Hard Evidence on Soft Skills

The National Bureau of Economic Research released a paper summarizing recent evidence on what achievement tests measure; how achievement tests relate to other measures of cognitive ability; the important skills that achievement tests miss or mis-measure; and how much these skills matter in life. It discusses the inability to adequately capture soft skills – personality traits, goals, motivations, and preferences – that are valued in the labor market, schools, and in many other domains. The overarching message of the paper states that soft skills predict success in life, and that programs that enhance soft skills have an important place in an effective portfolio of public policies.