Özet:

It is the target of this research to analyze the postgraduate theses made in the field of lifelong learning in Turkey through various variables and to detect their general tendencies. Within this scope, all theses registered in the YÖK - National Thesis Center database that include the phrase 'lifelong learning' in the thesis title were analyzed. A total of 126 theses, 107 master's and 19 doctoral theses, which contain the concept of "lifelong learning" in the thesis title, got involved in the study. Only one thesis that came up as a result of the search was excluded from the research because it was a graduation thesis. This research that presents the current state of the studies carried out in our country in the field of lifelong learning as a whole through many criteria is significant in terms of guiding researchers about the studies they can implement. This study was conducted with the document analysis method and it was carried out with the descriptive analysis technique with regard to the qualitative research method.  Aforementioned theses were analyzed, tabulated and interpreted through various criteria determined by the researcher. According to the results obtained; the number of female researchers in theses made in the field of lifelong learning is considerably higher than that of men. Theses were mostly managed at the master's level by advisors holding the title of assistant professor, and although the distribution of thesis publication year has increased in recent years, the highest number of theses was made in 2019. The universities with the most studies in the field are Bartın University and Sakarya University. Researchers mostly conducted studies using quantitative research methods with large study groups and preferred to include students and teachers at the focal points of the groups. The data collection tools used by the researchers also showed parallelism with the methods they preferred.

Anahtar Kelimeler: