Table 2 Ethical concerns at the mentee, mentor, mentoring relationship and host organisation level

Mentee

• Lack of Motivation

[38, 39]

• Poor Collaboration

[40, 41]

Mentor

• Lapses in Professionalism

[42, 43]

• Failure to Acknowledge Mentee’s Contributions

[38]

• Lack of Motivation and Commitment

[38,39,40, 43,44,45]

• Poor Collaboration

[46]

Mentoring Relationship

• Power Differentials

[47, 48]

• Poor Communication

[49]

• Stifling of Mentee Development

• and Competition with Mentee

[38, 45, 50]

• Gender Based Obstacles

[38, 40, 46, 48, 51,52,53,54]

• Cultural Differences such as with Minority Groups

[38, 48]

• Personality Conflict

[33, 45, 46, 50, 55, 56]

• Misalignment of Goals

[55]

Host Organisation

• Poor Recruitment and Recognition

[33, 50, 57, 58]

• Lack of Clear Guidelines

[59, 60]

• Poor Oversight and Lack of Assessment

[44, 53]

• Lack of Administrative Support such as Provision of Protected Time

[33, 40, 43, 44]