Researchers often focus on age-related declines rather than the development associated with lifelong learning. Focusing on working-age people (those between the ages of 18 and 70), I describe age-related changes in abilities and motivation that affect lifelong learning and research showing that older learners can and do learn when content is aligned with their prior knowledge and interests. I further describe lifelong learning in the context of workplace training and development, highlighting the workplace as a central environment for continuous learning and the imperative for workers to continually update their skills to remain employed and employable.

研究人员通常关注与年龄相关的衰退，而不是与终身学习相关的发展。以工作年龄人群（18 至 70 岁之间的人群）为重点，我描述了影响终身学习的能力和动机的年龄相关变化，研究表明，当内容与他们先前的知识相一致时，年龄较大的学习者可以并且确实可以学习利益。我在工作场所培训和发展的背景下进一步描述了终身学习，强调工作场所是持续学习的中心环境，以及工人不断更新技能以保持就业和就业的必要性。