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The soft skills perception gap between employers and young people: findings from Turkey

Okay-Somerville, B. and Atilla-Bal, E. (2024) The soft skills perception gap between employers and young people: findings from Turkey. Journal of East European Management Studies, (Accepted for Publication)

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Abstract

Building on research highlighting the importance of soft skills in school to work transitions and employers’ hiring decisions, this article examines the perception gap between young people’s and employers’ ascriptions of soft skills (operationalised in transferable skills, personal attributes and work-related values). Theoretically the study builds on social construction of soft skills and considers employers’ and young people’s judgment of soft skills. The study uses secondary data from young people (aged 15-18) and employers in Turkey. Findings show that, employers’ and young people’s (particularly young women’s) ascription diverge on all three categories of soft skills. The study contributes to the evidence base on social construction of soft skills, contextualised in the Turkish youth employment system.

Item Type:	Articles
Additional Information:	The authors would like to thank Arda Batu and Erhan Aslan at Turkish Enterprise and Business Confederation (TURKONFED) and Ulaş Tol from their research team for making this invaluable dataset available for academic research purposes.
Keywords:	Soft skills, young people, employers, social construction, transferable skills, personal attributes, work-related values.
Status:	Accepted for Publication
Refereed:	Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:	Okay-Somerville, Dr Belgin
Authors:	Okay-Somerville, B., and Atilla-Bal, E.
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > HD28 Management. Industrial Management
College/School:	College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Management
Research Group:	HRM/OB
Journal Name:	Journal of East European Management Studies
Journal Abbr.:	JEEMS
Publisher:	NOMOS
ISSN:	0949-6181
ISSN (Online):	1862-0019

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Deposit and Record Details

ID Code:	324219
Depositing User:	Dr Belgin Okay-Somerville
Datestamp:	11 Apr 2024 10:38
Last Modified:	12 Apr 2024 01:32
Date of acceptance:	1 March 2024