How people react to training has contin-ued to receive attention in the literature, par-ticularly around the question of how best to use reactions for improving training design and delivery. Morgan & Casper (2000) factor analyzed a set of training reaction items from 9128 government employees and found evidence of two underlying factors: overall affect toward training and perceived utility of the training.
Aguinis & Branstetter (2007) also discussed the need to discriminate between affective and utility reactions because utility reactions are more strongly related to learning than are affective reactions. K.G. Brown (2005) proposed a the-oretical structure with distinct factors (enjoyment, relevance, and technology satisfaction) as well as a second order factor of overall satisfaction, related in part to trainee affect. Data from two studies reported by K.G. Brown (2005) sup-ported this model. In a study of 181 Korean workers, Lim & Morris (2006) showed that the relationship between perceived applicability (training utility) and perceived application (transfer) decreased as the time between train-ing and measurement increased.
There continues to be calls for establishing the return on investment for training, particu-larly as training continues to be outsourced and new forms of TDI are marketed as cost effec-tive. Although the tools and strategies for showing return on investment are well known (e.g., Kraiger 2002, Phillips & Phillips 2007, Spitzer 2005), as the above review of organizational-level outcomes indicated, there remain few published studies of return on investment.
In summary, it is important not only that the benefits of training be maximized, but also that these benefits are documented. Recently proposed conceptualizations and measures of training effectiveness can enhance the perceived benefits of training from the perspective of the various stakeholders in the process, including those who participate in training, those who deliver it, and those who fund it (e.g., organi-zations). It is important that training evaluation include a consideration of the intended purpose of the evaluation, the needs and sophistication of the intended audience, and the variables related to various types of utility reactions (i.e., affective versus utility).
Transfer of Training
Evidence described in the previous sections forcefully makes the point that training works, in the sense that it has an impact on individ-uals and teams and on the organizations and