Perceptions of Japanese Training and Development Professionals in Japan toward the Job Roles and Competencies Identified by American Training and Development Professionals in the United States

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to investigate the perceptions of Japanese training and development professionals in Japan toward the roles and competencies identified by American training and development professionals in the United States. This was a descriptive study that used t-tests and the Bonferroni Inequality method to analyze two sets of survey data. The first set of survey data was generated from American training and development professionals who were members of the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). These results are found in the Models for HRD Practice: The Research Report (McLagan & Suhadolnik, 1989). The second set of survey data was generated from Japanese training and development professionals who were active members of the Japan Industrial Training Association (JITA) and who attended the 1991 Annual HRD Conference of JITA in Tokyo, Japan. The same data collection instrument, a survey questionnaire which incorporated Likert-type scales, was used to query the Japanese training and development professionals. The survey questionnaire was translated from English into Japanese. The Japanese training and development professionals who participated in this study identified themselves by national origin, years of working with their company, years involved in the training field, age, sex, and level of highest education. The 11 job roles of Administrator, Evaluator, HRD Manager, HRD Materials Developer, Individual Career Development Advisor, Instructor⁄Facilitator, Marketer, Needs Analyst, Organization Change Agent, Program Designer, and Researcher performed by American training and development professionals were reported being performed by Japanese training and development professionals. The Japanese training and development professionals reported performing an average of 3.36 of these training roles. The Japanese and American training and development professionals reported a 17.19% difference in the perceptions regarding levels of importance of the competencies required to perform the same training roles. The Japanese and American training and development professionals reported a 68.79% difference in the perceptions for levels of expertise needed to perform the competencies for the same training roles.

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Degree

EdD

Discipline

Occupational Education

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