Transcript Learning-conducive work

Working at old age: Emerging theories and
empirical perspectives on ageing and work
29/30 September 2008, Thessaloniki
Lifelong learning for ageing workers:
Sustaining employability while
developing personality
PD Dr. Sandra Bohlinger
Dr. Jasper van Loo
CEDEFOP
Overview
• Framing the analysis
• Lifelong learning and employability
• Evidence on participation and
performance
• Attitudes towards learning and work
• Learning-conducive work
• Driving forward the agenda
Levels of analysis
Macrolevel
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Social changes and conditions
Basic political conditions
AW: pension schemes, demographic change,
marginalisation, societal acceptance, image of age and
older individuals
Mesolevel
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organisational human-resource allocation and
development in human resources strategies
qualification of workers
AW: tutoring, organisational learning, work-life-balance,
transition from work to pension or from pension to work
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Microlevel
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individual interests and contextual conditions
AW: attitude towards work and learning, employability,
health
When is a worker an ‘older worker’?
65+
55+
55+
50+
40+
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Ageing employees
Older employees
(ILO)
US Department of Labor
Eurostat
OECD
National Statistics (German BSW-AES)
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Morrow (1993)
Pillow et al. (2003)
Time-culturally conditioned views on…
…ageing employees
Deficit model, later early exit to retirement
Ageing workers as
human resources
Starting from mid 19th century until the end of the 1980’s
Starting from the
1990’s
Time-culturally conditioned views on…
…further education
Personal views
Market and
institution-based
approach
View on individual
environment
Customer-oriented
view
Until into the 1950’s
1960-1970
1980’s
Starting from the
1990’s
…ageing employees
Deficit model, later early exit to retirement
Ageing workers as
human resources
Starting from mid 19th century until the end of the 1980’s
Starting from the
1990’s
From further education to lifelong
learning
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Background: technical + technological, labour
market-related and market-related changes,
changed perception of age and adults
Further education and its crossing
boundaries:
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–
–
–
General  vocational
IVET  CVET
Employability  development of personality
Interface between state, market and labour market
From further education to lifelong
learning: content-related changes
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Focus on learning process instead of education
Individual instead of societal responsibility for
learning processes
Employability and citizenship instead of holistic
education and development of personality
Learning as individual and biographicallyoriented process instead of collective
socialisation
Participation in lifelong learning
Participation quotas in%
Age groups
19-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65-80
Regular further education and training (FED)
45
10
3
2
2
0
Further education and training, of which
55
55
55
51
40
25
- In-house further education and training
41
42
43
37
31
9
- CVET (Vocational)
13
14
15
16
10
8
- CGET (General)
14
10
8
8
7
14
Self-learning (INF), of which
55
53
54
56
54
10
- For occupational reasons
35
34
38
37
34
30
- For private reasons
18
20
18
21
22
19
Learners (at least a form of learning), of which
84
74
75
71
66
50
- Education or training (FED or NFE)
72
58
56
51
41
25
- Exclusively self-learning (INF)
12
16
19
20
25
25
Ø learning activities (FED, NFE, INF)
2.6
3.0
2.5
2.5
2.4
2.4
All forms of learning
Ageing and work performance
Authors
Job type/activity type
findings
Czaja / Sharit (1993, 1998)
Computer-based work
↓
Giniger / Despenzieri /
Eisenberg (1983)
Manufacturing
↔
McEvoy / Casio (1989)
Meta-analysis of 65 samples
↓ according to performance measure
Morrow / Leirer / Yesavage
(1991, 1993)
Simulated flight performance
↓ primary flight tasks; age decrement in air
traffic control communication
Parasuraman / Giambra
(1991)
Vigilance task
Rhodes (1983)
Comprehensive literature analysis
Equal evidence that performance increases,
decreased and is not related to age
Streufert / Pogash,
Piasecki / Post (1990)
Management performance
↓numbers of decision, decision strategies
and less optimal use of information
U.S. Admin. on Aging
(1984)
Office workers
Waldmann / Avolio (1986)
Meta-analysis of 40 samples
Warr (1994)
Meta-analysis of > 100 research studies
↔
↔
Results vary acc. to type of performance
measure
↔
Activity categories (Warr, 1994)
Task requirements exceed basis capacities with increasing age
Yes
Yes
Relevant
experience
enhances
performance
Age-counteracted
Age-enhanced
(skilled manual or cognitive (knowledge-based
work)
judgements with no time
pressure)
Age-impaired
No
No
(continuous paced data
processing, heavy lifting,
rapid learning)
Age-neutral
(relatively undemanding
activities)
Attitudes towards learning & working
• Work as a "job"
• Work as challenging
experience
• Work as personality
development and enrichment
• Work as a structure
building element
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• Learning and competence
development support
employability
• Learning by observing at the
work place
• Formal further education and
training
• Learning as a lifelong process
• Learning as part of developing
and shaping personality
Learning-conducive work
• Advantages for ageing workers:
– Secures continuity in learning
– Refers to previous professional training and
learning experience
– Is closely linked to professional practice
– Is not selective in terms of age
• Application in three areas:
– Organisation and work input concepts
– Market and performance based control systems
– Deployment of new technologies
Learning-conducive environments
• Holistic activities and/or overall tasks
• Sufficient span of control regarding contents and
management of time
• Individual goal setting and transfer of
responsibility
• Self-control over work process and work results
• Sufficient variety in activities
• Social recognition of performance, effort and
commitment
• Participation in decision-making processes
Driving forward the agenda
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Promote individual career and learning decisions
over the lifespan
Develop competence strategies in research, policy
and organisations and rethink the social construct
of age
Address the needs of AW in VET and HE and the
labour market
Develop indicators on motives, contextual
conditions and decision-making processes
Collect reliable and comprehensive data
Develop interdisciplinary, intercultural and
comparative approaches to age and AW
Working at old age: Emerging theories and
empirical perspectives on ageing and work
29/30 September 2008, Thessaloniki