Lifelong Learning, the European Union, and the Social Inclusion of Young Adults: Rethinking Policy

Abstract

This chapter outlines the development of lifelong learning policy for adults since the early 1990s in the political, economic and social context of the European Union’s development. It explains the origins, approach, methods and organisation of the research project (Encouraging Lifelong Learning for an Inclusive and Vibrant Europe: ‘Enliven’) on which the book’s chapters are based. It introduces the project’s key theoretical approaches (bounded agency, policy trails). It outlines why developing an Intelligent Decision Support System (IDSS) formed part of the research, what this involved (including issues arising when social and computer scientists collaborate) and what researchers learnt from its development about the potential role of Artificial Intelligence in the policy process. The chapter also sets out the structure of the book.