About this Research Topic
Social and emotional skills, and their development, have in recent years been attracting growing attention from academics, practitioners, and policymakers. Increasing inter-connectivity and populational diversity, complexity and variability of job requirements, the ever-accelerating pace of technological changes, dismantling of old social networks, and unprecedented social changes introduced by the COVID-19 pandemic are all issues placing additional value on the role of social and emotional skills in our lives.
Our ability to manage our emotions, connect with others in a respectful and meaningful way, act responsively and understand and appreciate other’s points of view are essential in successfully navigating our social worlds. Likewise, our capacity to embrace change and have an open and curious mind, to persist in our efforts but also, when needed to, adapt and change, are needed now more than ever. With the continuation of current societal and technological trends, these skills will be even more pivotal in the future.
The area of social and emotional skills is characterized by a multi-disciplinary approach and a unique mix of academic and practice-oriented research. It features both theoretical and empirical research streams, with lively discussions on the conceptual nature and structure of these skills, with many different and partially overlapping conceptual frameworks currently proposed.
A large number of empirical studies have been conducted in local, national, or international settings, offering a wealth of empirical insights but also opening up new questions. The goal of this Research Topic is to allow academic and policy researchers to present and discuss both theory and empirical practice of the research in social and emotional skills. This Topic aims to place a particular emphasis on the issue of application of accumulated academic knowledge in the educational settings, either through examination of current states, development of policy interventions, or through evaluation of their effectiveness.
We encourage authors to submit manuscripts of up to 5000 words (up to 7000 words in case of empirical studies), that would address one or more of the following questions:
- What are social and emotional skills, how are they inter-related and structured, and how they differ from related constructs?
- How malleable are social and emotional skills and what are their main determinants?
- How could intervention programs for the development of social and emotional skills be introduced and integrated into the educational systems?
- What is the effectiveness of existing intervention programs designed to improve these skills?
- What is the predictive value of social and emotional skills in relation to significant life outcomes (educational achievement, health, personal well-being, etc.)
- Does changes in socio emotional skills eventually produced by intervention programs affect significant life outcomes?
- Which assessment approaches allow for a valid and reliable assessment of these skills and what new approaches are being developed?
Our ability to manage our emotions, connect with others in a respectful and meaningful way, act responsively and understand and appreciate other’s points of view are essential in successfully navigating our social worlds. Likewise, our capacity to embrace change and have an open and curious mind, to persist in our efforts but also, when needed to, adapt and change, are needed now more than ever. With the continuation of current societal and technological trends, these skills will be even more pivotal in the future.
The area of social and emotional skills is characterized by a multi-disciplinary approach and a unique mix of academic and practice-oriented research. It features both theoretical and empirical research streams, with lively discussions on the conceptual nature and structure of these skills, with many different and partially overlapping conceptual frameworks currently proposed.
A large number of empirical studies have been conducted in local, national, or international settings, offering a wealth of empirical insights but also opening up new questions. The goal of this Research Topic is to allow academic and policy researchers to present and discuss both theory and empirical practice of the research in social and emotional skills. This Topic aims to place a particular emphasis on the issue of application of accumulated academic knowledge in the educational settings, either through examination of current states, development of policy interventions, or through evaluation of their effectiveness.
We encourage authors to submit manuscripts of up to 5000 words (up to 7000 words in case of empirical studies), that would address one or more of the following questions:
- What are social and emotional skills, how are they inter-related and structured, and how they differ from related constructs?
- How malleable are social and emotional skills and what are their main determinants?
- How could intervention programs for the development of social and emotional skills be introduced and integrated into the educational systems?
- What is the effectiveness of existing intervention programs designed to improve these skills?
- What is the predictive value of social and emotional skills in relation to significant life outcomes (educational achievement, health, personal well-being, etc.)
- Does changes in socio emotional skills eventually produced by intervention programs affect significant life outcomes?
- Which assessment approaches allow for a valid and reliable assessment of these skills and what new approaches are being developed?
Keywords: social and emotional skills, assessment, skill development, education policy, social and emotional learning
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
