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Given the chronic stress that families experienced during the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic accompanied by school closures, many parents were vulnerable to parental burnout as they supervised their children's remote learning in addition to other roles. According to self-determination theory (SDT), when parents' basic needs are met, they are optimally motivated to support their children's learning and create environments that support their children's needs. Using a variable-and person-centered approach, we explored associations between parents' burnout, academic concern, motivational styles and profiles, and need-supportive behavior. Considering the pandemic, we expected parents with increased burnout and academic concern to report higher levels of controlled motivation or belong to a low-quality motivation profile and report less support for their children's needs. Parents with 5-to 8-year-olds were recruited, targeting states in the U.S. with the longest shelter-in-place restrictions (CA, NY), to complete an online survey, resulting in a sample (N = 218) of parents from 38 states in the U.S. Results showed parents exhibiting more autonomous motivation and two latent profiles denoting only motivation quantity but not quality. Higher burnout was related to nonoptimal motivation styles and profiles, while academic concern was related to increased motivation. Parents of older children had increased motivation. Findings highlight that even during a global pandemic, parents showed some levels of optimal motivation to support their children's remote learning. Results also highlight the importance of meeting parents' basic needs in order for them to support the developmental and learning needs of their children. Impact and ImplicationsThis study found that parents were concerned about their children's academic lag during the COVID-19 pandemic and experienced varying levels of burnout as they supported their children's learning. Despite increased burnout signaling that parents' psychological needs were not adequately met, some parents still showed interest in supporting learning. Parents who were more concerned about their children falling behind had higher levels of motivation than those who had little concern. Findings have implications for practitioners to identify and support parents' needs and concerns that will then promote more interest in involvement.

Mentorship can be part of the solution to developing a more diverse global scientific workforce, but robust longitudinal evidence is limited. Developmental mentor network theory can advance our understanding of the impact of a wide range of mentors across social contexts by distinguishing between the content of mentorship support (eg career support) and the structural characteristics of an individual's mentor network (eg density of connections among mentors). We tested the influence of mentor network characteristics on longitudinal social integration into the Earth and environmental sciences, as indicated by science identity development (a key indicator of social integration) and graduate‐school applications in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)‐related fields of study, based on a sample of 233 undergraduate women at nine universities in the US. Our findings indicated that belonging to close‐knit, larger, and skill‐focused mentorship networks creates a “sticky web” of social connections, providing information and resources that increase retention of college women in the Earth and environmental sciences.

Mentorship can be part of the solution to developing a more diverse global scientific workforce, but robust longitudinal evidence is limited. Developmental mentor network theory can advance our understanding of the impact of a wide range of mentors across social contexts by distinguishing between the content of mentorship support (eg career support) and the structural characteristics of an individual’s mentor network (eg density of connections among mentors). We tested the influence of mentor network characteristics on longitudinal social integration into earth and environmental sciences, as indicated by science identity development (a key indicator of social integration) and STEM graduate school applications, in a sample of 233 undergraduate women at 9 universities in the U.S. Findings indicate that belonging to close-knit, larger, and skill-focused mentorship networks creates a “sticky web” of social connections, providing information and resources that increase retention of college women in the earth and environmental sciences.