Does Age Matter in Knowledge Absorption? : An Empirical Study on Female Beneficiaries in NGOs

Abstract

Does age matters in knowledge absorption? This study investigates the impact of age on knowledge absorption among the NGO (Non-Governmental Organisational) female beneficiaries in Bangladesh. The NGO-beneficiaries (females) are the main actors who are engaged in receiving and absorption of the knowledge transferred by the NGOs. So it is essential to know the knowledge absorption capacity of theirs (the female-beneficiaries). This study follows multi-staged sampling procedure. 14-NGOs (7X large and 7X small NGOs) from each administrative division of Bangladesh are purposefully selected. 54-semi-structured interviews consisting of top, middle and lower levels based on the salary grades (18X interviewees from each level) were interviewed. Concurrently, 35 questionnaires among the beneficiarieswere also administered (5 from each administrative division, e.g. 5X7=35). Content analysis technique is used to analyse the interview transcript. It finds, age group 36-55 years have more knowledge absorption capacity than those of below 20 and 21-35 years groups. Future researchers may conduct similar study in a different country].

Key Words: Knowledge Transfer, Knowledge Absorption, NGOs, Bangladesh