Given the high cost and criticality of training, decisions about which training methods to employ and how best to use them are vitally important to today's military and to the commercial sector. Unfortunately, most training decisions are made in the absence of meaningful or valid information, often without appropriate representation from relevant stakeholders. A better informed and structured decision process should lead to better training decision. We propose the development of a computerized multi-attribute utility (MAU) decision system, augmented by a training research knowledge base. Such a combination can act as a comprehensive training decision support system. The theoretical model guiding this approach will be developed from the literature on MAU decision aid systems, as well as from the literature on training effectiveness and relevant information from training decision-makers. Phase I includes the specification and development of a prototype decision support system. Phase I also includes the development of a plan for Phase II completion of the decision model and the development of a comprehensive decision support system.
Keywords: decision-making;multi-attribute utility; training; training effectiveness; computer decision aid
