Attitudes, Experience, Expectations, Perceived Constraints. Explaining Participation in Workplace Training in Germany

• In Event: 256 - Section on Organizations, Occupations and Work Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Section on Organizations, Occupations and Work Roundtables (one-hour). Table 01. Career Entry, Trajectories, and Patterns

Abstract

Research on further training participation predominantly focuses on individual demographic, socio-economic and structural, job-related determinants. For its conceptual and theoretical framework, this paper integrates a rational choice based approach of educational decision-making with social psychological theories that link attitudes and behaviors. Therefore, the decision to engage in training is a function of training attitudes (as different forms of utility associated with training like qualification or adaptation and a general importance of career success), subjective norms on how effective training is in regards to career advancement, perceived behavioral control over the training decision with respect to monetary and time constraints and training intentions and expectations. Using data from the German SOEP and panel corrected logistic regressions, I show that positive training attitudes (perceived utility and career orientation) impact engagement in training above and beyond educational attainment and occupational status. Positive evaluation of training utility may even have the power to overcome educational inequalities in training access.

Author

• Judith Offerhaus, University of Cologne