An examination of learning processes during critical incident training: Implications for the development of adaptable trainees

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Neal, Andrew; Godley, Stuart T.; Kirkpatrick, Terry; Dewsnap, Graham; Joung, Wendy; Hesketh, Beryl
• 署名单位: University of Queensland; University of Sydney
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0021-9010
• DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.91.6.1276
• 发表日期: 2006
• 页码: 1276-1291
• 关键词: Training; decision making; Examples; rules; learning; fire fighting

摘要

Three experiments are reported that examined the process by which trainees learn decision-making skills during a critical incident training program. Formal theories of category learning were used to identify two processes that may be responsible for the acquisition of decision-making skills: rule learning and exemplar learning. Experiments I and 2 used the process dissociation procedure (L. L. Jacoby, 1998) to evaluate the contribution of these processes to performance. The results suggest that trainees used a mixture of rule and exemplar learning. Furthermore, these learning processes were influenced by different aspects of training structure and design. The goal of Experiment 3 was to develop training techniques that enable trainees to use a rule adaptively. Trainees were tested on cases that represented exceptions to the rule. Unexpectedly, the results suggest that providing general instruction regarding the kinds of conditions in which a decision rule does not apply caused them to fixate on the specific conditions mentioned and impaired their ability to identify other conditions in which the rule might not apply. The theoretical, methodological, and practical implications of the results are discussed.