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Do newcomers with high political skill benefit more from the formal mentoring program?

Jia Liu (School of Management, Shandong University, Jinan, China)
Li Yao (School of Management, Shandong University, Jinan, China)
Di Cai (School of Management, Shandong University, Jinan, China)
Shengming Liu (School of Management, Fudan University, Shanghai, China)

Career Development International

ISSN: 1362-0436

Article publication date: 7 November 2022

Issue publication date: 2 December 2022

317

Abstract

Purpose

Previous research on the factors influencing mentoring received has primarily focused on protégés' personalities and the similarity between protégés and mentors, whereas understanding on the role of protégés' skills is still limited. Drawing upon the social influence theory, this study investigated how newcomers' political skill influences newcomers' mentoring received and further affects newcomers' socialization outcomes (i.e. person-organization fit perception [P-O fit], performance proficiency and well-being).

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from 255 newcomers at a large Chinese information and technology (IT) company using a three-wave, time-lagged design.

Findings

The authors found that newcomers' political skill positively predicted mentoring received, which in turn positively affected newcomers' socialization outcomes.

Originality/value

These findings indicate that political skill enables newcomers to exert social influence on organizational insiders to achieve desirable socialization outcomes, enlarging both the mentoring and political skill literature.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Funding: This research was supported by the grants funded by Humanity and Social Science Foundation of the Ministry of Education of China (Grant 21YJA630001) and Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province (Grant ZR202102240345) awarded to Di Cai, as well as by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant 72002038) awarded to Shengming Liu.

Citation

Liu, J., Yao, L., Cai, D. and Liu, S. (2022), "Do newcomers with high political skill benefit more from the formal mentoring program?", Career Development International, Vol. 27 No. 6/7, pp. 616-633. https://doi.org/10.1108/CDI-04-2022-0093

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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