THE PERSONNEL TRAINING SITUATION IN ORGANIZATIONS IN THE 1970'S IS REVIEWED, WITH THHE CONCLUSION THAT LITTLE SYSTEMATIC PSYCHOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE FIELD HAS BEEN DEVELOPED. AN OPEN SYSTEM VIEW IS THEN USED TO CLARIFY THE NATURE OF THE TRAINING PROCESS. THIS SYSTEMS ANALYSIS BEGINS WITH INDIVIDUAL TRAINING. THE TYPES OF TRAINING USUALLY PROVIDED (MOTOR SKILLS, COGNITIVE SKILLS, AND INTERPERSONAL SKILLS) ARE REVIEWED AND SYSTEMS FOR IMPARTING THESE SKILLS TO PERSONNEL ARE EXAMINED. THE SIGNAL AND MAINTENANCE INPUTS, SYSTEMS OPERATORS, OUTPUTS, AND FEEDBACK LOOPS FOUND AT EACH LEVEL OF THE TRAINING OPERATION ARE TRACED. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT, WHILE MUCH ATTENTION HAS BEEN GIVEN TO THE PROCESS OF IMPARTING SKILLS TO AN INDIVIDUAL, LITTLE PSYCHOLOGICAL ATTENTION HAS BEEN GIVEN TO THE ORGANIZATION OF THE TRAINING DEPARTMENT OR THE OPERATION OF THE TRAINING DEPARTMENT WITHIN THE TOTAL STRUCTURE. POPULAR TRAINING METHODOLOGIES ARE REVIEWED. THESE INCLUDE CONTENT-ORIENTED TECHNIQUES (LECTURES, AUDIOVISUAL TECHNIQUES, AND SELF-INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES); PROCESS-ORIENTED TECHNIQUES (ROLE-PLAYING, SENSITIVITY TRAINING, AND MODELING); AND MIXED TECHNIQUES (CONFERENCE DISCUSSION TECHNIQUES, CASE STUDY METHODS, SIMULATIONS, AND ON-THE-JOB TRAINING TECHNIQUES). THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF EACH ARE BRIEFLY REVIEWED. RESEARCHERS ARE URGED TO DEVELOP A TRAINING TAXONOMY TO IDENTIFY ALL THE FACTORS AFFECTING THE TRAINING PROCESS, AND NOT JUST THE FORMAL TECHNIQUES. REFERENCES ARE APPENDED. (GLR)