Abstract
This article reviews the French and English-language literature on voluntary retraining. Considered as a real bifurcation, this reconversion appears to reflect recent changes in the labor market. This paper begins by defining this singular form of professional mobility, and the legal framework surrounding its implementation in France. It is then structured around a series of findings delineating the determinants of these professional reconversions and their implications for the individuals involved. These results reveal a paradox. Although voluntary and driven by the desire to improve one's working life, this form of professional reconversion is likely to generate doubts and upheavals in the individuals concerned. However, the impact of voluntary retraining on their health, particularly during training for the new job, remains a grey area in the literature.