Chapter Four: The Quantum Learning

The second building block of development is quantum learning or, as we define it, the ability of individuals to absorb public interventions and convert them into achievements and benefits.

More specifically, this ability translates into a spectrum of interactions between individuals and public policies ranging from awareness to comprehension, to adherence, and to compliance and, finally, conversion.

The ability of a person to absorb public policy and contribute to progress is determined by what we refer to as individual meaning.

The various dimensions shaping individual meaning can be

grouped into three main aspects.

A first aspect can be linked to what the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu calls the ‘habitus’, or the set of habits, skills and dispositions shaped by an individual’s background which includes economic, social and cultural capitals. In more concrete terms these refer to material endowments, educational pathways, knowledge, intellect and intangible assets, strength and type of social network, and social relations. All of these factors impact an individual’s ability to convert public policies in all fields. A recurrent example is education. Public provision of education and regulation of access through mandated years of compulsory education is the typical public intervention. Actual education outcomes will vary considerably from one society to another, from one individual to another and greatly depend on the absorption capacity. Financial resources, the educational background of parents, the social connections of families – all of these will determine if an individual will have access to education and what achievements and fulfilled opportunities this access can lead to.