The Situational Test on Developing Basic Employability Competences: Evidence of Criterion Validity

Introduction: Basic employability competences are key for young people to access and remain active in the labour market, especially in a context of job scarcity. This study presents the criteria validation of a test designed to assess the Development of Basic Employability Competences (DCBE) among young people of pre-employment age during compulsory education. The aim of the article is to provide evidence of the relationship between the scores on the DCBE test and some external criteria such as classroom behaviours, which are considered indicators of good competence levels and can be observed and assessed by the peer group. A further aim is to evaluate the relevance of maintaining the test's unifactorial structure or including the eight original competences. Method: The participating sample comprised 326 students from three state-run secondary schools in Catalonia. The DCBE situational test and a questionnaire to assess observable behaviours that required high levels of basic employability competences were applied. The relationship between test scores and students' nominations of their peers' competences, age and gender was examined. Results: The results of the study support the criterion validity of the test based on peer evaluation, since the students with the best scores on the DCBE test were also identified by their peers as displaying behaviours representative of having a command of employability competences. Furthermore, students nominated as displaying behaviours indicative of good competences obtained better scores on the different scales of the test, while differences by gender were found for both the test results and the nominations received, but not for age. Discussion and conclusions: The data support the criterion validity of the DCBE in measuring employability competences in early pre-employment stages. The results support the use of the general employability factor, although all eight competences can be used for educational purposes.