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The use of network technology to deliver training is the latest trend in the training and development industry and has been heralded as the ‘e‐learning revolution.’ In an effort to separate hype from reality, this paper reviews practitioner and research literature on e‐learning, incorporating unpublished information from interviews with managers and consultants directly involved in e‐learning initiatives. Specific attention is given to why organizations use e‐learning, what the potential drawbacks to e‐learning are, what we know from research about e‐learning and what the future of e‐learning may hold.

Unlike the majority of research hypothesizing that similarity between individuals results in positive individual outcomes, this article examines whether dissimilarity results in positive outcomes. On the basis of interpersonal interaction theory, the authors hypothesized that dissimilarity in the personality dimension of control within supervisor-subordinate dyads is positively associated with the subordinate's satisfaction with the supervisor; results obtained with polynomial regression techniques were supportive. However, for 2 other outcomes, organizational citizenship behaviors and work withdrawal, neither similarity nor dissimilarity within the dyad was important; subordinate level of control was related to organizational citizenship behaviors reported by subordinates, and supervisor level of control was related to work withdrawal reported by subordinates. These findings portray the importance of examining relationship complexities beyond similarity in organizational dyad research.