User:Alex Andrews Soc1305/sandbox

A study of 1,162 employees found that "satisfaction with a mentoring relationship had a stronger impact on attitudes than the presence of a mentor, whether the relationship was formal or informal, or the design of a formal mentoring program." So even when a mentoring relationship is established, the actual relationship is more important than the presence of a relationship.

Ragins, Belle Rose, John L. Cotton, and Janice S. Miller. "Marginal mentoring: The effects of type of mentor, quality of relationship, and program design on work and career attitudes." Academy of Management Journal 43, no. 6 (2000): 1177-1194.