Skills Retention in a Complex Battlefield Management System: A Pilot Study

Abstract. This paper reports the findings of a pilot study which examined the long-term retention of digital skills in a UK Information Management System (IMS). Empirical evidence suggests that, long periods of non-use of a complex digital system may impact on the retention of the digital skills required to use the system effectively. However, no empirical data was available for a UK system. An experimental trial was conducted with military personnel to investigate skills retention for a UK IMS over a nine-week period.