Fellows: CAPT Hickey (team lead), Dr. Sean Rogers, Dr. Yang Xu
Summary: We examine whether cadet perceptions of being mentored (i.e., the protégé’s experience) are associated with his/her own performance. To address this research question, we quantify cadet perceptions via surveys of their recent mentoring experience(s) at CGA. We further examine these measures and their association to the following measures of performance: (1) class rank and its subcomponents of cumulative grade point average (CGPA), cumulative military precedence index (CMPI), cumulative physical development competencies (CPDC), and (2) the number of months on academic, physical, and/or military probation, if applicable.
Importance to CGA, Service Academies in General, and the U.S. Military: A core component of the CGA leader development strategy (i.e., LEAD) is to “deepen understanding through mentoring.” Accordingly, cadets receive mentoring from various sources (e.g., formal mentoring program, coaches, academic advisors, company officers, other cadets). Strong anecdotal evidence at CGA suggests that substantial time is dedicated to mentoring cadets and that the mentoring is beneficial. Much research has shown that mentored individuals benefit in numerous ways (e.g., career opportunities, psychosocial benefits). Little is known, however, on whether the experience of being mentored is associated with an individual’s performance in a highly structured environment such as the CGA. We believe systematic differences related to cadet mentoring experiences may provide preliminary evidence that can help validate current practices (e.g., involvement in the CGA cadet mentoring program, GOLD team engagements) and/or to pinpoint programmatic gaps in leader development.