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Purpose To effectively develop leaders, human resources and career development professionals need an effective method of determining leadership skill levels. For example, sending a novice leader to training meant for experts would likely be ineffective and frustrating for both the instructor and individual. Promoting a novice leader to a position requiring expert leadership skills could be disastrous. The purpose of this study was to determine if the Dreyfus (2004) model of skills acquisition could be applied to general leadership. Design/methodology/approach A total of 124 surveys were collected from five employers. Participants self-assessed their leadership skill level from novice to expert using Dreyfus level descriptions in 18 leadership self-efficacy dimensions identified by Anderson, Krajewski, Goffin and Jackson (2008). For comparison, leadership self-efficacy (LSE) was also measured with a self-assessment of proficiency in 88 specific leadership and management behaviors also identified in the Anderson et al. (2008) study. Findings Pearson correlation coefficient computations between total LSE and average Dreyfus level dimensions reported a strong positive correlation [r (124) = 0.644, p < 0.001] between total leadership self-efficacy and the average participant Dreyfus level self-assessments in each of the 18 leadership self-efficacy dimensions. Of the 18 LSE dimensions participants assessed their skill levels, 4 were found to be significant predictors of LSE [F (4,119) = 67.6887, p < 0.001] with an R2 = 0.482. Predicted leadership self-efficacy is equal to 187.14 + 16.327 (Project Credibility) + 8.046 (Mentor) + 6.971 (Build) + 9.342 (Solve). Research limitations/implications The majority of the individuals in the sample in this research study were from one employer, a local college (n = 88). The entire sample was from one small, somewhat isolated community. The majority of this sample was female (n = 81, 65 per cent) and white (n = 118, 95.2 per cent). A larger and more diverse sample may provide differing results. It also possible that other factors affected overall LSE, but using that score as a comparison, a clear correlation was shown between LSE and Dreyfus levels. Practical implications Based on the results of this study an individual who self-categorizes his or her leadership skill as novice, advanced beginner, competent, proficient or expert is likely correct. Should the findings of this study prove generalizable, an individual’s perceived leadership skill level could be closely approximated with a simple, four-item instrument. Originality/value The concept of leadership levels has appeared in many studies and popular press publications. However, quantifying leadership skill levels or determining an individual’s leadership level has not been often addressed. This study attempts to apply a skills acquisition model and apply it to general leadership. The results appear to show that leadership levels can be quantified and accurately self-determined. This study also attempted to validate a leadership self-efficacy model.

Artificial intelligence in the workplace is becoming increasingly common. These tools are sometimes used to aid users in performing their task, for example, when an artificial intelligence tool assists a radiologist in their search for abnormalities in radiographic images. The use of artificial intelligence brings a wealth of benefits, such as increasing the efficiency and efficacy of performance. However, little research has been conducted to determine how the use of artificial intelligence assistants might affect the user’s cognitive skills. In this theoretical perspective, we discuss how artificial intelligence assistants might accelerate skill decay among experts and hinder skill acquisition among learners. Further, we discuss how AI assistants might also prevent experts and learners from recognizing these deleterious effects. We then discuss the types of questions: use-inspired basic cognitive researchers, applied researchers, and computer science researchers should seek to answer. We conclude that multidisciplinary research from use-inspired basic cognitive research, domain-specific applied research, and technical research (e.g., human factors research, computer science research) is needed to (a) understand these potential consequences, (b) design artificial intelligence systems to mitigate these impacts, and (c) develop training and use protocols to prevent negative impacts on users’ cognitive skills. Only by answering these questions from multidisciplinary perspectives can we harness the benefits of artificial intelligence in the workplace while preventing negative impacts on users’ cognitive skills.

This book investigates trends in skills demand and supply over the past two decades for insights into ways to build (and use) the critical skills needed to sustain competitiveness of the Philippine economy. Part one of the book investigates trends in demand for skills in the country overall and by sectors, explores its possible determinants, and attempts to identify emerging skills gaps. Part two turns to the analysis of the supply of skills in the country with a focus on the ability of education and training to provide highly skilled labor, keeping workers' skills updated, and providing skills development opportunities for the unskilled. It explores employers' perceptions on the quality of institutions and provides detailed analysis of the main characteristics, outcomes, and challenges in four key (or growing) subsectors of the provision of skills in the country: higher education, postsecondary technical-vocational education, non-formal secondary education, and postemployment training. It concludes with a summary of policy recommendations.

Hazard perception in driving refers to a driver's ability to anticipate potentially dangerous situations on the road ahead and has been the subject of research for over 50 years. It is typically measured using computer-based hazard-perception tests and has been associated with both retrospective and prospective crash risk, as well as key crash-risk factors such as distraction, fatigue, alcohol consumption, speed choice, and age-related declines. It can also differentiate high- and lower-risk driver groups. The problem is that it is also a skill that appears to take decades of driving experience to acquire. This raises the question of whether it is possible and practical to accelerate this learning process via assessment and training in order to improve traffic safety. We have evidence that, in contrast to most driver education and assessment interventions, hazard-perception testing and training appear to have the capability to reduce crash risk. For example, the inclusion of a hazard-perception test in the UK driver licensing process has been estimated to reduce drivers' non-low-speed public-road crash rates by 11.3% in the year following their test.

The primary motor cortex (M1) is critical for movement execution, but its role in motor skill acquisition remains elusive. Here, we examine the role of M1 intracortical circuits during skill acquisition. Paired-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) paradigms of short-interval intracortical facilitation (SICF) and inhibition (SICI) were used to assess excitatory and inhibitory circuits, respectively. We hypothesised that intracortical facilitation and inhibition circuits in M1 would be modulated to support acquisition of a novel visuomotor skill. Twenty-two young, neurologically healthy adults trained with their nondominant hand on a skilled and non-skilled sequential visuomotor isometric finger abduction task. Electromyographic recordings were obtained from the nondominant first dorsal interosseous (FDI) muscle. Corticomotor excitability, SICF, and SICI were examined before, at the midway point, and after the 10-block motor training. SICI was assessed using adaptive threshold-hunting procedures. Task performance improved after the skilled, but not non-skilled, task training, which likely reflected the increase in movement speed during training. The amplitudes of late SICF peaks were modulated with skilled task training. There was no modulation of the early SICF peak, SICI, and corticomotor excitability with either task training. There was also no association between skill acquisition and SICF or SICI. The findings indicate that excitatory circuitries responsible for the generation of late SICF peaks, but not the early SICF peak, are modulated in motor skill acquisition for a sequential visuomotor isometric finger abduction task.

Parenting decisions are among the most consequential choices that people make throughout their lives. Starting with the work of pioneers such as Gary Becker, economists have used the tool set of their discipline to understand what parents do and how parents' actions affect their children. In recent years, the literature on parenting within economics has increasingly leveraged findings and concepts from related disciplines that also deal with parent-child interactions. For example, economists have developed models to understand the choice among various parenting styles that were first explored in the developmental psychology literature and have estimated detailed empirical models of children's accumulation of cognitive and noncognitive skills in response to parental and other inputs. In this review, we survey the economic literature on parenting and point out promising directions for future research.

Working memory (WM) training has recently become a topic of intense interest and controversy. Although several recent studies have reported near- and far-transfer effects as a result of training WM-related skills, others have failed to show far transfer, suggesting that generalization effects are elusive. Also, many of the earlier intervention attempts have been criticized on methodological grounds. The present study resolves some of the methodological limitations of previous studies and also considers individual differences as potential explanations for the differing transfer effects across studies. We recruited intrinsically motivated participants and assessed their need for cognition (NFC; Cacioppo & Petty Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 42:116–131, 1982 ) and their implicit theories of intelligence (Dweck, 1999 ) prior to training. We assessed the efficacy of two WM interventions by comparing participants’ improvements on a battery of fluid intelligence tests against those of an active control group. We observed that transfer to a composite measure of fluid reasoning resulted from both WM interventions. In addition, we uncovered factors that contributed to training success, including motivation, need for cognition, preexisting ability, and implicit theories about intelligence.

Action observation training and motor imagery training have independently been studied and considered as an effective training strategy for improving motor skill learning. However, comparative studies of the two training strategies are relatively few. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of action observation training and motor imagery training on the development of mental representation structure and golf putting performance as well as the relation between the changes in mental representation structure and skill performance during the early learning stage. Forty novices were randomly assigned to one of four groups: action observation training, motor imagery training, physical practice and no practice. The mental representation structure and putting performance were measured before and after 3 days of training, then after a 2-day retention period. The results showed that mental representation structure and the accuracy of the putting performance were improved over time through the two types of cognitive training (i.e., action observation training and motor imagery training). In addition, we found a significant positive correlation between changes in mental representation structure and skill performance for the action observation training group only. Taken together, these results suggest that both cognitive adaptations and skill improvement occur through the training of the two simulation states of action, and that perceptual-cognitive changes are associated with the change of skill performance for action observation training.

•We studied how motor skill learning affects CNS communication across development.•Performance and coherence were assessed in participants (8–30y) pre/post motor practice.•Performance and coherence increased most in 16–18y and 20–30y.•Control experiments suggested that changes were related to motor practice.•Network adaptations accompanied by motor practice are age dependent. Learning a new motor skill relies on functional reorganization of the human central nervous system (CNS). Plasticity may shape the transmission and communication between cortical regions and between cortical and spinal networks involved in sensorimotor control, but little is known about the influence of age on these adaptations. In a series of experiments, we investigated whether changes in cortical and corticospinal functional connectivity following motor practice differ among individuals at different stages of development (age range 8–30 years old). One hundred and one individuals practiced a visuomotor tracking task in a single experimental session. Functional cortico-cortical and cortico-muscular connectivity were quantified before and after motor training using non-zero lagged coherence estimated from source-reconstructed electroencephalographic (EEG) and electromyographic (EMG) time series. For cortico-cortical coherence, the focus was on sources in a pre-specified cortical network consistently implicated in motor learning. For cortico-muscular coherence, analyses were restricted to the contralateral primary motor cortex. The results showed that upregulation of connectivity in cortical and corticospinal networks, and improvements in motor performance following practice were more pronounced in adults compared to children. Control experiments demonstrated that these changes were dependent on motor practice rather than extended use and on changes in motor performance rather than absolute performance levels. We propose that the reported age-related differences reflect that the mature CNS is tuned to engage in adaptive processes, leading to increased sensorimotor connectivity and improvements in skilled performance during early motor learning. Our results contribute to a better understanding of age-related differences in the network adaptations underlying successful skill learning during human development.

Motor learning is often viewed as a unitary process that operates outside of conscious awareness. This perspective has led to the development of sophisticated models designed to elucidate the mechanisms of implicit sensorimotor learning. In this review, we argue for a broader perspective, emphasizing the contribution of explicit strategies to sensorimotor learning tasks. Furthermore, we propose a theoretical framework for motor learning that consists of three fundamental processes: reasoning, the process of understanding action–outcome relationships; refinement, the process of optimizing sensorimotor and cognitive parameters to achieve motor goals; and retrieval, the process of inferring the context and recalling a control policy. We anticipate that this ‘3R’ framework for understanding how complex movements are learned will open exciting avenues for future research at the intersection between cognition and action.