Retention in Research Careers: Mentoring for Scientific Communication Skills

描述(由申请人提供)：掌握科学交流(SC)技能对于成功的科学家来说是必不可少的，对于任何背景的初级科学家来说都可能是一个挑战，但对于那些教育准备不足或接触标准学术英语的人来说可能尤其困难。教授这类技能的重担通常落在导师身上，他们可能会发现这项任务既劳动密集型，又令人沮丧。非英语母语的导师可能会遇到特别的困难，但即使是语言技能出色的导师也可能不知道如何有效地教学，满足这些需求可能会进一步加重已经受到性别、年龄或文化差距挑战的导师关系的负担。因此，需要解决的差距是确定和修改影响受训者SC技能发展中受训者自我效能感的受训者和导师因素，特别是如果这些因素对研究中代表性不足群体的持久性起到作用的话。我们的目标是在SC技能发展的适应社会认知模型中确定学员和导师因素之间的因果关系，并确定随着时间的推移改变这些关系的关键调节因素。我们假设，受训者对SC的效能感将预测他们对掌握SC技能的结果期望和兴趣，导师因素(例如，SC教练的高技能水平、高兴趣)将与受训者SC自我效能感、目标、广告行动正相关。我们还假设，这些导师因素、学员行为和学员长期职业目标之间的关系将完全由学员的SC表现结果来调节，并且高技能和对SC指导感兴趣的导师的学员的SC自我效能感和绩效结果将会增加或保持在较高水平。我们从MD Anderson癌症中心招募了400名博士后和博士后实习生及其400名教师导师，并通过其他地方为代表不足群体的实习生提供丰富的培训计划，我们将在30个月内收集3次数据。将采用滚雪球方式招聘学员-导师二人组，直到按学员因素(如性别、种族/族裔)分类达到所需人数。数据将通过一个安全的网站收集，其ID与没有个人识别符的学员-导师二人组匹配，尽管匹配不是实现研究目标所必需的。将为逐步完成调查提供奖励，并鼓励导师参与，当导师完成调查时，将向受训人员赠送额外的礼品卡。分析方法包括结构方程模型、层次模型和纵向回归模型。这个多学科团队包括接受过英语、语言学、流行病学、社会心理学、教育学和传播学培训的个人。如果成功，我们将拥有一个经过验证的概念模型，描述学员SC技能的获得及其对研究职业生涯中持续性的影响，以及随着时间的推移衡量导师的中介影响。这一模型将为我们确定风险点，以开发教育干预措施，提高受训者追求研究职业的持久性。 与公共健康相关：由于掌握科学交流技能对于科学家的职业成功至关重要，但对于那些教育准备不足或接触标准学术英语的人来说，初级科学家可能是一个挑战，教授交流技能的主要负担通常落在导师身上，他们往往觉得这项任务劳动强度大，令人沮丧，而且有用的工具很少。不是以英语为母语的导师在指导科学交流方面可能会特别困难，但即使是语言技能出色的导师也可能不知道如何有效地教授学员；满足这些需求可能会进一步加重已经受到性别、年龄或文化差距挑战的导师关系的负担。由于这些原因，我们将解决的关键差距是确定和修改影响学员在科学交流技能发展中的自信心的导师和学员因素，特别是如果这些因素发挥了 在科学和学术界中代表性不足群体的坚持或缺乏坚持方面的作用。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Mastering scientific communication (SC) skills is essential for successful scientists, and can be a challenge for junior scientists from any background, but may be especially difficult for those who are educationally under- prepared or who have had limited exposure to standard academic English. The burden of teaching such skills typically falls to mentors, who may find this task labor-intensive and frustrating. Non-natie English-speaking mentors may have particular difficulty, but even mentors with excellent language skills may not know how to teach effectively, and addressing these needs can further burden mentoring relationships already challenged by gender, age, or cultural gaps. Thus, the gap to address is the identification and modification of both trainee and mentor factors that influence trainee self-efficacy in SC skills development, particularly if such factors play a role n persistence of underrepresented groups in research. Our aims are to identify causal relationships between trainee and mentor factors in an adapted social cognitive model of SC skill development and to identify key moderating factors that change these relationships over time. We hypothesize that trainee efficacy beliefs in SC will predict their outcome expectations and interests in mastering SC skills and that mentor factors (e.g., high skill level in SC coaching availability, high interest), will be positively associated with trainee SC self-efficacy, goals, ad actions. We also hypothesize that the relationship between such mentor factors, trainee actions, and trainee long-term career goals will be fully mediated by trainee SC performance outcomes, and that mentors who are highly skilled and interested in SC mentoring will have trainees whose SC self-efficacy and performance outcomes will increase or remain high. Recruiting a cohort of 400 doctoral and postdoctoral trainees and their 400 faculty mentors from MD Anderson Cancer Center and through training programs elsewhere enriched for trainees of underrepresented groups, we will collect data 3 times over 30 months. Trainee-mentor dyads will be recruited using a snowball approach until desired numbers are achieved in categories by trainee factors (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity). Data will be collected through a secure website with IDs that match trainee-mentor dyads without personal identifiers, although matching is not required to accomplish study aims. Incentives will be provided for incremental completion of surveys, and to encourage mentor participation, additional gift-cards will be given to trainees when mentors complete surveys. Analytic approaches include structural equation, hierarchical, and longitudinal regression modeling. The multi-disciplinary team includes individuals trained in English, linguistics, epidemiology, social psychology, education, and communication. If successful, we will have a validated conceptual model describing trainee SC skill acquisition and its impact on persistence in research careers, and the mediating influence of mentors measured over time. This model will identify risk points for us to develop educational interventions that increase persistence of trainees in pursuing research careers. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: As the mastery of scientific communication skills is essential for the career success of scientists, but can be a challenge for junior scientists for those who ar educationally under-prepared or who have had limited exposure to standard academic English, the main burden of teaching communication skills typically falls upon mentors who often find this task labor intensive and frustrating, and useful tools rare. Mentors who are not themselves native English speakers may have particular difficulty mentoring for scientific communication, but even mentors with excellent language skills may not know how to teach their trainees effectively; addressing these needs can further burden mentoring relationships already challenged by gender, age, or cultural gaps. For these reasons, the critical gap we will address is the identification and modification of both mentor and trainee factors that influence trainee self-confidence in scientific communication skills development, particularly if such factors play a role in the persistence or lack of persistence of under-represented groups in science and academia.