Relationships of organizational expectations and trainer orientations on methods used in training

Abstract

<p>A trainer's managing behaviors in facilitating training programs were assumed to be contingent upon a variety of variables. Studies on the trainer variables suggested that a trainer's educational background, educational orientation about adult teaching, educational philosophy, and organizational climate and expectations were part of the factors affecting the trainer's teaching practice. This research examined how those variables in part or combination attributed to the trainer's preferences of training methods such as teaching arrangements and teaching techniques, and emphasis on training procedures in applying training methods. Additionally, this study investigated how a trainer's educational orientation was related to philosophical orientations, participation in informal educational activities and tenure;The subjects for this study included 120 trainers randomly selected from the Iowa Chapter of the American Society for Training and Development. When the survey questionnaires were mailed to those 120 trainers, 54 trainers provided valid information on items of the questionnaire, which identified a trainer's educational background, educational orientation, educational philosophy, organizational climate and expectations, training processes, and training methods;Climate factors were more visible than any other variables in affecting a trainer's preferences of teaching arrangements. Some of the research variables turned out to have predictive relationships to a trainer's preferences of training techniques and emphasis on training procedures. However, those variables identified here had limited predictive abilities due to the large portion of unexplained variation. Therefore, further research needs to explore other, unexamined variables;Additionally, this study showed that humanist- and functionalist-oriented trainers were more andragogical in their educational orientation than behaviorist- and structuralist-oriented trainers. There were no significant differences in educational orientation by level of informal instruction and tenure.</p>