TRAINER^© – a computer tutorial for end-users of database services: context, content, and results of use*

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Caruso, Nicholas^a | Caruso, Elaine^b;

Affiliations: [a] Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh | [b] GSPIA Library, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA

Note: [©] TRAINER copyright 1983 by Elaine Caruso, CARUSO Assoc., Inc., 440 Second Street, California, PA 15419, USA.

Note: [*] Presented at the Spring ASIDIC Meeting, Charleston, South Carolina, 21 March 1983. The authors thank Dr. Thomas Pavlak and Dr. Joseph Eaton and their students who participated in the TRAINER experiments. Special thanks to Dr. Gaylord Oberne and Dr. Mary L. Smith who provided funds for the “real-world test” searches that allowed us to validate our results.

Abstract: TRAINER©, a computer-mediated learning aid for users of DIALOG or ORBIT retrieval services, is available via TELENET or EDUNET, from Carnegie-Mellon University. The environment of its present use at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of Pittsburgh, as a major component of computer competence for professionals in specialized knowledge fields, is outlined. The content and learning goals are summarized and experience in use is reviewed. An experiment with sixty-one graduate student trainees is reported: skill levels achieved and online training time show positive correlation; non-western cultural backgrounds do not relate to success; age and typing skills correlate with success, but older trainees spend more time online whereas good typists are quicker to complete the training.

DOI: 10.3233/ISU-1983-3404

Journal: Information Services & Use, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 191-198, 1983