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Soft Skills Training Program Based on Serious Games

Author

Listed:
  • Dolores Lucía Sutil-Martín

    (Brain Reasearch Labortary, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28933 Madrid, Spain)

  • F. Javier Otamendi

    (Brain Reasearch Labortary, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28933 Madrid, Spain)

Abstract

In the 21st century, to be successful at the workplace and to get their first job, potential employees must have both “soft skills” (“know how to be”) and “hard skills” (“know how to do”). The proposed Soft Skills Training Program (SSTP) combines multiple serious games to train future employees in four key soft skills that are most demanded by companies: intrapersonal, interpersonal, personal social responsibility, and organizational sustainability. These four MacroSoftSkills are subdivided into eight MesoSoftSkills and 21 MicroSoftSkills to establish a complete multilevel structure. The development of soft skills is measured before and after the training using five appraisal questionnaires and tests. The pilot project, aimed at young university and vocational training students, lasted 9 weeks and proved to be effective since the proposed aggregate indicators of soft skills development increased in value, with the results being different across soft skill, gender, and educational center. The contents and length of some of the training sessions should, however, be adjusted to further develop and improve the program.

Suggested Citation

  • Dolores Lucía Sutil-Martín & F. Javier Otamendi, 2021. "Soft Skills Training Program Based on Serious Games," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-23, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:15:p:8582-:d:606446
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Estrellado, Emmanuel & Charoensilp, Pimmada & Yamada, Shoko, 2023. "The effects of game-based soft skills training: A quasi-experiment with Ethiopian garment workers," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).

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