Continuous Learning: The Influence of National Institutional Logics on Training Attitudes

Abstract

This research attempts to understand and test a core assumption in neoinstitutional theory, i.e., that institutional logics shape individual attitudes and preferences, by studying cross-national differences in people’s attitudes toward the continuous learning model of employee training—an increasingly popular model of training. I propose that national institutional logics regarding the individual’s role (empowered versus limited) can shape people’s preferences for the new model of training. By using a historically grounded typology of national polities depicting the organization of authority (statism) and society (corporateness), I suggest how these two dimensions carry distinct logics about the individual’s role and, in turn, shape people’s training orientation. Training attitudes of people in 16 European (EU) countries/regions are examined using data from the 1995 Eurobarometer Training Survey. Results from hierarchical models show that, beyond the influence of individual characteristics, people from nonstatist (i.e., collective authority is located in civil society rather than in the state) and noncorporatist (i.e., individuals are incorporated into the society as autonomous actors rather than members in collectives) countries are more likely to prefer the continuous learning model of training. By explicitly linking institutional logics with individual attitudes, this study contributes to the neoinstitutional perspective, studies on training attitudes, and cross-national research.