Page 268 - Psychological Management of Individual Performance

252 enhancing performance through training
many work environments “the ‘unusual’ is becoming much more usual” (Feltovich et al.,
1997, p. 141), training for adaptive expertise confers important advantages, although
there may be circumstances in which the development of routine expertise is preferable.A
thorough analysis of the organization’s training needs will provide valuable information
aboutwhethertrainingshouldbeorientedtowardpromotingroutineoradaptiveexpertise.

TRAINING DESIGN PRINCIPLES

General principles used in the design of training programs have been qualified by more
recent experimental evidence indicating that the effectiveness of some training interven-
tions depends to a large extent on the influence of moderating variables (see Table 12.2
for an overview of training design principles). The length of the delay between the train-
ing and evaluation is now known to be one such moderator of training outcomes. Some
training methods which boost initial training performance do not promote longer-term
skill retention and transfer, whereas other training methods that initially produce less
favourable outcomes lead to better long-term results. Training methods which facilitate
longer-term retention and transfer are often more challenging, and therefore depress
initial performance even though the level of learning is increased (Druckman & Bjork,
1994; Schmidt & Bjork, 1992). The discrepancy between immediate versus delayed
training outcomes may lead to the adoption of less effective training practices, either
because trainers are unaware of the longer-term consequences or because they are under
pressure to deliver short-term gains (Hesketh, 1997a). The sequencing of course content,
the type of information-processing strategies that are encouraged by training methods,
and practice and feedback schedules are all aspects of the training program that need to
be considered when designing training for longer-term outcomes. Furthermore, there is
a growing recognition of the need to practice during training those cognitive and meta-
cognitive processes that are important for subsequent transfer, and that will facilitate the
development of adaptive expertise.

SEQUENCING OF COURSE CONTENT

Course content is usually sequenced so that it progresses from easy to hard, or from
general principles to specific instances. This approach ensures that fundamental concepts
are acquired before moving on to higher-order concepts, and eliminates the confusion

TABLE 12.2 Training design strategies for enhancing transfer
• Use variable training tasks and conditions (Schmidt & Bjork, 1992)
• Encourage transfer appropriate processing e.g., problem solving, factual retrieval (Morris et al.,
1977)
• Provide extended practice with training sessions that are distributed over time (Ericsson et al.,
1993; Schmidt & Bjork, 1992)
• Provide appropriate feedback in terms of timing, specificity, and frequency (Kluger &
DeNisi, 1996)
• Provide abstract theory in terms of rules and principles accompanied by illustrative examples
(Gick & Holyoak, 1983; Nisbett et al., 1987)
• Adopt training methods that provide opportunities for practice and active learning, e.g.,
behavioral modeling, role playing, simulation, learning by exploration (Frese, 1995;
Ivancic & Hesketh, 1995/1996).