Knowing how adults learn through work is central to understanding their development across working lives. That development is important for their personal trajectories, and ability to contribute, sustain and advance the interests of their workplaces, and collectively to the social and economic viability of their communities and nations. This paper…

Development of knowledge occurs through participation in social practices throughout life. Knowledge is constructed through engagement in problem solving; knowledge has conceptual, procedural, and dispositional dimensions; and the nature of the problem and different social practices influence the type of knowledge that is constructed. (SK)

Integration of the cognitive psychology and sociocultural constructivist perspectives yields a more comprehensive account of adult thinking and acting. This synthesis is based on a view of individual knowledge acquisition as a socially mediated process and on ontogeny or life-history approach. (SK)

A study conceptualized bases for learning in workplaces, examining reciprocity between how individuals are afforded access to workplace activities and guidance and how workers elect to engage in what they are offered. These reciprocal bases for thinking, acting, and learning are called "co-participation at work." The contributions that…