How to Be(come) Themselves: Reframing Parliaments as Institutions of Lifelong Learning

Parliaments are institutions of perpetual learning. Unlike other workplaces, their functions are malleable, and MPs lack predefined credentials or standardised job descriptions. While this fluidity is essential to their representative role, it produces persistent institutional, organisational, and informational learning gaps, especially in new democracies where norms and resources are limited. How, then, do parliaments learn beyond internal socialisation? And how does the choice of learning modality shape their development? This article reframes parliaments as learning institutions and maps the wider ecosystem of extra-parliamentary learning, identifying four primary modalities: legislative professionalisation, bilateral exchange, parliamentary networking, and legislative strengthening. Drawing on practitioner insights, a conceptual model of parliamentary learning, and organisational isomorphism, it examines how each modality functions and why parliaments take them up. The analysis suggests an over-reliance on cross-national learning, often shaped by the policy interests of external actors, at the expense of institutional self-definition and the symbolic dimension of representation. By reframing parliaments as institutions of learning rather than mere sites of political contestation, this study shifts the debate on legislative development. It offers scholars a new lens, practitioners a structured approach to capacity-building, and MPs a deeper understanding of their environment. In doing so, it encourages parliaments to shape their own learning trajectories with greater intentionality.