A relapse prevention (RP) module was added to a two-week training programme in order to evaluate its impact on post-training transfer. Locus of control, as well as the subjects' self-perceptions of the degree to which the work milieu would support their application of the skills taught, were also measured. The outcome (dependent) variables, measured for the 8 1 training participants, included reactions, knowledge and on-the-job skill usage, with the latter being obtained from both the trainees and their immediate supervisors. The results indicate that, as compared to appropriate controls, knowledge acquisition and the extent of strategy utilization was significantly higher for those who participated in the RP. Locus of control and perceived support interacted with the RP intervention on the extent ofstrategy utilization. The results are discussed in the light of previous research on the issue of transfer of training.

This paper reviews the major contributions that I-O Psychology has made to the understanding of the effects of training. Moving away from a purely pedagogical perspective, the psychological states of trainees, especially motivation, self-efficacy, and perceived control, combined with the realities of the organisational context, all influence the outcomes of training. Many of these variables have been shown to be malleable within a training context, and this has led to the development of powerful tools, techniques, and interventions that were lacking in the past.From a methodological perspective, research has identified the relevant measurement criteria, as well as when and how evaluation can be conducted. In addition, new instruments that assess organisational transfer climate and continuous-learning cultures are now available. Their use will allow organizations to better understand why they obtain the training results they do, and what they can do to improve training outcomes.Even as the importance of the work environment to training success has been amply demonstrated, it remains a very rare event when training departments intervene effectively to enhance the level of environmental support. Substantial practical suggestions that are theoretically and empirically grounded in research and techniques for enhancing training effectiveness under a variety of organisational conditions, be they favourable or not to training, are described. Several analytical models which may prove of relevance to practitioners and to scholars in guiding the selection and the design of transferable training programs are presented and discussed.The last decade of the twentieth century points quite visibly to signs of a major transformation of work and organizations that is likely to continue into the next century. A number of geo-political forces such as the industrialization of the Asian nations which is now in full swing, and more generalized trade treaties appear to be Canadian Psychology/Psychologic canadienne, 39:1-2

Training evaluation is a process designed to measure the degree of trainee changes (on learning as well as on other dimensions) that training programs cause. Whereas many experimental and correlational designs permitting such inferences exist, they are rarely used, principally for practical reasons. This paper evaluates an operationally simple procedure for estimating effectiveness of training in improving trainee knowledge-the Internal Referencing Strategy (IRS). It identifies and tests the implicit training evaluation notion that training-relevant content should show more change (pre-post) than training-irrelevant content. An empirical evaluation study conducted with 66 managers enrolled in a training course compares the inferences produced by the IRS versus a more traditional experimental evaluation. The results indicate that the IRS approach may permit inferences that mirror those obtained by the more complex design. The paper closes with a discussion of the limits and possible uses of this design.Training evaluation issues have been of concern to researchers and practitioners who are pressed to determine the value of training efforts (Alliger ). Training evaluations should provide relevant information about the extent and direction (positive-negative) of trainee change, and about the causes of that change. Causal attributions in training evaluation require the empirical confirmation that posttraining changes be larger than those changes that could have occurred by chance or through the action of contiguous events independent of the training experience. To help provide that confirmation, researchers rely on two basic strategies.The first of these strategies, the experimental approach, draws causal inferences by comparing the trained group to one or more untrained,

A 25-item scoring instrument was developed to measure perceptions of the extent to which performance appraisals are affected by organizational politics. The survey was administered to 157 francophone managers. A factor analysis revealed that the perceptions of the extent to which political considerations affect the appraisal an employee receives can be sensibly interpreted in terms of a single general factor. The internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the instrument was high. Moderate support was found for the instrument's convergent and discriminant validity.that the vast majority of empirical studies have concentrated on non-deliberate rating distortion.Researchers have concentrated, for example, on rater training programs which assume that raters would rate accurately if only they had the skill to d o so (e.g. Pulakos, 1986). Frame of

Three different supervisory styles (directive, rational, or friendly) portrayed by male versus female supervisors were rated by 30 male and 30 female nonmanagement personnel. Subjects evaluated the effectiveness of, and their satisfaction with, the various styles portrayed as though they were the subordinates. The directive style was rated least favorably when it is displayed by female supervisors. Results indicate that nonmanagement employees' sex role stereotypes merit further investigation. Also, a contingency view of leadership should take into account that the sex of subordinate and of supervisor jointly suggest the appropriate supervisory style.Historically, it may be demonstrated that women are underrepresented in managerial positions. As social and legal pressures grow, it is expected that an increasing number of women will join industry's managerial ranks. Recent studies, principally conducted with U.S. samples, indicate the pervasiveness of sex role stereotypes (e.g., Schein, 1973Schein, , 1975 and their impacts on the evaluation of males and females (e.g., Goldberg, 1968;Taynor & Deaux, 1973). Women as described by the sex role stereotype are considerate, humanitarian, and helpful, whereas men are described stereotypically as more aggressive, forceful, and analytical (see Schein, 197S; Tyler, 196S). Consistent with these stereotypes then, it may be surmised that women managers are expected to behave differently than their male counterparts. Female managers may be expected to behave in a more supportive, dependent, and considerate manner, whereas male managers may be expected to use a more directive, management style. It may then be hypothesized that the rated effectiveness of a manager and the satisfaction of subordinates will decrease to the extent that he or she adopts a management style inconsistent with the requisite stereotype.This study is part of the third author's BA honors thesis.Requests for reprints should .be sent to Dorothy