Knowledge, skills or social mobility? Citizens' perceptions of the purpose of education

Abstract

This article explores individual views of the purpose of education. Most existing research focuses on attitudes and policy preferences; while these types of perceptions have so far been largely overlooked due to a lack of data. Our analysis of original survey data in eight Western European countries shows that personal socioeconomic factors and ideological predispositions shape these individual opinions. Individuals with higher levels of education and income are more likely to view education as aimed at expanding knowledge as goal by itself, and less likely to view it as a tool to promote intergenerational social mobility. Left‐leaning individuals are also more likely to regard education as a goal by itself, and less likely to view it as conferring useful labour market skills for the younger generation. Finally, we investigate the relationship between these different views and individual preferences for social policies. Our results show that the perception of education as promoting intergenerational mobility is strongly associated with support for passive transfers, while the perception of education as conferring marketable skills increases support for workfare policies. Social investment policies, because they are widely supported in the population, are not linked to specific views on education.

Behavioural knowledge for policy design: The connection between time use Behaviours and (or) desires and support for policy alternatives

“…The policy feedback literature emphasises the influence of policies and their impact on politics (e.g., Béland, 2019; Béland et al, 2019, 2022; Busemeyer & Guillaud, 2023; Korpi & Palme, 1998; Pierson, 1993; Schneider & Ingram, 2019; Skocpol, 1992; Vannoni, 2019). However, delving into the cumulative effects of multiple policies presents a considerably more complex challenge (Lahat & Sened, 2023; Dery, 1998).…”

“…Feedback includes people's (voters') preferences in a circular pattern affected by learning and past policies. Policies affect behaviours and create social outcomes that, in turn, create new desires, needs, and claims that translate into new policy preferences and new or adapted policies (Busemeyer & Guillaud, 2023; Korpi & Palme, 1998; Pierson, 1993; Skocpol, 1992; Vannoni, 2019). In other words, policies influence politics (Béland et al, 2019; Schneider & Ingram, 2019) and vice‐versa.…”

“…The policy feedback literature suggests policy affects people's behaviour and preferences, creating a feedback loop that places new demands and pressures on policymakers to formulate new policies (e.g., Béland et al, 2019; Busemeyer & Guillaud, 2023; Jacobs & Weaver, 2015; Korpi & Palme, 1998; Pierson, 1993, 2000; Schneider & Ingram, 2019; Skocpol, 1992). However, this effect is not one‐sided (Ibrahim, 2023).…”

Awareness and implementation confidence of free higher education program under UNIFAST among HEIs in Sulu, Philippines

“…Previous studies have demonstrated that minority ethnic groups perceive education as a pathway to upward social mobility [29,30] . Additionally, parents from working-class backgrounds exhibit middle-class aspirations and attitudes towards education, leading to significant support for their children's educational pursuits, despite their limited understanding of the education processes [31,32] .…”