Poster #127 - Quality vs. Quantity: Mentoring and Purpose Among College Students

• In Event: 3-159 - Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: PS 12 Section - Moral Development

Integrative Statement

Introduction
Interest in purpose among adolescents and emerging adults has increased (Hill, Burrow, & Sumner, 2013) and scholars have begun examining experiences and relationships that cultivate purpose (Liang et al., 2016). Relationships with mentors, for example, are linked with commitment to purpose among adolescents (Liang, Lund, Mousseau, & Spencer, 2016). Research among college students has demonstrated numerous benefits of mentoring (Crisp & Cruz, 2009). Importantly, Liang and colleagues (2002) found that the relational quality of mentoring was associated with positive outcomes beyond quantitative aspects of the mentoring relationship (e.g., duration).

Present Study
The present study examined the role mentoring relationships play in fostering purpose among college students. We hypothesized that students with high quality mentoring relationships would report greater commitment to purpose. We also hypothesized that the quality of mentoring would significantly predict purpose, controlling for the number of mentors a student reported. That is, quality of mentoring would matter more than quantity.

Method
The data in the present study was drawn from a mixed-methods study of purpose among undergraduate students from three universities (N=195). Two universities are private institutions located in the Northeast. The third university is a private institution in the Southeast. Participants completed an online survey. Institutional Review Board approval was obtained from each university prior to data collection.

Purpose. We measured purpose using the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (Sterger et al., 2006). Participants answered ten questions on a 7-point Likert scale (1= Absolutely Untrue, 7= Absolutely True). Two 5-item subscales (Search for Purpose and Commitment to Purpose) were created. The Commitment to Purpose subscale had good reliability (α=.83).
Relational Health Indices. The Relational Health Indices (RHI) assessed the quality of the mentoring relationship (Liang et al., 2010). The RHI includes subscales to assess the quality of various relationships, including relationships with mentors. Participants indicated the number of mentors they had and answered eleven questions on a 5-point Likert scale (1= Never, 5= Always). The scale had excellent reliability (α=.90).
Demographics. Participants completed demographic questions (e.g., gender, ethnicity, etc.).

Results & Discussion
Twenty-two students reported not having a mentor, whereas 40 students reported having five or more mentors. An independent samples t-test indicated that students with at least one mentor had higher purpose scores than those who did not have a mentor (t = -2.341, p < .05). Students without a mentor were excluded from further analyses. Mentor RHI and purpose were significantly associated (r = .21, p < .01). The number of mentors a student had was significantly correlated with mentor RHI (r = .30, p < .001), but not with purpose (r = .03, p > .05).
Hierarchical regression models examined whether mentor RHI predicted purpose (Table 1). Demographic variables and the number of mentors were entered in the first block. Mentor RHI was entered in the second block. Demographics and number of mentors were not associated with purpose. Mentor RHI was significantly associated with purpose. These results suggest that quality matters more than quantity with regard to how mentors cultivate purpose among college students.

Authors

• Terese J Lund, Wingate University
  Presenting Author

• Belle Liang, Boston College
  Non-Presenting Author

• Angela DeSilva Mousseau, Rivier University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Allison White, Boston College
  Non-Presenting Author

• Tyrone Fleurizard, Boston College
  Non-Presenting Author