Using cognitive task analysis to investigate the contribution of informal education to developing cyber security expertise

Current education systems must respond to meet the increasing need for cyber security and information technology (IT) professionals. However, little research has been conducted on understanding the development of expertise in cyber security and IT, the efficacy of current systems designed to accelerate expertise and/or train cyber security and IT professionals, and the perceived efficacy of these systems rated by the professionals themselves. Moreover, virtually no research exists with respect to the benefit of traditional (classroom-based) formal education compared to informal (self-taught) learning in these complex settings. This paper attempts to address these questions through the use of an online survey of professionals and a follow-up interview with professionals examining this question.