Conceptualising evidence-informed policymaking in European adult learning and education—Moving the intellectual agenda forward

Abstract This paper aims to advance the conceptualisation of evidence-informed policymaking in European Adult Learning and Education. Evidence-informed policymaking is advocated for by international organisations such as the European Commission and the OECD but has also been critiqued in the academic literature. My contribution to the conceptualisation of evidence-informed policymaking in adult learning and education explicitly moves away from a simplistic linear approach in which the production and outputs of research are solely communicated to research users. Instead, I argue for an integrated model that incorporates the relational nature between various actors in policymaking. It furthermore interrogates the role of systems approaches to evidence-informed policymaking in terms of investments in leadership, governance, resources and infrastructures. I aim to position and conceptualise evidence-informed policymaking within broader discussions about evidence and policymaking against the international organisations’ ambition to increase European Member States’ participation in adult learning and education.