Effects of a competence development intervention on informal learning and work engagement – a randomized controlled trial

: Pankkonen, Otto; Moazami Goodarzi, Ali; Vuori, Jukka

Publisher: Emerald

: 2025

European Journal of Training and Development

: 49

: 10

: 67

: 83

: 2046-9012

: 2046-9020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EJTD-01-2025-0011

: https://doi.org/10.1108/ejtd-01-2025-0011

: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/505213931

Purpose – The purpose of this study was to investigate the long-term effects of a competence development intervention on mid- and late-career employees’ participation in informal learning activities and their work engagement, and how workplace contextual factors moderate these effects. Design/methodology/approach – A randomized controlled field experiment was conducted in 15 work organizations. A total of 367 participants were randomly assigned into either an intervention (n = 183) or a comparison group (n = 184). Of these, 248 responded to a six-month follow-up questionnaire. The intervention consisted of four 3-h workshops facilitated by trained trainers in the organizations. Findings – The results indicated that the intervention had a significant main effect on employees’ work engagement. Moreover, the beneficial effects of the intervention on increasing the use of informal learning depended on perceived age-equality of opportunities and supervisory support for development in the workplace. Originality/value – This field-experimental study demonstrates how a resource-building group intervention can improve employees’ work engagement and highlights the moderating role of workplace contextual factors in the long-term effects of the intervention on informal learning at work.

ejtd-01-2025-0011en.pdf

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This research was financed by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health. Approval for the study has been received from the ethical review board of the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (No. 3549404).