Validating Constructs of a U.S.-Based Transfer Instrument in Taiwan.

Learning Transfer System Inventory (LTSI) is the only research-based instrument of transfer learning in the U.S.A. to be used in diagnosing strengths and weaknesses of organizational transfer systems. This study validated the LTSI for use in Taiwan. The sample contained 583 responses collected from 20 different organizations. The results of exploratory common factor analyses showed that 15 factors were validated for use in Taiwan. Of the 15, fourteen were identical to the original LTSI. HRD is a relatively new profession but not a new concept in Taiwan. A review of the history of human resource development in Taiwan vividly illustrates that HRD has been embedded in the government's human resource policy and linked to economic growth since 1953. The Taiwanese government has long perceived that developing highly competent human resources will lead to the nation's economic growth (Kuo & McLean, 1999). HRD has been instrumental in Taiwan's economic miracle in Asia since the 1960s. Taiwan has been perceived as one of the four "little dragons" (i.e., the most rapidly industrialized countries) in East Asia, along with Hong Kong, Singapore, and Korea. Yuen (1994) asserted that Taiwan's government has created technical training and vocational schools that have dramatically enhanced workers' skills, knowledge and abilities. This factor has led Taiwan to be one of the most powerful economies in the world. According to the global competitiveness report of the World Economic Forum, published by the Center for International Development at Harvard University, Taiwan was ranked 3 rd in economic growth, trailing only the U.S.A. and Finland (Cornelius, 2003). Although other factors such as government financial policies or market forces may influence Taiwan's economic growth, the government policies that highly value human capital point out the contribution of HRD to Taiwan's economic growth. Indeed, in a country with limited natural resources such as Taiwan, human capital is a more vital concept than in countries with fruitful natural resources such as the United Sates or China. Due to the new era of globalization, organizations in Taiwan have been facing more rigorous competition than ever in recent years. As a result, HRD has received additional attention in both the public and private sectors. In the public sector, Taiwan's government has embedded the concept of HRD into the government transformation process. Several recent government policies have reflected the intensive need for human development. One of the most dramatic government policies putting the human resource development concept into action has been the legislation called "Civil Servant Life-Long Learning Passport" (CSLLLP), which is approved by the Central Personnel Administration Department, Executive Yuan (CPA 200264 Act, 2001). The vision of the CSLLLP legislation is to build an integrated human resource system by promoting innovation, continual learning, and employee learning initiatives to effectively and efficiently increase civil service to citizens with an ultimate goal of creating a learning government. In private sectors, training has been a prevalent concern for organization decision makers. A major industrial and business magazine, Common Wealth, conducted a nation-wide study to the top 1000 companies in Taiwan. The top two priorities of those companies were training and development and research and development. As many as 47.8% of the top 1000 organizations perceived that training and development was the highest priority they needed to address (Chuang, 1998). Problem Statement and Research Question The priority on training and increasing expenditures on training have warranted that organizations will, sooner or later, want to know if training has led to higher performance and has created better organizational results. However, a study conducted by Lin and Chiu (1997) found that training evaluation practices in Taiwan focus more on levels of reaction and learning than on those of transfer and organizational results. In addition, training is one way to develop human resources, while transfer is an approach to unleash human expertise. It seems clear that both