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This study examines the relationship between employee attitudes toward training and feelings of organizational commitment among a sample of 337 registered nurses from five hospitals. Using social exchange theory as a framework for investigating the relationship, the researcher found that perceived access to training, social support for training, motivation to learn, and perceived benefits of training are positively related to organizational commitment. Using a three-component model of organizational commitment, the strongest relationships appear with the affective form of commitment. The relationship between perceived access to training opportunities and the affective form of organizational commitment is moderated by job satisfaction but not job involvement. The findings are discussed for their theoretical and practical application to HRD, for the management of HRD in health care settings, and for researchers interested in outcomes of HRD.
A recent text on training in organizations states that "companies in the United States expend more money annually on training than do all the public school systems in the country combined" (O'Connor, Bronner, and Delaney, 1996, p. 1). Based on figures from the organizations included in the 1999 Association for Training and Development (ASTD) State of the Industry Report, many U.S. companies are spending more than $2 million on training annually (p. 5).
Despite the fact that the scope of training in industry is expanding (ASTD, 1999), there remains concern over the contribution of training to desired organizational outcomes. The expanded role of training places continued pressure on human resource development (HRD) professionals to develop more effective training methods, programs, and instructional systems, and to conduct evaluations that demonstrate a return to organizations from their training investments (Rush, 1996).
This study explores a new way to evaluate the outcome of training in organizations, that is, by examining the relationship between training and organizational commitment. Organizational commitment refers to a person's type and strength of attachment to his or her organization (Arnold, Cooper, and Robertson, 1998).
Problem Statement and Theoretical Framework
Training has been identified as an example of a human resource management practice that contributes to gains in competitive advantage (Schuler and MacMillan, 1984); some researchers have suggested that contributions to productivity and organizational performance are the most dominant argument for justifying training (Scott and Meyer, 1991). Yet there is little...