Adult Education Quarterly

Little empirical evidence exists on how adult literacy learners act as consumers. Yet, adult literacy programs often employ a “functional” approach to consumer education and assume that adult learners are deficient in consumer skills. Data from a qualitative study of the consumer behaviors of adult literacy learners are used to explore how adult learners negotiate the marketplace. The findings challenge the validity of a functional model and support the conceptualization of consumer literacy as a social practice, which includes reading and writing skills, personal and social skills, and the ability to manage the stigma of low literacy.

Medical advances and lifestyle changes have resulted in older adults living longer and healthier lives. Nevertheless, older adulthood, as other life stages, requires change in work, family, and health. Self-directed learning (SDL) is one way of negotiating these transitions. The purpose of this study was to understand this process of learning. This study employed a general qualitative design incorporating in-depth, semi-structured interviews for data collection. The sample of 10 purposefully selected adults from a rural area reflected diversity in gender, race, education, and employment. The age of the participants ranged from 75 to 87. Data analysis guided by the constant comparative method revealed the following process: Self-directed learning begins with an incentive to learn plus an interest, leading to accessing resources; with systematic attention in their learning, some projects ended whereas others remained ongoing. There is also a catalyst, usually another person, interspersed in this process. The findings indicated changes in late life, especially those related to time, family, and loss are integral to the process of self-directed learning. Also, the rural setting of the participants was seen as a positive environment for learning.

This case study research is based on a 3-year project (1996-1999)in which Iowa State University Extension developed and implemented a long-term community development project based on strengthening social capital using participatory research. The results of this mapping were initially interpreted as indicating a high level of social capital, but on further analysis questions were raised about the interrelationship between social capital and cultural reproduction. Using the concrete example of Riverside, the authors sought to understand the dynamics between these concepts. Is there an appropriate balance between social capital and cultural reproduction? How do these two concepts relate to leadership development? They concluded that community development projects frequently tend to reproduce existing leadership structures rather than create opportunities to expand community leadership beyond existing leadership pools or cliques.