Economics and the Political Economy of Adult Education

This chapter provides a critical overview of the contribution of economics to research and policy on adult education. It discusses three distinct political economy perspectives and links these to the shifting policy agenda related to adult education at the OECD over the last five decades. This is done to reveal the link between different political economy perspectives and the implications for analytical as well as political perspectives when approaching the study and policy of adult education. Some implications and challenges for research on adult education are discussed