Concepts such as “generic competences” are based on the assumption that they have an overarching character and do not apply to only one occupation. Nevertheless, in a research project on generic competences (Freidorfer & Kraus, 2023; Freidorfer-Kabashi & Gonon, 2022), we identified occupation-specific differences in the understanding of generic competences.

Based on the increasing importance of so-called generic competences in vocational education and training (VET), “critical thinking” (CT) and “problem solving” (PS) in particular, we investigated the question of what importance trainers in companies attach to these generic competences and what they understand by them. This question was analysed in two occupational fields that are similar in their service character, one of which is more of a person-oriented service (hotel industry) and the other more of a technology-oriented service (IT). It became clear, among other things, that on the one hand there are overarching aspects in the understanding of generic competences in which the representatives of the two fields are similar, and on the other hand there are clear differences in the way in which CT and PS are understood. This is surprising insofar as the concept of “generic competences” is based precisely on the assumption of its overarching meaning.

The field-specific understanding of generic competences is interpreted in this paper with recourse to a cultural studies approach (During, 2010). The core element of this approach is a concept of culture that emphasises the importance of socially shared practices that are linked to shared forms of meaning and mutual expectations in action. From this perspective, the culturally embedded social practices are seen as highly interwoven with the routines in working life, shared values, and the experiences of people. Therefore, the difference in understanding CT and PS can be interpreted as an expression of the different vocational cultures in these two occupational fields.

Two related concepts from vocational training research are instructive for a deeper understanding of vocational culture as an analytic perspective: The concept of training cultures is primarily known from international comparative VET research (Brown & Evans, 1994; Pilz, 2012; Pilz et al., 2023). It shows the cultural embedding of training that has developed within a socio-historical context (Clarke et al., 2021; Deissinger & Gonon, 2021). Training cultures emphasise that the established training systems are also culturally anchored in the societies that have produced them and which in turn have been shaping them. It is used in a similar way at company level to emphasise the close link between corporate culture and training activities (Polo et al., 2018). Whereas training cultures highlight the importance of socio-cultural context, vocational identity reveals the relation between socio-cultural contexts and identity formation (Ferm & Gustavsson, 2021, Pleasant, 2019). The concept of vocational identity is used to describe the process of how a person develops an (emotional) attachment to their respective occupation, which is an important aspect of personal development and identity (Chan, 2019; Klotz et al., 2014). In essence, the development of a vocational identity takes place in the interaction and cooperation relationships in the course of the respective work together with colleagues and customers or clients.

Both concepts emphasise how the perception of the world is shaped by the integration of (individual or collective) actors in a specific cultural context with the associated social practices. Consequently, a field-specific understanding of generic competences can also be seen as an expression of different vocational cultures and social practices in these fields. The article discusses how this perspective helps to understand the differences in the understanding of generic competences between IT and the hotel industry and their relevance for vocational education and training.

The study, the results of which form the basis for the thesis on professional culture discussed here, was conducted on generic competences in the two occupational fields of the hotel industry and the IT sector in Switzerland. It was carried out using document analyses and interviews. As part of the document analysis, a content analysis of the curricula of the respective occupations was carried out. Where available, internal training plans from companies were also included in the analysis. From 2020 to 2022, 23 guideline-based interviews were conducted with instructors responsible for vocational training in companies in the hotel industry and the IT sector. In the course of the interviews, the in-company vocational trainers were, among other aspects, asked about the following topics: understanding of CT and PS and possible links between these two generic competences and their procedures of “teaching” CT and PS during in-company training. The interviews were transcribed and subjected to a qualitative content analysis with an inductive-deductive procedure of building the categories (Mayring, 2021). For further results of this study see Freidorfer and Kraus (2023) as well as Freidorfer-Kabashi and Gonon (2022).

One facet of vocational culture and its specifics, such as norms and values as well as behaviours, ways of working together, or patterns of communication, is expressed in an occupation-specific understanding of generic competences. The occupation-specific understanding of per definition cross-occupational competences, such as CT and PS, reflects aspects of vocational culture in the respective occupational fields. Vocational cultures are linked to social practices in occupational fields and are incorporated into the vocational identity that members of an occupation develop and share. Therefore, vocational cultures are highly relevant for vocational learning. It helps to understand how training cultures and vocational identity are interlinked.

Brown, A., & Evans, K. (1994). Changing the training culture: Lessons from Anglo-German comparisons of vocational education and training. British Journal of Education & Work, 7(2), 5–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/0269000940070201 Chan, S. (2019). From job to calling: Vocational identity and the role of apprenticeship. Vocations and Learning, 12(3), 387–403. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12186-019-09220-5 Clarke, L., Westerhuis, A., & Winch, C. (2021). Comparative VET European research since the 1980s: Accommodating changes in VET systems and labour markets. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 73(2), 295–315. https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2020.1858938 Deissinger, T., & Gonon, P. (2021). The development and cultural foundations of dual apprenticeships – A comparison of Germany and Switzerland. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 73(2), 197–216. https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2020.1863451 During, S. (Hrsg.). (2010). The cultural studies reader (3. ed., reprint). Routledge. Ferm, L., & Gustavsson, M. (2021). Gendered vocational identities – Female students' strategies for identity formation during workplace-based learning in male-dominated work. International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training, 8(3), 334–354. https://doi.org/10.13152/IJRVET.8.3.4 Freidorfer, L., & Kraus, K. (2023). Kritisches Denken und Problemlösen als transversale Kompetenzen mit berufsübergreifenden Anteilen und berufsspezifischen Interpretationen – Einblicke in die betriebliche Berufsbildung in Hotellerie und Informatik in der Schweiz. Bwp@ Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik. Freidorfer-Kabashi, & Gonon, P. (2022). Zur curricularen Verankerung und betrieblichen Umsetzung kritischen Denkens und Problemlösens—Ein Blick auf Hotelfachleute und lnformatiker*innen. In A. Barabasch (Hrsg.), Berufliche Didaktik in der Schweiz: Innovationstransfer und Berufsfelddidaktik: Eine Publikation der Eidgenössischen Hochschule für Berufsbildung EHB (1. Auflage, S. 200–230). hep verlag. Klotz, V. K., Billett, S., & Winther, E. (2014). Promoting workforce excellence: Formation and relevance of vocational identity for vocational educational training. Empirical Research in Vocational Education and Training, 6(1), 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40461-014-0006-0 Mayring, P. (2021). Qualitative content analysis: A step-by-step guide. SAGE Publications. Pilz, M. (2012). Modularisation of vocational training in Germany, Austria and Switzerland: Parallels and disparities in a modernisation process. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 64(2), 169–183. https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2011.628757 Pilz, M., Fuchs, M., Li, J., Finken, L., & Westermeyer, J. (2023). Similar or different training cultures? German and Chinese companies in their home and host countries. Societies, 13(5), 116. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc13050116 Pleasant, E. (2019). Dirty work: Cultural iconography and working-class pride in industrial apprenticeships. The British Journal of Sociology, 70(5), 2116–2132. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.12703 Polo, F., Cervai, S., & Kantola, J. (2018). Training culture: A new conceptualization to capture values and meanings of training in organisations. Journal of Workplace Learning, 30(3), 162–173. https://doi.org/10.1108/JWL-01-2018-0024