Factors affecting the transfer of learning to the workplace

Abstract

Training aims to respond to the needs of development of individuals and organizations (Grohmann & Kauffeld, 2013). Based on Holton model, we carried out a study seeking to identify and understand the factors involved in the process of learning transfer to the workplace from two different training actions on the design and skills. The study took place at a Portuguese organization and involved 98 participants. Former students were interviewed with the purpose to explore the factors that facilitated or hindered the learning transfer, and the Inventory of the Portuguese version of the Learning Transfer System (Holton, Bates, Seyler & Carvalho, 1997; Velada & Caetano, 2009) was applied. The results suggest that the Holton model (2005) shows that the trainees have identified important issues for learning transfer and that there are differences in relation to the transfer factor pursuant to the type of training.