for their mentees (Study 4). We extend theories on learning orientation to learning direction and demonstrate that beliefs about the hierarchical sources of learning are critical to successful mentoring.

Keywords

Mentoring; Learning Direction; Interpersonal Communication; Learning; Leadership Development

Citation

Zhang, Ting, Dan Wang, and Adam D. Galinsky. "Learning Down to Train Up: Mentors Are More Effective When They Value Insights from Below." Academy of Management Journal (forthcoming).

About The Author

Ting Zhang

Organizational Behavior
→More Publications

More from the Authors

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    Making Medications Stick: Improving Medication Adherence by Highlighting the Personal Health Costs of Non-compliance

    By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, Joe J. Gladstone, Dan Berry, Charlotte L. Kirkdale, Tracey Thornley and Adam D. Galinsky
More from the Authors
  • The Past Is Prologue? Venture-Capital Syndicates' Collaborative Experience and Start-Up Exits By: Dan Wang, Emily Cox Pahnke and Rory McDonald
  • The Errors of Experts: When Expertise Hinders Effective Provision and Seeking of Advice and Feedback By: Ting Zhang, Kelly Harrington and Elad Sherf
  • Making Medications Stick: Improving Medication Adherence by Highlighting the Personal Health Costs of Non-compliance By: Jon M. Jachimowicz, Joe J. Gladstone, Dan Berry, Charlotte L. Kirkdale, Tracey Thornley and Adam D. Galinsky
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