Pre-Training, During-Training and Post-Training Activities as Predictors of Transfer of Training

54© 2012 IUP. All Rights Reserved. The IUP Journal of Management Research, Vol. XI, No. 4, 2012
Pre-Training, During-Training and Post-Training Activities as Predictors of Transfer of Training
* Research Scholar, Karunya University and Assistant Professor (Senior), VIT University,
Vellore 14, Tamil Nadu, India. E-mail: [e-mail]
** Professor, Karunya School of Management, Karunya University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu,
India. E-mail: [e-mail]
Uma Pricilda Jaidev* and Susan Chirayath**
Training is one of the most frequently used Human Resource Development (HRD) interventions. Positive transfer of training is defined as the degree to which the trainees effectively apply the knowledge, skills and attitudes gained in training for the job. The purpose of this study is to determine whether pre-training, during-training and post-training activities significantly influence transfer of training, and also if the three predictors have a significant relationship with transfer of training. Scales developed by Saks and Belcourt (2006) were used to quantify the three predictors, and the transfer of training scale from Xiao’s (1996) study was also used. 136 respondents’ data from four hospitality firms having national presence were used to test the hypothesis. The results indicate that all the three predictors explain 20.2%, 28% and 18.3% variations respectively, and therefore, significantly influence the transfer of training and also have a positive relationship with transfer of training.
Introduction
Training is one of the most frequently used Human Resource Development (HRD) interventions (Scaduto et al., 2008). Positive transfer of training is defined as the degree to which trainees effectively apply the knowledge, skills and attitudes gained in the training context to the job (Newstorm, 1984; and Baldwin and Ford, 1988;
Wexley and Latham, 1991). Training is said to be effective if the skills and behavior learned and practiced during training can be transferred to the workplace and can be applied in the context of the job. It should also be maintained over time and can be generalized across contexts (Baldwin and Ford, 1988; and Holton and
Baldwin, 2003).Pre-Training, During-Training and Post-Training Activities 55 as Predictors of Transfer of Training
An industry report (October 2010) says that, “companies around the world spend up to $100 bn a year to train employees in the skills they need to improve corporate performance—topics like communication, sales techniques, performance management or lean operations. But training typically does not have much impact.”
There are reports of organizations spending an immense amount of money on workplace learning and development activities (Noe et al., 2006). Hence, there is a need to ensure that the resources being spent on training employees aid in building their competencies resulting in increased job and organizational performance.
Review of Literature
Transfer of Training
Holton et al. (2003) examined transfer systems in US organizations and compared transfer systems across three organization types, eight organizations, and nine types of training. Multivariate ANOVA (MANOVA) and Univariate ANOVA were used to compare the transfer systems, and the results suggest that transfer systems differ across organizational types, organizations and training types. Kim’s (2004) study investigated transfer of training as a sociopolitical process that has been overlooked in HRD literature. Saks and Belcourt (2006) surveyed training professionals and reported that 62%, 44%, and 34% of employees apply training material on the job immediately, after six months, and after one year of training respectively. Subedi (2006) conducted a study in Nepal and, among other conclusions, mentioned that organizational culture and beliefs held by managers, supervisors and employees about training and development are likely to influence the process as well as the outcome of training.
Velada et al. (2007) explored the relationship between three types of predictors on transfer of training—training design, individual characteristics and work environment. The results suggest that in order to enhance transfer of training, organizations should design training that gives the trainees the ability to transfer learning, reinforces the trainees’ beliefs in their ability to transfer, ensures that the training content is retained over time, and provides appropriate feedback regarding employee job performance following training activities.
Burke and Hutchins (2008), in their study, found that interventions for bolstering training transfer are best carried out in the work context and design and delivery phase, and that it should take place after training or during, and involve trainers and supervisors. They also suggested some best practices to enhance transfer which include supervisory support activities, coaching, opportunities to perform, interactive training activities, transfer measurement, and job-relevant training.
Several new transfer variables also emerged from the data, indicating that the existing transfer models can be further refined.56 The IUP Journal of Management Research, Vol. XI, No. 4, 2012
Aufseb et al. (2009) reviewed updates and expanded the reviews of empirical studies on training transfer published by Cheng and Ho (2001), Salas and Cannon
(2001), and Cheng and Hampson (2008). The authors identified 58 empirical studies since 1998 and integrated all the transfer variables that have been the subject of relevant studies. The purpose was to move towards a new training transfer portfolio consisting of 13 categories of 36 sub-transfer variables. The purpose of this new training transfer portfolio is to facilitate the company’s investment decision into transfer variables which: (1) can be influenced by the company itself (sphere of control); and (2) which are worth the organizational and financial effort (costvalue ratio).
The extant literature on factors that affect the training can be learnt under the following: • Trainee characteristics, intentions to transfer and reactions.
• Training design and delivery mechanisms.
• Work environment, and situational and organizational factors.
Work Environment and Organizational Factors: Pre-Training,
During-Training and Post-Training Activities
In their seminal article on transfer of training, Baldwin and Ford (1988) point out that transfer of training is contingent upon three important factors: (1) Trainee characteristics; (2) Training design; and (3) Work environment. Several studies have examined the work environment and organizational factors that influence the training outcomes—training transfer, training maintenance and training generalization. Results of the study by Ford et al. (1992) indicate that trainees obtained differential opportunities to perform trained tasks and that these differences were related to supervisory attitudes and workgroup support.
The study by Rouiller and Goldstein (1993) described the development and investigated the concept of organizational transfer climate. It also discussed that transfer climate influenced the degree to which the trainees transfer the behavior learned in a training program to their job situations. The results suggest that organizational transfer climate is a tool that should be investigated as a potential facilitator for enhancing positive transfer of training to the work environment. Xiao
(1996) developed a transfer model which argues that training develops only potential capacity in trainees. The transfer of training in the workplace depends on the organizational factors that facilitate the utilization of knowledge, skills, and attitudes
(KSA) gained in the training setting behavior. In addition, organizational variables that encourage the application of KSA in the workplace promote transfer of training.
Among the organizational variables, supervision appeared to be the most influential.