soft skills, life skills, non-cognitive skills: what we ......soft skills - activity •form groups...
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Soft Skills, Life Skills, Non-Cognitive Skills:
What We Know and Need to Know About Developing, Adapting and
Measuring these Skills
Eyerusalem Tessema MEAL & Research Specialist
Skills to SucceedSave the Children
Ann HershkowitzInternational Technical Advisor
and Project DirectorEducation Development Center
Carrie ElletRegional Advisor for Youth Empowerment
BRAC USA
Clara DelavalladeEconomist, World Bank
Africa Gender Innovation Lab
Clara Delavallade (Africa Gender Innovation Lab, World Bank)
Socio-Emotional Skills & Economic EmpowermentGYEOS October 2019
WHAT ARE SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS (SES) ?
CASEL Definition
Social and emotional learning (SEL) isthe process through which childrenand adults :
- understand and manage emotions,
- set and achieve positive goals,- feel and show empathy for
others,- establish and maintain
positive relationships,- make responsible decisions.
SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS (SES) v SOFT SKILLS, LIFE SKILLS, NONCOGNITIVE SKILLS, PERSONALITY TRAITS
Over-looping categories
SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS (SES) v SOFT SKILLS, LIFE SKILLS, NONCOGNITIVE SKILLS, PERSONALITY TRAITS
Over-looping categories
Most commonly used in Psychology and Sociology literatures : generally
excludes values, beliefs, attitudes, motivation, personality traits
Skills not directly tied to cognition (attention, memory, logic,
processing)
• Rational problem solving is a key prerequisite for SES
• Attention tied to Mindfulness, Emotional awareness, Emotional
regulation, Self control, Perseverance
More general, often include other factors (e.g. ambition, common
sense, enthusiasm…)
Include SES as well as hygiene, SRH, study skills, financial literacy, etc.
May or may not indicate the presence of SES.
Considered less mutable than SES
Socio-Emotional
skills
Soft skills
“Noncognitive” skills (often used by economists)
Life skills
Personality traits
SES
THE IMPORTANCE OF SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS
Cross-cutting skills
RECENT RESEARCH
- Personal Initiative Training improved sales and business size for entrepreneurs inUganda (Glaub et al., 2014)
- Personal Initiative Training increased profits for entrepreneurs in Togo (Campos et al.,2018)
- Training on social skills improved employment rates for female youth in theDominican Republic (Acevedo et al., 2017)
- Negotiation training improved educational outcomes for adolescent girls in Zambia(Ashraf 2017)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy reduced crime and violence, particularly incombination with cash, in Liberia (Blattman, Jamison, & Sheridan, 2014
Rigorous evidence that SES matter for economic outcomes in developing countries-
SES recently isolated in RCTs:
Extensive empirical research over decades, largely concentrated in Western
contexts, showing importance of SES as a whole:
• Link with health outcomes- life expectancy, SRH• Link with labor force-related skills (e.g. Deming et al., 2017)
Can we identify if particular skills are more important, and how this varies with
context/gender?
WHICH ones CAN be developed via training? Particularly after childhood?
Are particular SES foundational to the
development of other SES?
Awareness v Management
WHICH ones matter for Women v. Men? Intra v. Inter, Communal v. Agentic
WHICH ones are KEY to the Labor Market? Higher order thinking skills, social skills communication, self control, positive self concept (Lippman)
GIL RESEARCH AGENDA ON SES
Build networks for better business linkages, job leads
Negotiate better deals prices
Feel included in male-dominated sectors
Leadership skills, better managers
Negotiate decision-making at home about expanding business
Example : May beneficiaries have bigger gains whether they…
Interpersonal SES
Intrapersonal SES
IDENTIFYING IMPACTFUL SKILLS AND CORRELATIONS
Have higher self-esteem
Display a sense of initiative to look for resources
Prioritize their business and long-term returns
Are more resilient to setbacks
Show perseverance in the face of adversity
Set goals and plan strategically
Considering options & Developing an Action Plan
Self AwarenessEmotional awarenessSelf Evaluation
Social AwarenessListeningEmpathy
Self ManagementPersonal InitiativeProblem Solving
Act on plan: Intrapersonal
Self ControlEmotional RegulationPerseverance
Act on plan: Interpersonal
ExpressivenessNegotiationInterpersonal RelatednessInterpersonal InfluenceCollaboration
Key Socio-Emotional Skills
Considering options & Developing an Action Plan
Self AwarenessEmotional awarenessSelf Evaluation
Self ManagementPersonal InitiativeProblem Solving
Social AwarenessListeningEmpathy
Act on plan: Intrapersonal
Self ControlEmotional RegulationPerseverance
Act on plan: Interpersonal
ExpressivenessNegotiationInterpersonal RelatednessInterpersonal InfluenceCollaboration
Key Socio-Emotional Skills
Communication Social
High-order thinking
Self-control
Goal orientation
Positive self-concept
Self reports
HOW TO MEASURE SES
Behavioral measures
Challenge : SES are difficult to measure and each style has concerns
Anchoring Vignettes, Situational Judgement
Tests
Task-based
measures
Most commonly used in empiricalpapersEasy to administer / score
Bias: reference, acquiescence, social desirability, gameability, tied to confidence
Gameability ; Not easy to find behavioral manifestationsRecall/social desirabilitybias
Lower reference bias
Hypothetical ;
may be tied to
expressiveness
Objective;
least bias
Time-
consuming ;
Task may not
be
representative
of behavior
Specific
Soft Skills: Activity
Carrie Ellett, BRAC
Soft Skills – DefinitionsSource: YouthPower Action, November 2016
1. “Positive self-concept refers to ‘a realistic awareness of oneself and one’s abilities that reflects an understanding of his/her strengths and potential (and hence, is, positive)’ (Lippman et al., 2015).”
2. “Self-control refers to one’s ability to control and regulate oneself. This includes one’s ability to control impulses, delay gratification, direct and focus attention, and regulate and modulate emotions and behaviors.”
3. “Higher order thinking skills include problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making. They refer to the “ability to identify an issue and take in information from multiple sources to evaluate options in order to reach a reasonable conclusion” (Lippman et al., 2015).”
4. “Social skills are related to getting along with others. Social skills allow youth to interact productively in social contexts and to respond to emotions or conflict in socially appropriate, non-aggressive ways.”
5. “Communication refers to one’s ability to effectively express and understand knowledge and ideas.”
6. “Empathy refers to “the affective and cognitive ability to feel and understand what someone else is feeling” (Lippman et al., 2014a).”
7. “Goal orientation is defined as the motivation and ability to make viable plans and take action toward desired goals (Lippman et al., 2014a).”
Soft Skills - Activity
• Form groups based on cards distributed at the start
• Will receive a list of soft skills and scenarios• As a group, start by reviewing the soft skills and
their definitions• Then read each scenario and decide on the top
3 soft skills needed (will be quick!)• Once finished, send a representative up to post
stickers next to the soft skills ranking for each scenario (see color code for ranking)
Soft Skills – Activity Debrief
• Looking at the results, what is surprising and what is not surprising?
• What resonates about the results?
• Did you see differences based on where people sit in organizations - e.g. field staff or researcher?
How NOT to get into “Jeopardy”: Key Considerations for Developing
or Adapting Soft Skills Measurement Tools
Eyerusalem Tessema MEAL & Research Specialist
Skills to Succeed
Ann HershkowitzInternational Technical Advisor
and Project Director
Literature Review/Existing Tools Review
Expert Consultations
Item Writers Draft Items
Country Staff Review Draft Tool
Pilot Tool with Youth
Create Assessment Blueprint
Cognitive Interviews/Refine tool
Data Analysis/Refine ToolTool Development Process
Work Readiness Assessments Developed by EDC
WRN Credential Test Anchored Big Five Inventory
Measuring Skills @ Scale Tool
Skills measured:
Six WRN modules: personal development, communication, work habits and conduct, leadership, health and safety, and worker & employer rights and responsibilities
Big Five Factors: conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism/ emotional stability, openness, and extraversion
Four overarching domains: Communications, Interpersonal Skills, Dependability, Problem Solving/Critical Thinking
Format: multiple choice, true/false, and situational judgement test items.
anchoring vignette and situational judgement questions – Likert scale response
Multiple choice
Where used: Rwanda, Guyana, Macedonia, the Philippines, Senegal
Rwanda, the Philippines Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, Senegal
Save the Children’s Employability Assessment Tool (EA Tool)
Positive Self-
concept
Self-Control
Social Skills
Communication Skills
Problem-Solving Skills
Job Search Skills
Format
24 itemsPre-and post test
Likert scale response
Tool Used
BangladeshUgandaBolivia
Ethiopia
PhilippinesIndonesia
MexicoVietnam
Tool Adaptation Process
Eyerusalem Tessema MEAL & Research Specialist
Skills to SucceedSave the Children
Ann HershkowitzInternational Technical Advisor
and Project DirectorEducation Development Center
Carrie ElletRegional Advisor for Youth Empowerment
BRAC USA
Clara DelavalladeEconomist, World Bank
Africa Gender Innovation Lab