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594 transactional analysis
to retrain �upgrade skills) is equally as important as
the life cycle of jobs and of specific skills associated
with particular job change. Therefore, the currency
of skills learned is a significant commodity.
To ensure that a tourism workforce remains
competitive in the global marketplace, educators
and employers must work together to meet the
training needs of the industry. Specific technical
skills/competencies can be readily acquired in the
workplace; for example, an employee can learn
how to serve a table, process a reservation, guide
a tour or even prepare a lunch. Essential skills
�those most in demand and core to any job) such as
problem-solving skills, effective communication
skills or customer relations skills are probably best
taught in a formal environment before applying
them to the workplace.
As one example, the Canadian tourism industry
has since the mid-1980s been working to develop
various instruments for employers and educators to
support human resource development. Occupational
standards, competency-based curricula
�for the workplace and/or for the classroom), `prior
learning' assessment tools and essential skills
profiles are examples of the tools and the types of
research and development work that continues
to evolve. Occupational standards are the
core documents which influence effective human
resources practices.
Such standards are statements that outline the
knowledge, performance and attitudes required of
an individual to be considered competent in an
occupation. Standards provide the basis for
curriculum and programme development, assist
employers with defining training needs and staff
development, help identify career paths and
provide a basis for certification, as well as many
other benefits that lead to improved service levels
and the development of professionals in the
industry.
Training in tourism will continue to evolve as
the work climate changes. To meet the demands of
a global market and ever-increasing service
culture, tourism professionals will have to continue
to seek meaningful ways to increase their repertoire
of knowledge and skills. Formal education alone
will not adequately meet the training needs of
industry professionals. Employers will also have to
develop their training skills in order to meet the
demands of a dynamic and evolving work climate.
See also: curriculum design
References
Dewey, J. �1916) Democracy and Education, New York:
Macmillan.
Further reading
McNeil, D.J. �1990) Curriculum ± A Comprehensive
Introduction, New York: HarperCollins.
Mondor, P. �1995) Àrticulating curriculum intentions
for the Canadian tourism industry',
Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council.
transactional analysis
PHILIP E. MONDOR, CANADA
Transactional analysis is a theory of psychology
and interpersonal dynamics developed by Eric
Berne in the 1960s, popularised with the publication
of his and other books, and extensively used to
train employees of tourism organisations in the
1970s and 1980s. Berne devised a simple terminology
to replace psychology's technical jargon and
new concepts which could be easily understood by
lay persons. Tourism companies determined that
transactional analysis was particularly useful for
improving a frontline employee or manager's
ability to handle difficult interpersonal situations
with customers or employees. Transactional analysis
is now included in many human relations and
organisation development textbooks, and thus
may be seen as a beneficial area of study for
tourism professionals. For the purpose of tourism,
the theory may be separated into four areas of
study.
The first area is `transaction'. A transaction is
the basic unit of study and social intercourse which
occurs when one person encounters another and
says or does something to acknowledge the other
person. The sender gives a transactional stimulus
for which the receiver gives transactional response.
A conversation between a tourism employee or
manager and a customer or another employee