We are very delighted to announce that our new chapter: Boyadjieva, P. & Ilieva-Trichkova. (2024). Chapter 7: Beyond the human capital approach to adult education policy: how adult learning and education policy matters for individual subjective well-being?. In M. Milana, P. Rasmussen, M. Bussi (Eds.), Research Handbook on Adult Education Policy. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing., Routledge, 84-100, which was prepared within the JustEdu project, is already published: https://doi.org/10.4337/9781803925950.00015
Abstract
This chapter defends the need to go beyond the human capital approach to adult learning and education policy (ALEP) by enriching it with a humanistic perspective based on the capabilities approach and recognition theory. It identifies three important dimensions of ALEP which reveal their effects on the accessibility, availability, and affordability of adult education and designs three indexes which measure them. The study does not reduce individual subjective well-being to happiness but understands it as including important components of individual subjectivity. Drawing on data from the European Social Survey for 20 European countries and the official statistics, it reveals that: (a) individual subjective well-being is higher in countries where national ALEPs are targeted at ensuring better accessibility, availability, and affordability of adult learning; (b) the influence of ALEP on individual subjective well-being is greater among people with low levels of education and those who do not have paid work.