Beyond Qualifications: Returns to Cognitive and Socio-Emotional Skills in Colombia

Pablo Acosta, Noel Muller and Miguel Sarzosa

No 9403, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper examines the relationship between individuals' skills and labor market outcomes for the working-age population of Colombia's urban areas. Using a 2012 unique household survey, the paper finds that cognitive skills (aptitudes to perform mental tasks such as comprehension or reasoning) and socio-emotional skills (personality traits and behaviors) matter for favorable labor market outcomes in the Colombian context, although they have distinct roles. Cognitive skills are greatly associated with higher earnings and holding a formal job or a high-qualified occupation. By contrast, socio-emotional skills appear to have little direct influence on these outcomes, but play a stronger role in labor market participation. Both types of skills, especially cognitive skills, are largely associated with pursuing tertiary education. The analysis applies standard econometric techniques as a benchmark and structural estimations to correct for the measurement error of skill constructs.

Keywords: Colombia; cognitive skills; socio-emotional skills; personality traits; latent skills; returns to skills; unobserved heterogeneity; labor market outcomes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I24 J24 J31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 49 pages
Date: 2015-10
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu, nep-lma and nep-neu
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (19)

Published - published as 'Adults' Cognitive and Socioemotional Skills and Their Labor Market Outcomes in Colombia' in: Revista de Economia del Rosario, 2020, 23 (1), 109-148.

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Related works:
Working Paper: Beyond qualifications: returns to cognitive and socio-emotional skills in Colombia (2015)
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