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Effective orientation and training are fundamental to the successful implementation of any intervention because they communicate the critical first impressions of the intervention and the skills needed to conduct it. When research-based HIV prevention interventions are translated into practice, issues arise that require adaptation and expansion of the basic functions of orientation and training. This article identifies some of these issues by drawing on the experience of researchers in the Replicating Effective Programs (REP) project. The purpose, structure, and instructional approach of the orientation and training for administrators, staff, and volunteers are described in depth for one project, with comparisons and additional examples from others. Based on these descriptions, critical issues for orientation and training for replication are presented. These include extending orientation and training to a broad audience within the adopting agency, allocating sufficient time to ensure understanding of the intervention, and planning for staff turnover.
Orientation and training are fundamental to the successful delivery of any intervention. Orientation creates the first impression of the intervention and outlines its basic principles and infrastructure. In studies of group processes (Corey, Corey, Callanan & Russell, 1992) and instructional design (Dick & Carey, 1996) and reports on running training workshops (Davis & McCallon, 1974; Hobbs, 1992) and providing health education for professionals (Gallagher, 1996), community members (Dibb Warwick, 1996; Jackson & Parks, 1997), and volunteers (Nagy, Berkowitz Wadud, 1999), orientation is viewed as a prerequisite to successful training. Orientations often include formal assessments of trainees' needs (Shayo, Olfman, & Teitelroit, 1999). Their purpose is to identify objectives, clarify expectations, establish the trainer's credibility, and generate motivation and enthusiasm. For trainees who are volunteers, an orientation provides an opportunity to decide whether to make a commitment to participate; for volunteers and salaried staff who are assigned to the intervention, it affects the degree of enthusiasm with which they undertake their activities.
Training focuses on what to do in the intervention and how to do it. It typically is directed toward all three domains of learning-cognitive, affective, and behavioral-and therefore needs to make use of instructional methods appropriate to each of these domains (Gallagher, 1996). Training incorporates many of the principles of adult education (Knowles, 1973; Merriam, 1996), including an emphasis on student-centered learning (Naylor, 1996), and posits...