Literature on employee learning and development suggests
that being competent at continuous learning involves a
combination of several things. First, continuous learning
involves having a ‘‘development orientation’’ or ‘‘learning
orientation.’’ Having a development orientation means that
one tends to pursue developmental activities and endeavors
that are important to him/her. A person with a development
orientation has the desire to expand his/her skill or
knowledge base beyond current levels (London 1983).
Similarly, individuals with a learning orientation (Dweck
and Leggett 1988) view challenge as an opportunity to
learn new things and they seek out learning. Therefore, to
be competent at continuous learning, one will likely need
to possess a development orientation