Share:


Possibilities for evaluation to foster the soft skills of critical thinking, creativity, and communication in higher education

    Stanislav Dadelo Affiliation

Abstract

Soft skills are the foundation of a solid and consistent lifelong education in a changing world. Students’ self-reported achievement motivation is a good indicator of their level of self-awareness. A rigorous assessment of the process’ results is necessary for an effective soft skill education program. There are significant flaws in the way the university’s curriculum handles soft skill assessments. Therefore, the question is: given the resources at hand, how can one properly ascertain which soft skills requirements change the most over a university education? To identify changes at the start and finish of studies and prepare instruction for soft skill suggestions during university studies, this study intends to measure the differences in self-assessment indicators of students’ creativity, critical thinking, and communicative abilities in university settings. The purpose of this study is to verify a variety of tools for assessing students’ soft skills and figure out how effectively they can recognize variations throughout multiple university study stages. This could aid in the preparation of recommendations for soft skill instruction in courses, which could be beneficial for university graduates’ future employment. Among first- and last-year university students, a self-assessment study on soft skills was conducted. The results show that students’ soft skills are not equally impacted by their university education. The critical thinking abilities of first- and fourth-year students only tend to improve but do not differ reliably.

Keyword : abilities, changes, self-assessment, skills, students

How to Cite
Dadelo, S. (2025). Possibilities for evaluation to foster the soft skills of critical thinking, creativity, and communication in higher education. Creativity Studies, 18(1), 13–29. https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2025.20943
Published in Issue
Jan 15, 2025
Abstract Views
45
PDF Downloads
25
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Achcar, J. A., & Barili, E. (2024). Sample size determination when the parameter of interest is the coefficient of variation under normality for the data. Pakistan Journal of Statistics and Operation Research, 20(2), 157–170. https://doi.org/10.18187/pjsor.v20i2.4240

Al-Sa’di, A., Yamjal, P., Ahmad, E., Panjabi, R., McPhee, A., & Guler, O. (2023). Assessing educators’ soft skills: Developing a self-assessment instrument. Administrative Sciences, 13(9). https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci13090208

Almeida, F., & Buzady, Z. (2022). Development of soft skills competencies through the use of FLIGBY. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 31(4), 417–430. https://doi.org/10.1080/1475939X.2022.2058600

Almeida, F., & Morais, J. (2023). Strategies for developing soft skills among higher engineering courses. Journal of Education, 203(1), 103–112. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220574211016417

Alt, D., Naamati-Schneider, L., & Weishut, D. J. N. (2023). Competency-based learning and formative assessment feedback as precursors of college students’ soft skills acquisition. Studies in Higher Education, 48(12), 1901–1917. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2023.2217203

Anderson, R. C., Chaparro, E. A., Smolkowski, K., & Cameron, R. (2023). Visual thinking and argumentative writing: A social-cognitive pairing for student writing development. Assessing Writing, 55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asw.2023.100694

Beer, S. (1984). The viable system model: Its provenance, development, methodology and pathology. Journal of the Operational Research Society, 35(1), 7–25. https://doi.org/10.1057/jors.1984.2

Bellaera, L., Weinstein-Jones, Y., Ilie, S., & Baker, S. T. (2021). Critical thinking in practice: the priorities and practices of instructors teaching in higher education. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2021.100856

Barevičiūtė, J., Dadelo, S., & Asakavičiūtė, V. (2023). The skills of critical thinking, creativity, and communication as tools for overcoming social simulation in the context of sustainability: A case study of students’ self-assessment of the affective domain of learning. Sustainability, 15(14). https://doi.org/10.3390/su151410935

Benedek, M., Bruckdorfer, R., & Jauk, E. (2020). Motives for creativity: Exploring the what and why of everyday creativity. Journal of Creative Behavior, 54(3), 610–625. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.396

Bereiter, C. (2002). Education and mind in the knowledge age. Routledge.

Burgoon, J. K., Manusov, V., & Guerrero, L. K. (2021). Nonverbal communication. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003095552

Chaitin, G. (2006). The limits of reason. Scientific American, 294(3), 74–81. https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0306-74

Chen, S., Shaker Al-Shaibani, G. K., & Lee, S. W. (2024). Examining university students’ soft skills in terms of problem-solving and social competence: Issues, causes, and solutions. Educational Administration: Theory and Practice, 30(4), 2063–2072. https://doi.org/10.53555/kuey.v30i4.1809

Cho, E. (2020). A comprehensive review of so-called Cronbach’s Alpha. Journal of Product Research, 38(1), 9–20.

Cronbach, L. J. (1951). Coefficient Alpha and the internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16(3), 297–334. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02310555

Čuić Tanković, A., Bilić, I., & Nekić, A. (2023). Soft skills, communication skills and hard skills influencing the motivation and satisfaction of women entrepreneurs. Ekonomski pregled, 74(4), 537–556. https://doi.org/10.32910/ep.74.4.3

Danesi, M. (2009). Dictionary of media and communications. Routledge.

Dowdy, Sh., Wearden, S., & Chilko, D. (2004). Wiley series in probability and statistics. Statistics for research. D. J. Balding, N. A. C. Cressie, N. I. Fisher, I. M. Johnstone, J. B. Kadane, L. M. Ryan, D. W. Scott, A. F. M. Smith, & J. L. Teugels (Eds.). Wiley Interscience. https://doi.org/10.1002/0471477435

Enrique, S., Martínez-Gregorio, S., & Oliver, A. (2024). Subjective well-being in university students: Two psychosocial skills complementing entrepreneurial attitudes. Industry and Higher Education, 38(3), 272–283. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222231194632

Foster, N., & Schleicher, A. (2022). Assessing creative skills. Creative Education, 13(1), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2022.131001

Franco-Ángel, M., Carabali, J., & Velasco, M. I. (2023). The internship performance of undergraduate students: Are hard or soft skills more important? Industry and Higher Education, 37(3), 384–396. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222221127213

George, A. Sh. (2023). The ephemeral career: How technological change necessitates flexible employment. Partners Universal International Innovation Journal, 1(5), 47–62.

Getzmann, S., Reiser, J. E., Gajewski, P. D., Schneider, D., Karthaus, M., & Wascher, E. (2023). Cognitive aging at work and in daily life – a narrative review on challenges due to age-related changes in central cognitive functions. Frontiers in Psychology, 14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1232344

González-Cacho, T., & Abbas, A. (2022). Impact of interactivity and active collaborative learning on students’ critical thinking in higher education. IEEE Revista Iberoamericana de Tecnologias del Aprendizaje, 17(3), 254–261. https://doi.org/10.1109/RITA.2022.3191286

Green, A. E., Beaty, R. E., Kenett, Y. N., & Kaufman, J. C. (2024). The process definition of creativity. Creativity Research Journal, 36(3), 544–572. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2023.2254573

Grote, K.-H., & Hefazi, H. (Eds.). (2021). Springer handbooks. Springer handbook of mechanical engineering. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47035-7

Guest, O., & Martin, A. E. (2023). On logical inference over brains, behaviour, and artificial neural networks. Computational Brain and Behavior, 6, 213–227. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42113-022-00166-x

Guilford, J. P. (1967). McGraw-Hill series in psychology. The nature of human intelligence. McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Hall, J. A., Horgan, T. G., & Murphy, N. A. (2019). Nonverbal communication. Annual Review of Psychology, 70, 271–294. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010418-103145

Halpern, D. F., & Dunn, D. S. (2021). Critical thinking: A model of intelligence for solving real-world problems. Journal of Intelligence, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence9020022

Hanemann, M., & Kanninen, B. (2001). The statistical analysis of discrete-response CV data. In I. J. Bateman & K. G. Willis (Eds.), Valuing environmental preferences: Theory and practice of the contingent valuation method in the US, EU, and developing countries (pp. 302–441). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0199248915.003.0011

Henson, R. K. (2001). Understanding internal consistency reliability estimates: a conceptual primer on Coefficient Alpha. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 34(3), 177–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481756.2002.12069034

Hwang, I. H., Lim, H., & Lee, Ch.-S. (2023). Exploring the gender gap in welfare attitudes: Relational skills and perceptions of pay equity. Socio-Economic Review, 21(3), 1291–1342. https://doi.org/10.1093/ser/mwac057

Joie-La Marle, Ch., Parmentier, F., Weiss, P.-L., Storme, M., Lubart, T., & Borteyrou, X. (2023). Effects of a new soft skills metacognition training program on self-efficacy and adaptive performance. Behavioral Sciences, 13(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13030202

Jones, S. E., & LeBaron, C. D. (2002). Research on the relationship between verbal and nonverbal communication: Emerging integrations. Journal of Communication, 52(3), 499–521. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2002.tb02559.x

Joshi, A., Kale, S., Chandel, S., & Pal, D. K. (2015). Likert scale: Explored and explained. British Journal of Applied Science and Technology, 7(4), 396–403. https://doi.org/10.9734/BJAST/2015/14975

Kaufman, J. C. (2012). Counting the muses: Development of the Kaufman domains of creativity scale (K-DOCS). Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 6(4), 298–308. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029751

Kobylarek, A., Błaszczyński, K., Ślósarz, L., & Madej, M. (2022). Critical thinking questionnaire (CThQ) – Construction and application of critical thinking test tool. Andragogy Adult Education and Social Marketing, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.15503/andr2022.1

Kovačević, M. (2022). The effect of a general versus narrow undergraduate curriculum on graduate specialization: The case of a Dutch liberal arts college. The Curriculum Journal, 33(4), 618–635. https://doi.org/10.1002/curj.158

Lamri, J., & Lubart, T. (2023). Reconciling hard skills and soft skills in a common framework: The generic skills component approach. Journal of Intelligence, 11(6). https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence11060107

Lance, Ch. E., Butts, M. M., & Michels, L. C. (2006). The sources of four commonly reported cutoff criteria: What did they really say? Organizational Research Methods, 9(2), 202–220. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428105284919

Laska-Leśniewicz, A., Kamińska, D., Zwoliński, G., Coelho, L., Raposo, R., Vairinhos, M., & Haamer, E. (2023). Working on empathy with the use of extended reality scenarios: The Mr. UD project. International Journal of Computer Applications in Technology, 72(3), 169–180. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJCAT.2023.133295

Latinjak, A. T., Morin, A., Brinthaupt, Th. M., Hardy, J., Hatzigeorgiadis, A., Kendall, Ph. C., Neck, Ch., Oliver, E. J., Puchalska-Wasyl, M. M., Tovares, A. V., & Winsler, A. (2023). Self-talk: An interdisciplinary review and transdisciplinary model. Review of General Psychology, 27(4), 355–386. https://doi.org/10.1177/10892680231170263

Law, J. (2011). Business: The ultimate resource. A&C Black.

Limpert, E., Stahel, W. A., & Abbt, M. (2001). Log-normal distributions across the sciences: Keys and clues. On the charms of statistics, and how mechanical models resembling gambling machines offer a link to a handy way to characterize log-normal distributions, which can provide deeper insight into variability and probability – normal or log-normal: That is the question. BioScience, 51(5), 341–352. https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2001)051[0341:LNDATS]2.0.CO;2

Lindauer, M. S. (2011). Art, artists, and arts audiences: Their implications for the psychology of creativity. In M. A. Runco & S. R. Pritzker (Eds.-in-Chief), Encyclopedia of creativity (pp. 58–65). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-375038-9.00012-1

Lubart, T., & Thornhill-Miller, B. (2019). Creativity: An overview of the 7C’s of creative thought. In R. J. Sternberg & J. Funke (Eds.), The psychology of human thought: An Introduction (pp. 277–306). Heidelberg University Publishing.

Malcolm-Davies, J. (2023). Structuring reconstructions: Recognising the advantages of interdisciplinary data in methodical research. Heritage Science, 11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-023-00982-9

Marin-Zapata, S. I., Román-Calderón, J. P., Robledo-Ardila, C., & Jaramillo-Serna, M. A. (2022). Soft skills, do we know what we are talking about? Review of Managerial Science, 16, 969–1000. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-021-00474-9

McKay, M., Davis, M., & Fanning, P. (2009). Messages: The communication skills book. New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

Mendoza, N. B., Yan, Z., & King, R. B. (2023). Domain-specific motivation and self-assessment practice as mechanisms linking perceived need-supportive teaching to student achievement. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 38, 607–630. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-022-00620-1

Mikyo Oh, D., & Pyrczak, F. (2023). Making sense of statistics: A conceptual overview. Routledge.

Miranda, J. A., & Yudi Wahyudin, A. (2023). Pre-service teachers’strategies in improving students’ speaking skills. Journal of English Language Teaching and Learning, 4(1), 40–47.

Nunnally, J. C. (1978). Psychometric theory. McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Pasquinelli, E., Farina, M., Bedel, A., & Casati, R. (2021). Naturalizing critical thinking: Consequences for education, blueprint for future research in cognitive science. Mind, Brain, and Education, 15(2), 168–176. https://doi.org/10.1111/mbe.12286

Prajna, P., & Prasad, B. A. (2017). Communication inventory: Selection and validation with an Indian population sample. Asian Journal of Management, 8(3), 805–808. https://doi.org/10.5958/2321-5763.2017.00126.3

Purnomo, B. R. (2023). Artistic orientation in creative industries: Conceptualization and scale development. Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 35(6), 828–870. https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2020.1794690

Quinn Patton, M. (2011). Developmental evaluation: Applying complexity concepts to enhance innovation and use. The Guilford Press.

Ren, X., Tong, Y., Peng, P., & Wang, T. (2020). Critical thinking predicts academic performance beyond general cognitive ability: Evidence from adults and children. Intelligence, 82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2020.101487

Richards, R. (2010). Everyday creativity: Process and way of life – four key issues. In J. C. Kaufman & R. J. Sternberg (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of creativity (pp. 189–215). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511763205.013

Rochmat, R. A. (2023). Interpersonal communication: Development of subject. Nursing communication. Lambert Academic Publishing.

Schultz, D. M. 2010. Eloquent science: A course to improve scientific and communication skills. In Proceedings of the 19th Symposium on Education: American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting. Atlanta, Georgia, United States. https://eloquentscience.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/161916.pdf

Smith, L. (2024). Space station and spacecraft environmental conditions and human mental health: Specific recommendations and guidelines. Life Sciences in Space Research, 40, 126–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lssr.2023.10.001

Sokal, R. R., & Rohlf, F. J. (1994). The principles and practices of statistics in biological research. W. H. Freeman.

Spielhofer, Th., & Haselberger, D. (2023). Using digitally supported communication analysis to facilitate constructive discourse in educational courses. In T. Bastiaens (Ed.), Proceedings of EdMedia + Innovate Learning (pp. 44–53). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education.

Sukmawati, W., & Zulherman, Z. (2023). Analysis of changes in students’ scientific literacy ability after attending lectures using the RADEC model. Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan IPA, 9(3), 1039–1044. https://doi.org/10.29303/jppipa.v9i3.2846

Tadjer, H., Lafifi, Y., Seridi-Bouchelaghem, H., & Gülseçen, S. (2022). Improving soft skills based on students’ traces in problem-based learning environments. Interactive Learning Environments, 30(10), 1879–1896. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2020.1753215

Thornhill-Miller, B., Camarda, A., Mercier, M., Burkhardt, J.-M., Morisseau, T., Bourgeois-Bougrine, S., Vinchon, F., Hayek, el S., Augereau-Landais, M., Mourey, F., Feybesse, C., Sundquist, D., & Lubart, T. (2023). Creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration: Assessment, certification, and promotion of 21st Century skills for the future of work and education. Journal of Intelligence, 11(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence11030054

Tomasello, M. (2005). Constructing a language: A usage-based theory of language acquisition. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv26070v8

Torrance, E. P. (1966). The Torrance tests of creative thinking. Norms – technical-manual. Verbal tests: Forms A and B. Figural tests: Forms A and B. Personnel Press, Inc.

Treffinger, D. J., Isaksen, S. G., & Stead-Dorval, K. B. (2006). Creative problem solving: An introduction. Prufrock Press Inc.

Walker, J. (Ed.). (2023). Keys to communication: An essential guide to communication in the real world. University of Montevallo.

Wang, M.-Zh., Chen, W., Zhang, Ch., & Deng, X.-L. (2017). Personality types and scholarly creativity in undergraduate students: The mediating roles of creative styles. Personality and Individual Differences, 105, 170–174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2016.09.050

Willard, W. G., Dam, van B., Bermiss, Y. S., Nwogu, Ch., Viernes, N., & King, S. (2023). How simulating difficult conversations in virtual reality around diversity, equity, and inclusion benefits interpersonal skills training. In E. Langran, P. Christensen, & J. Sanson (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 1223–1228). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education.

Wrench, J. S., Punyanunt-Carter, N. M., & Thweatt, K. S. (2020). Interpersonal communication: A mindful approach to relationships. Open SUNY Textbooks.