This book develops a theoretical, historical and empirical framework for making decisions about training design. The main question asks how close simulations must be to real-life situations to achieve effective training. The degree of correspondence between simulation and real circumstances is known as fidelity. The framework developed by the authors uses the concept of fidelity to help specify the characteristics of training media. The framework will help training developers by providing a different focus on their immediate concerns (such as engineering design or curriculum development) and a broad concern with the fidelity of the total training system. Parts of the book review the influence of the latest technological advancements on the evolution of training systems. TOC:Contents: Simulation Fidelity: Definitions, Problems, and Historical Perspectives: Definitions and Problems in Training System Design. A Conceptual History of Simulation Fidelity. Simulation Fidelity as an Organizing Concept. A History of Device-based Training Systems.- Fidelity and Training System Research: Training Effectiveness Evaluation. Aviation Training Research. Operator and Maintenance Training Research. Training for Cognitive Skills.- Recent Fidelity Research: Systematic Fidelity Research. Fidelity Research on Fault Diagnosis and Other Maintenance Tasks.- Current Trends and Future Directions in Training System Design: Current Trends in Training Systems: Computer-based Instruction, Embedded Training, and Artificial Intelligence. Systems Approach to Training Design. Current Simulation Fidelity Guidance and Areas for Future Research.- References.
