Influence of Training and Development on Performance of Academic Staff in Public Universities in Machakos and Kitui Counties, Kenya

Training and development are important for maintaining academic staff capabilities, but the accessibility, relevance and perceived fairness of professional development opportunities may vary across public universities. This study examines the influence of training and development on academic staff performance at South Eastern Kenya University and Machakos University in Kitui and Machakos Counties, respectively. Grounded in Human Capital Theory, introduced by Schultz in 1961 and advanced by Becker in 1964, the study explains the increasing importance of training and development in higher education, where academic staff are expected to update their knowledge, pedagogical competencies, research skills and postgraduate supervision capabilities continuously. However, the availability and relevance of professional development opportunities, and the fairness of selection processes, may vary across institutions. The study adopted a descriptive-correlational research design. The sample comprised 185 academic staff, including 107 from South Eastern Kenya University and 78 from Machakos University. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire to examine perceptions of training and development in relation to teaching effectiveness, student supervision, research and publication, and the fairness of selection processes for available opportunities. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis to examine the relationship between training and development and academic staff performance. The findings indicated generally favourable perceptions of training and development (M = 3.66, SD = 0.97), with teaching effectiveness and pedagogical innovation recording a mean of 3.82. Fairness of selection for available opportunities was rated at 3.48. The findings indicated a significant positive association between training and development and academic staff performance. The study recommends fair selection processes for academic staff development opportunities.