The Role of Trainer Behavior in End User Software Training

Abstract

Understanding the factors that differentiate effective from ineffective end user software training is an under-researched topic in MIS research. Only a few studies have investigated the characteristics of effective training, and the cognitive and social processes through which they influence learning. Of these, none has focused on the role of the trainer and his or her influence on training effectiveness. Thus, the purpose of this research is to identify the behaviors that characterize effective trainers, and examine these behaviors in the context of the learning process. Fifty-three items were identified through interviews with trainers as characterizing effective trainer behavior. These items were organized using card sorting and factor analysis. Six primary categories of behavior emerged: knowledge, communication, course design, sympathy, training techniques, and class management. The prototypicality of the behaviors was also assessed, through a survey of 68 trainers. The results of the study are useful in a number of ways. First, the study provides a basis for training feedback instruments that can be used in applied settings. Second, the results provide a foundation for including trainer behavior into existing training models in a more comprehensive fashion than has been undertaken to date.

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