Learning outside the factory: a cliometric reappraisal on the impact of technological change on human capital accumulation

The paper provides, a cliometric analysis on the impact of steam engine technology on the rise of adult education in nineteenth-century France. We exploit exogenous regional variations in the distribution of steam engines across France to evidence that technological change significantly contributed to the development of lifelong training during the 1850–1881 period. Our research shows that steam technology adoption in France was not deskilling. We argue that this process raised the demand for new skills adapted to the development of French industries.