Enhancing trainee satisfaction with cross-cultural training programs via prior warning

Abstract

A review of the cross-cultural training literature indicates that trainees frequently enter training programs with mental sets which are incongruent with the goals of the programs. This condition (termed in the literature the “Einstellung Effect”) sometimes results in substantial dissatisfaction with the training program experience on the part of the trainee. Prior warning has been used successfully in some areas of psychological research to counteract Einstellung effects, but it has yet to be utilized in an attempt to reduce the effect of negative mental set on a training program. This study examined the effect of prior warning in cross-cultural training programs on trainee satisfaction. Students enrolled in four “Missionary Preparation” courses at a large, church-related university served as subjects. Two of the groups (each receiving one of two training methods) had the prior warning treatment, while the other two groups (one receiving each method) received no prior warning and served as control groups. Consistent with the hypothesis that trainee Einstellung effects can be reduced via prior warning, it was found that the subjects' satisfaction scores in the prior warning conditions were significantly higher than those in the no warning conditions.