Abstract: Results of research from the developed world suggests that noncognitive skills such as self-esteem or locus of control significantly affect key socioeconomic outcomes. More work is needed on whether studies of noncognitive skills in developing countries should use different measures of noncognitive skill, whether noncognitive skills have a different relationship with outcomes in developing countries, and whether programs can affect the formation of noncognitive skills. First, I briefly survey the measures which the developed and developing country strands of the literature use. I also draw on studies from psychology to argue that studies of noncognitive skill in developing countries do not require multidimensional measures of noncognitive skill, but that measures may need contextualization. Second, I look at whether a measure of noncognitive skill affects several youth labor force participation outcomes in India. Analyzing data from India using instrumental variables models with fixed effects (FE), I find evidence that noncognitive skills affect two of these outcomes. Finally, I look at whether participating in Head Start impacts child noncognitive skills. Using Children of the National Longitudinal Study of Youth (CNLSY) data and FE models, I find evidence of a negative impact.

Analyzing the distributions of wages for whites, blacks and Hispanics reveals the existence of a wage gap throughout the distribution. There are also clear cognitive and noncognitive skill differences across groups. Do differences in the distributions of these skills explain differences in the distributions of wages? Do predicted distributions of wages resulting from rewarding blacks and Hispanics as if they were white help explain the observed wage gap? Using data from the NLSY79, I look at the impacts of noncognitive skills on wages for blacks, Hispanics and whites. I estimate the entire distribution of wages conditional on skills for blacks and Hispanics to see if there is a difference in wages individuals with the same level of cognitive and noncognitive skills. I find that all cognitive and noncognitive measures examined are important in explaining the wage penalty paid by blacks and Hispanics and that, for blacks, predicting their wages conditional on skills approximates the distribution of actual wages. Do employers recognize noncognitive skills at the onset (interview) or is there a learning process? How does learning about these noncognitive skills occur over time? This paper uses data from the NLSY79 to incorporate measures of noncognitive skills into a model of employer learning described originally by Altonji Pierret (2001). Measures of noncognitive skills include the Rosenberg Self Esteem Score, the Rotter Locus of Internal Control Score, the Coding Speed Score, and the CES-Depression Scale. I find that employers observe an initial signal of self esteem and schooling and that, over time, employers learn about cognitive skills and motivation, placing less emphasis on these initial observations. Does learning transfer perfectly across employers or is there a degree to which learning resets as employees change jobs throughout their careers? In this paper, I use data from the NLSY79 to look for evidence of asymmetric employer learning. I use tests developed by Schonberg (2007) and Pinkston (2009) to look for asymmetric learning in the model from Altonji Pierret (2001) augmented in Petre (2013b) to incorporate noncognitive skills in addition to cognitive skills. I find mixed evidence that learning done by a prior employer might not transfer completely to a new employer.

"Non-cognitive skills" are often used to refers to those skills that do not fall within the cognitive category but to describe a stable pattern of thought, feeling, and behavior in different situations and backgrounds with profitable and investable characteristics, such as conscientiousness, perseverance, and teamwork, which are critically important in education. However, for many years, "non-cognitive skills" have always been ignored in human capital theory. The book, using a multidisciplinary approach, tries to uncover the noncognitive components of human capital, so as to answer the question "what is the skill that should be invested in?" The author expands the connotations of human capital by exploring the value of noncognitive skills and their production patterns, constructing a measurement framework and a set of tools to measure noncognitive skills. She especially carries out an empirical survey which covers primary and secondary school students from seven provinces of China’s east, middle, and west areas. With the data collected, she analyzes Chinese students’ noncognitive development and further identifies the critical factors that may impact their noncognitive skills by applying the Bayesian Model Average approach. The book will be a theoretical contribution to education economics. Researchers interested in education in China, children’s development, and policymakers in the field of education will find this book helpful and resourceful.

This book provides an overview of recent research on the relationship between noncognitive attributes (motivation, self efficacy, resilience) and academic outcomes (such as grades or test scores). We focus primarily on how these sets of attributes are measured and how they relate to important academic outcomes. Noncognitive attributes are those academically and occupationally relevant skills and traits that are not “cognitive”—that is, not specifically intellectual or analytical in nature. We examine seven attributes in depth and critique the measurement approaches used by researchers and talk about how they can be improved.

Building on new theories about the meaning of employability in the twenty-first century and the power of social and cultural capital in enabling access to economic opportunities, Essays on Employer Engagement in Education considers how employer engagement is delivered and explores the employment and attainment outcomes linked to participation. Introducing international policy, research and conceptual approaches, contributors to the volume illustrate the role of employer engagement within schooling and the life courses of young people. The book considers employer engagement within economic and educational contexts and its delivery and impact from a global perspective. The work explores strategic approaches to the engagement of employers in education and concludes with a discussion of the implications for policy, practice and future research. Essays on Employer Engagement in Education will be of great interest to academics, researchers and postgraduate students engaged in the study of careers guidance, work-related learning, teacher professional development, the sociology of education, educational policy and human resource management. It will also be essential reading for policymakers and practitioners working for organisations engaging employers in education.

Americans have long recognized that investments in public education contribute to the common good, enhancing national prosperity and supporting stable families, neighborhoods, and communities. Education is even more critical today, in the face of economic, environmental, and social challenges. Today's children can meet future challenges if their schooling and informal learning activities prepare them for adult roles as citizens, employees, managers, parents, volunteers, and entrepreneurs. To achieve their full potential as adults, young people need to develop a range of skills and knowledge that facilitate mastery and application of English, mathematics, and other school subjects. At the same time, business and political leaders are increasingly asking schools to develop skills such as problem solving, critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and self-management - often referred to as "21st century skills." Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century describes this important set of key skills that increase deeper learning, college and career readiness, student-centered learning, and higher order thinking. These labels include both cognitive and non-cognitive skills- such as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, effective communication, motivation, persistence, and learning to learn. 21st century skills also include creativity, innovation, and ethics that are important to later success and may be developed in formal or informal learning environments. This report also describes how these skills relate to each other and to more traditional academic skills and content in the key disciplines of reading, mathematics, and science. Education for Life and Work: Developing Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century summarizes the findings of the research that investigates the importance of such skills to success in education, work, and other areas of adult responsibility and that demonstrates the importance of developing these skills in K-16 education. In this report, features related to learning these skills are identified, which include teacher professional development, curriculum, assessment, after-school and out-of-school programs, and informal learning centers such as exhibits and museums.