What determines the willingness of older Polish employees to learn?

Abstract

Purpose The issue of educational activity of elderly people is very important. It is an area not only closely related to the productivity of the employees in the company and their retention but also to the broadly understood quality of life of the elderly. The purpose of this study was to develop a model of conditions for the willingness to learn in the case of older employees. Design/methodology/approach The study group consisted of employees aged 50+, the so-called older employees. The selection of the group was intentional. The questionnaires were completed by employees of companies that agreed to participate in the survey. Findings To identify the direct predictors of the willingness to participate in training, a logistic regression analysis was carried out. The model allows to explain 19.1% of the variance of the dependent variable. Higher age value reduces the chance that a person will want to participate in training, while higher number of employees in the company, the need to learn new things at work, greater emotional demands and a greater sense of effectiveness increase these chances. Originality/value Research on training and the willingness to learn is more often carried out among younger employees than the group of employees 50+. Defining what influences the willingness to learn among this group allows to design activities aimed on development and satisfying needs of older employees in this area.