Cultural and Gender Differences

Challenge:

Your mentees may be subject to bias or additional challenges in the work environment due to their race, ethnicity, sex, gender, country of origin, sexual orientation, religion, or some other aspect of their cultural and social identity. You are uncertain whether you should discuss these differences and/or adapt your mentoring practices.

Self Reflection:

1. What am I feeling?
   • I’m worried that I can’t relate to my mentees’ experiences or might say something that offends them.
   • My job is to train my mentees to do good science. I believe this can be separate from cultural and gender differences.
   • I don’t often think about these kinds of differences. I just see and treat everyone the same.
2. What do I need to learn about my mentee’s perspective?
   • Because I’m not a [mother, recent immigrant, gay man, first-generation college student, person with hearing loss, woman in an otherwise all male department], I know very little about how these experiences affect my mentee – in general, and in our shared work environment.
   • I’m not sure how comfortable my mentee is talking about aspects of their identity in this training environment, or how important it is for them do this.
   • It’s possible that the research questions my mentees want to pursue are closely tied to their background experiences or cultural identity.
3. What outcome(s) do I want?
   • I want all my mentees to feel supported and reach their greatest potential, and I want a system that allows all my mentees to be successful.
   • I want to be able to offer constructive feedback without the reality or perception of bias.
   • I want to be a helpful ally for mentees from groups underrepresented in science, and recognize what I can do better to support their professional development.

Conversation Openers:

• How are you settling in? I’ve been wondering how our department is similar to or different from environments where you’ve previously studied or worked.
• What differences have you experienced between American society and your culture in regard to [insert topic areas]?
• I really enjoy working with scientists with different backgrounds and perspectives. Here’s a little information about me. What might be helpful for me to know about you so that I can be a highly effective mentor?
• This strategy has worked for me in the past, but it isn’t the only approach. Do you think it would work for you? Why or why not?
• When I started working here, the faculty was all male [or all white]. It’s different for you, though. How can I, as your mentor, assist you as you negotiate this setting?

Tips and Tools:

• Mentees from historically underrepresented groups can benefit from having mentors who are open to hearing about their students’ experiences and perspectives. Avoiding cultural diversity does not make science a more comfortable place.
• Gather knowledge about your mentee’s culture, while also getting to know and understand your mentee as an individual. Don’t assume mentees holds a certain point of view or have a particular talent or weakness because of their cultural identity.
• Move from a mindset of “I need to help this mentee fit in to our culture” to “I need to learn about and appreciate what this mentee adds to our culture.”
• Be cognizant of barriers to success that women and some minority cultures may face due to social norms and structures.
• Make an extra effort to facilitate network building for mentees who may have fewer connections. Examine your own professional network and seek out opportunities to make it more diverse.
• Be aware that not all aspects of our identities are visible and not all mentees are comfortable discussing their identities with their mentors.