ERIC Number: EJ1194843
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0260-1370
EISSN: N/A
Overcoming Age Barriers: Motivation for Mature Adults' Engagement in Education
Marcaletti, Francesco; Iñiguez Berrozpe, Tatiana; Koutra, Kleio
International Journal of Lifelong Education, v37 n4 p451-467 2018
Education is the main vehicle for empowering adults, and can contribute to community wellbeing. However, regarding mature adults (MAs) (over 45 years old), age has been identified in various studies as a significant barrier to accessing educational activities. This paper focuses on MAs' motivations to learn through an exploratory survey undertaken in six European countries. A K-means cluster analysis based on 16 variables has been run on n = 846 valid cases. Four clusters describing distinctive behaviours and attitudes of MAs towards learning activities were identified. The study confirms that MAs' motivations to learn are very diverse, overcoming some of the so-called "myths of global aging," such as the homogeneity of MAs or the correlation between age and a decline in motivation to learn. Furthermore, analysing the main motivations of MA learners can be useful for adapting education to cater to their specific needs, boosting a more inclusive education, and promoting MAs' empowerment.
Descriptors: Barriers, Older Adults, Adults, Foreign Countries, Access to Education, Learning Motivation, Behavior, Attitudes, Misconceptions, Age Differences, Employment Level, Gender Differences, Educational Attainment, Individual Characteristics
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Denmark; Greece; Spain; Italy; Poland; Turkey; European Union
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A