1. Introduction

This chapter introduces the importance of the research-practice nexus in higher education, highlighting the challenges faced by Chinese teachers in terms of research motivation and productivity. It emphasizes the need for academic identity and research capacity development and discusses the benefits of informal bottom-up practice-based professional development for teacher career development. Additionally, it highlights the lack of action research by language teacher educators and the need to fill the research gap in this area. The author conducted informal research mentoring of three research-inexperienced university EFL teachers, aiming to uncover the positive impacts, limitations, and ways to enhance informal research mentoring.

2. Literature Review

This chapter discusses the essential elements of faculty mentoring, including the various roles of mentors, the benefits for mentees, and the potential challenges of mentoring relationships. It also highlights the need for mentoring training to develop mentor qualities. Additionally, the chapter explores the specific requirements and challenges of faculty research mentoring, emphasizing the importance of psychological support and the development of teacher-researchers' complex skills. The literature review shows that while mentoring is widely promoted as a tool for learning and creating a research culture, there is a lack of attention to informal faculty mentoring, especially in China. This study aims to address these gaps and provide implications for various stakeholders in higher education.

3. The Study

This chapter describes the participants of the study, who were the mentor and 3 mentees. The action research process was divided into planning, action, observing and reflecting, and replanning. Data was collected through participant observations, communication with the participants, and individual interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis was used for data analysis, resulting in three coherent themes addressing the research questions.

4. Findings

The chapter discusses the positive effects of informal research mentoring on the mentees, including increased research interest, improved self-discipline, stress-coping strategies, and a stronger belief in creating a supportive culture. It also addresses the limitations of informal research mentoring, such as limited academic improvements, writing difficulties, and uncertainties about the sustainability of the mentoring relationship. The mentor's detailed feedback and encouragement played a vital role in reinvigorating the mentees' determination to continue their research learning journey.

5. Discussion

This chapter discussed the positive impacts of informal research mentoring, such as increased research interest and self-discipline, as well as boosted enthusiasm for constructing a collegial environment in working contexts. It also highlighted the challenges faced during informal research mentoring, including personal and contextual factors. The sustainability of informal research mentoring was addressed, emphasizing the need for sustained commitment, reflection on mentoring problems, and the establishment of a development-oriented academic culture and strategic support infrastructure.

6. Conclusions and Implications

The mentor’s action research transformed the conceptual theory of mentoring into a practical theory. The experience provided concrete understandings of teachers’ research needs and identified priorities for mentoring. The action research may serve as a basis for enhancing the sustainability of research mentoring. The positive impacts of mentoring were embryonic due to personal and contextual circumstances, but it generated a snowball effect and provided a tentative model of research mentoring. Positive mindsets and reflective adaptations are imperative for enhancing the mentoring process and outcomes, and institutional policymakers need to promote systemic long-term efforts to support teachers’ continuous academic development.