This study expands on the concept of the learning transfer system and reports on the validation of an instrument to measure factors in the system affecting transfer of learning. The Learning Transfer System Inventory (LTSI) was developed and administered to 1,616 training participants from a wide range of organizations. Exploratory common factor analysis revealed a clean interpretable factor structure of sixteen transfer system constructs. Second-order factor analysis suggested a three-factor higher order structure of climate, job utility, and rewards. The instrument development process, factor structure, and use of the LTSI as a diagnostic tool in organizations are discussed.

Individual readiness for organizational change reflects the concept of unfreezing proposed by Lewin (1947/1997b) and is critical to successful change implementation. Understanding the conditions conducive to individual readiness for organizational change, instead of the more traditional focus on resistance to change, can be useful for designing and implementing effective human resource and organization development (HROD) interventions. In this conceptual article, we examine the concept of individual readiness for organizational change as well as its relationship to change strategies and organizational culture. A review of literature on change strategies and a learning culture suggests that individuals are more likely to have higher levels of readiness for organizational change when (a) they experience normative-reeducative change strategies and when (b) they perceive their work environment to have the characteristics associated with a learning culture.

Twenty-first-century HR is emerging to uniquely combine activities and processes

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The problem and the solution. There's no doubt that the theory-practice gap exists in HRD and in most applied professions. However, it is time to move beyond belaboring this gap and toward figuring out specific ways to lessen it. We need new models on which to build. This article offers just such a model-a way to conceive of the different ways that practitioners utilize and contribute to the scholarship of HRD. The model outlines four distinct types of practice and the characteristics of these different types of practitioners. Implications for professional development and professionalization of individuals in HRD, as well as the field of HRD itself, are discussed.

Today, many human resource professionals are faced with the responsibilities of implementing ethics initiatives in the workplace. The integration of ethics is becoming an aspect of organizational life to counter unethical conduct, enhance the organization's reputation, and stimulate the attraction and retention of talent. Scholars believe ethical behavior must be institutionalized—evidenced in daily practices and rooted in organizational culture—to sustain ethics in the workplace. It is becoming increasingly clear that human resource development (HRD) professionals significantly contribute, and even more, to the process of institutionalizing ethics. This article synthesizes the literature by comparing several of the frameworks for the institutionalization of ethics that have been forwarded in research and theory during the past 15 years. Implications for HRD professionals as key contributors in the institutionalization of ethics process are discussed.

The problem and the solution. The future holds countless challenges. The future cannot be known, and it must not be ignored. Understanding trends and indicators emerging today helps us to proactively think about potential future developments and positions us to constructively shape them. This article reports on a survey of 55 human resource development (HRD) and HRD-related practitioners and academics who identified trends, variables, and challenges that they believe are affecting and will affect the profession during the next 15 to 20 years.

OverviewThe History of Human Resource Development, by Matthew Gosney and Claretha Hughes is a review of the origins and subsequently the growth of human resource development (HRD) as a discipline. The authors review the history of HRD using a philosophical lens to illustrate how historical events are useful for understanding the development of theory that has been associated with HRD practice.