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Volume 18 / Number 4 Editorial |
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Abstracts |
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E-Learning Takes the Lead: An Empirical Investigation of Learner Differences in Online and Classroom Delivery Kathleen M. Iverson, Deborah L. Colky, and Vincent Cyboran Outcomes and mediators of differences in online and traditional course delivery were tested with a sample of 112 graduate students who completed an introductory course in training and development. Specifically, the individual learner characteristics of self-efficacy, motivation, goal orientation, and metacognition and their effects on success through online delivery were examined. The study also addressed three outcomes: trainees' reactions to that program, their learning, and subsequent planned changes in job behavior. The findings indicate that online learners have significantly more positive reaction levels of enjoyment and utility and significantly stronger intent to transfer their learning. Online students find the coursework more difficult, but there was no significant difference in learning based on delivery mode. Implications for both managers and educators involved in online learning are discussed. Guidelines for Selecting, Using, and Evaluating Games in Corporate Training Susan R. Wiebenga The use of games in corporate training began in the 1950s. In subsequent years the use of games has increased, while the look and feel of the games being used has evolved. Unfortunately, very little research regarding the effectiveness of games as a training tool has been conducted; and, the research conducted often yields conflicting results. The purpose of this paper is to provide guidelines for the selection, use and evaluation of games in business training. A brief historical overview of the use of games in training, including the perceived benefits and concerns regarding their use, addresses the need for guidelines for selection, use and evaluation of games in training. The guidelines were developed using adult learning theory and transfer of learning theories as a foundation. The potential uses and utility of the guidelines are followed by a concluding section as to how they can be applied to selection, usage and evaluation of games in training. The Influence of Reflection on Employee Psychological Empowerment: Report of an Exploratory Workplace Field Study Vincent L. Cyboran The study examined the influences of reflection on the self-perception of empowerment in the workplace. The convenience sample consisted of non-management knowledge workers at a software company headquartered in the United States. A pretest, posttest control group design was used. The experimental group kept guided journals of their learning activities for three months. Immediately prior to and following the journaling period, both groups completed Spreitzer's Psychological Empowerment Scale. Though no significant within-group results were found, between-group analyses revealed that participants who kept guided journals were able to maintain a high level of psychological empowerment, even during turbulent periods at the host organization, while the psychological empowerment of the control group worsened. The results suggest that reflection through guided journaling may sustain the perception of empowerment for individuals who already possess a fairly high level of psychological empowerment. The paper concludes with implications for further research. Identifying Barriers to Self-employment: The Development and Validation of the Barriers to Entrepreneurship Success Tool John-Paul Hatala The present study sought to add to our knowledge about forces that negatively affect an individual's decision to start a business by identifying barriers they encounter. By identifying barriers to starting a business, we stand to learn much about how an individual identifies, confronts, and responds to decisions which may seem to be beyond their control. Such data will be instrumental in developing practical applications for helping individuals overcome unresolved barriers that potentially prevent them from starting a business. An instrument was developed utilizing factor analysis and yielded a six-barrier construct. The barriers identified in this study were: lack of confidence, personal problems, lack of skills, start-up logistics, financial needs and time constraints. In addition, the instrument was also administered to a test group of new entrepreneurs participating in a training program to determine pre- and post-test intervention effects. The study concludes with suggestions for further development of the BEST tool as well as practical applications for program planners. A Comparative Study of Electronic Performance Support Systems Frank Nguyen, James D. Klein, and Howard Sullivan Electronic performance support systems (EPSS) deliver relevant support information to users while they are performing tasks. The present study examined the effect of different types of EPSS on user performance, attitudes, system use and time on task. Employees at a manufacturing company were asked to complete a procedural software task and received support from either an intrinsic, extrinsic, external performance support system or no system at all. Results revealed significant differences on performance, attitudes and use between several treatment groups. The study suggests that providing any kind of EPSS to support task performance is better than having none at all. In addition, designers can improve user performance, attitudes and use by creating systems that integrate with the primary work interface. Transferring Knowledge Across Cultures: A Learning Competencies Approach Anna B. Kayes, D. Christopher Kayes, and Yoshitaka Yamazaki At the heart of any successful cross-cultural knowledge transfer effort lies an individual or group of individuals with the skills to manage a complex, ambiguous and often stressful process. The ability to manage the knowledge transfer process depends as much on learning in real time as it does on rational planning. Yet, few approaches to knowledge transfer have considered learning as a primary driver of success. In this article, we draw on new insights on how adults learn from experience in cross-cultural settings to understand the cross-cultural knowledge transfer process. We conceive cross-cultural knowledge transfer as a seven-stage process of learning and describe the essential competencies necessary for managing each of the seven stages. We draw on work with cross-cultural knowledge transfer efforts in a variety of industries and cultures to illustrate this process. |