Advising Styles
Adaptability is tantamount to success as an advisor. Not all students are the same. Neither are all
student groups, nor all advisors. Hence, the best advisors assess the developmental level of the
organization, and adjust accordingly. Individual students are at one of several levels of development
in an organization. Kathleen E. Allen, Choosing the Effective Advising Style, in the May, 1981
Programming (p. 1-3) states these stages include: Infancy, Adolescence, Young Adulthood, and
Maturity. Not to be confused with actual age, these stages represent a continuum along which students
develop.
- Infancy: Students exhibit a low level of commitment, a lack of knowledge,
and limited responsibility for their actions.
- Adolescence: Students increase their programming skills, their interest,
commitment, and sense of responsibility to the organization.
- Young Adulthood: Students become competent and continue to increase in
areas of commitment and responsibility.
- Maturity: Student now show a high degree of competency in many areas and
demonstrate a commitment to the group that extends into taking responsibility
for their own actions as well as the group's actions.
Successful advisors will match their style with the level of the students in
organization.
- Director: Has a high concern for the end result but is not very concerned
about the process. This matches with students in the infancy stage.
- Teacher/Director: Exhibits a high concern for both product and process.
Correlates with students in the adolescence stage.
- Advisor/Teacher: Concern for product low because students handle this
when in the young adulthood stage; high concern for process. Correlates
with students in the young adulthood stage.
- Consultant: Product concern and process concern both low because
students assume responsibility in both areas. Students at this point are in
the maturity stage.