Publication: Conscientiousness and Labor Market Returns: Evidence from a Field Experiment in West Africa
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Date
2023-03-29
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2023-03-29
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Despite extensive evidence on the importance of non-cognitive skills for labor market outcomes, to what extent training can affect specific skills in adulthood remains an open question. This paper conducts a randomized controlled trial with low-skilled employed workers in Senegal where workers were randomly assigned to receive a training intervention designed to affect conscientiousness-related skills. The study found that treated workers were significantly more likely to stay in their job and had higher earnings nine months after the intervention. The findings suggest that non-cognitive skills can be affected later in the life cycle and targeted training can have substantial labor market returns.
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“Allemand, Mathias; Kirchberger, Martina; Milusheva, Sveta; Newman, Carol; Roberts, Brent; Thorne, Vincent. 2023. Conscientiousness and Labor Market Returns: Evidence from a Field Experiment in West Africa. Policy Research Working Papers; 10378. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/39614 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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