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Abstract

This study examines the influence of epistemology on women's perceptions of the workplace, themselves, and their work, and the relationship of these perceptions to career mentoring. Three epistemological categories, based upon theoretical definitions provided by Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger, and Tarule (1986), in Women's Ways of Knowing, are identified and tested for differences in workplace perceptions and mentoring relationships: constructivists, proceduralists, and subjectivists. The sample is drawn from the membership of American Women in Radio and Television (AWRT) (n = 454). The three groups differ significantly in perceptions of self-efficacy, career opportunities, and effective mentoring roles and similarities that exist between mentor and protégé. Personal, in-depth interviews with 41 women in broadcast management provided texture to find ings from the quantitative data.

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Flexible Mentoring: Adaptations in Style for Women's Ways of Knowing

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