“We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain

The complexity underlying motivations and obstacles encountered by Mature Adults (MA; people over 45 years old) in their participation in educational activities, requires a thorough analysis to determine which factors are most salient for this social group. Under the project funded by the European...

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Main Authors: Tatiana Iñiguez Berrozpe, Francesco Marcaletti
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hipatia Press 2016-07-01
Series:Research on Ageing and Social Policy
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hipatiapress.com/hpjournals/index.php/rasp/article/view/2080
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author Tatiana Iñiguez Berrozpe
Francesco Marcaletti
author_facet Tatiana Iñiguez Berrozpe
Francesco Marcaletti
author_sort Tatiana Iñiguez Berrozpe
collection DOAJ
description The complexity underlying motivations and obstacles encountered by Mature Adults (MA; people over 45 years old) in their participation in educational activities, requires a thorough analysis to determine which factors are most salient for this social group. Under the project funded by the European Commission "IMAL: Innovations in Mature Adult Learning", a study through a questionnaire (n = 1.066) was conducted. From that sample, data for two of the participating countries, Spain (ns= 106) and Italy (ni= 460), have been drawn. The aim of the paper is to make an exploratory analysis of both samples in order to determine the most important motivational factors for MA in their educational participation, through descriptive and bivariate analysis (independent sample test), and to test how the sociodemographic variables influence these factors by an analysis through logistic regression. The results show great similarities between both samples. Lower levels of education and not being in working condition were found as risk factors for not undertaking learning activities. In both samples, the weight of “internal” motivations is very relevant. This evidence leads to interpret MA learning as a process addressed towards personal enrichment, thus claiming for a more holistic and learner centered vision in adult education.
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spelling doaj.art-90830b54c20e4a9b9b9e85a3143c187d2022-12-21T23:13:35ZengHipatia PressResearch on Ageing and Social Policy2014-671X2016-07-014210.17583/rasp.2016.2080“We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and SpainTatiana Iñiguez Berrozpe0Francesco Marcaletti1Universidad de ZaragozaUniversità Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milano The complexity underlying motivations and obstacles encountered by Mature Adults (MA; people over 45 years old) in their participation in educational activities, requires a thorough analysis to determine which factors are most salient for this social group. Under the project funded by the European Commission "IMAL: Innovations in Mature Adult Learning", a study through a questionnaire (n = 1.066) was conducted. From that sample, data for two of the participating countries, Spain (ns= 106) and Italy (ni= 460), have been drawn. The aim of the paper is to make an exploratory analysis of both samples in order to determine the most important motivational factors for MA in their educational participation, through descriptive and bivariate analysis (independent sample test), and to test how the sociodemographic variables influence these factors by an analysis through logistic regression. The results show great similarities between both samples. Lower levels of education and not being in working condition were found as risk factors for not undertaking learning activities. In both samples, the weight of “internal” motivations is very relevant. This evidence leads to interpret MA learning as a process addressed towards personal enrichment, thus claiming for a more holistic and learner centered vision in adult education. https://hipatiapress.com/hpjournals/index.php/rasp/article/view/2080mature adultslifelong learningeducationmotivationlifewide learning
spellingShingle Tatiana Iñiguez Berrozpe
Francesco Marcaletti
“We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain
Research on Ageing and Social Policy
mature adults
lifelong learning
education
motivation
lifewide learning
title “We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain
title_full “We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain
title_fullStr “We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain
title_full_unstemmed “We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain
title_short “We Are Not a Small Island, We Are the Ocean”. Becoming a Student in Mature Age. An Exploratory Analysis on Italy and Spain
title_sort we are not a small island we are the ocean becoming a student in mature age an exploratory analysis on italy and spain
topic mature adults
lifelong learning
education
motivation
lifewide learning
url https://hipatiapress.com/hpjournals/index.php/rasp/article/view/2080
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