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Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Working Memory Training for Older Participants: A Control Group Training Regimen and Initial Intellectual Functioning Assessment
Published on: September 20, 2020
Effects of trainer reputation and trainees' need for cognition on training outcomes
Annette Towler1, Robert L Dipboye
1Illinois Institute of Technology, Institute of Psychology, 3101 S. Dearborn St., Chicago, IL 60616-3793, USA. towler@iit.edu
Abstract:
The authors examined the effects of trainer reputation and trainees' need for cognition on training outcomes. Participants (N = 75) read a sheet describing a trainer as either effective or ineffective or they were given no information. Participants then viewed a videotaped lecture, evaluated the lecture, and completed a self-efficacy scale and knowledge test. The authors did not find an interaction of trainer reputation and need for cognition on clarity ratings. Participants with low need for cognition were influenced by the trainer reputation, whereas participants with high need for cognition were not. Self-efficacy mediated the relationship between the interaction of trainer reputation and need for cognition on declarative knowledge.
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