competence| competence | expertise | References: competence Topics Authors 2005-11-01 Simonton, 2003, p. 215: An ability is defined as the cognitive capacity to perform some mental or behavioral task . Simonton, 2003, pp. 221-2: ... an expertise consists of acquired skills and knowledge in a specific domain. ... An expertise is necessarily acquired rather than innate. ... At the highest level is the master who acquired virtually all the skill and knowledge that defines a particular specialty. ... At the lowest level ... is the novice, who has only acquired the most basic skills and knowledge. Simonton, 2003, p. 230: Here competency will be defined as any acquired skill or knowledge that constitutes an essential component for performance or achievement in a given domain. ... any given domain requires the acquisition of more than one component. ... a person who attains competency in all the components defining a creative domain is said to be competent in the corresponding domain. To be competent in a domain signifies a degree of skill and knowledge certainly higher than those of the novice, but not necessarily as high as a master.
2005-11-01 Connell et al., 2003, p. 144: ... a realized competence (hereafter, competence) denotes some point in ability space that occurs as a result of learning and experence in a specific domain. A competence results from (and depends on) the interaction between individual potential abilities and actual experience in a domain. Connell et al., 2003, p. 144-5: To make matters worse, the word "competence" is often used indiscriminately to refer to either the observable performance ... or the underlying neural functions that support the observable behavior ... . Connell et al., 2003, p. 146: ... Task-competence is a narrow competence for executing a specific kind of task within a domain (for instance, sight-reading music, solving a Boolean algebra problem, negotiating the terms of an agreement). Situation-competence, on the other hand, is a broad integrative competence for transforming some situation in the world from its current state into a more desired state by analyzing it into a set of appropriate tasks, delegating them if necessary to the people with the necessary task-competencies, and then integrating the results to produce key decisions or synthesize a plan of action for achieving the desired outcome (for example, organizing a theatrical production, running a computer design firm, or addressing constituent concerns about a state's environmental policies).
--05.09.19-- Definitions of competence Weinert (2000, pp. 27-28, as cited by Achtenhagen, 2005, p. 9): competence is "the cognitive abilities and skills possessed by or able to be learned by individuals that enable them to solve particular problems, as well as the motivational, volitional and social readiness and capacity to use the solutions successfully and responsibly in variable situations". OECD (2002): competence is "the ability to meet demands or carry out a task successfully, and consists of both cognitive and non-cognitive dimensions." Two key points in the definition: first, it places emphasis on personal and social demands; second, it conceptualizes competence as "internal mental structures - in the sense of abilities, capacities or dispositions embedded in the individual." Competence is "built on a combination of interrelated cognitive and practical skills, knowledge (including tacit knowledge), motivation, value orientation, attitudes, emotions, and other social and behavioral components that together can be mobilized for effective action."
--05.09.15-- CERI, 2002, DeSeCo: Theoretical and Conceptual Foundations p. 8: A competence is defined as the ability to meet individual or social demands successfully, or to carry out an activity or task. ... This demand-oriented definition needs to be complemented by a conceptualization of competencies as internal mental structures - in the sense of abilities, capacities or dispositions embedded in the individual. Each competence is built on a combination of interrelated cognitive and practical skills, knowledge (including tacit knowledge), motivation, value orientation, attitudes, emotions, and other social and behavioral components that together can be mobilized for effective action. p. 9: Competencies are manifested in the actions an individual undertakes in particular situations or contexts. They do not exist internally, independent of action. This conceptualization [...] relates external demands, individual attributes, and context as essential elements of competent performance. p. 9: A competence is developed through action and interaction in formal and informal educational contexts. Thus, competence development does not only refer to school-related teaching and learning. [...] ... while the acquisition and maintenance of competencies is in part a matter of personal effort, it should be recognized that it also is contingent upon the existence of a favorable material, institutional and social environment, and appropriate social arrangements.
--05.08.30-- Bird and Osland, 2004, Global Competencies p. 58: ... we then search for the set of essential traits, attitudes, orientations, and skills required of all effective global managers. ... We call the various traits, attitudes, skills, and abilities that comprise global managerial expertise "global competencies". The extent to which these are present in any given manager is an indication of that person's general level of global managerial capability. pp. 58-59: Dreyfus and Dreyfus point out that novices begin by following rules; then, as they gain practical experience, they begin to understand general patterns. Once they become more competent, they recognize complexity and a larger set of cues. They are able to descern which cues are the most important and are able to move beyong strict adherence to rules and to think in terms of trade-offs. On attaining the expert stage, they can read situations without rational thought - they diagnose the situation unconsciously and respond intuitively because, over the years, they have developed the holistic recognition or mental maps that allow for effortless framing and reframing of strategies and quick adaptation. Intuition is thus a "cognitive conclusion based on a decision-maker's previous expereiences and imotional inputs" and therefore a form of "compressed expertise". Klein calls this "recognition-primed decision-making": experts enter situations seeking cues that enable them to "recognize" the familiar from past experiences, thereby evoking expectations, goals, and responses. p. 59: - Stage 1 - Novice: Rules are learned as absolutes
- Stage 2 - Advanced beginner: Experience produces understanding that exceeds stated facts and rules
- Stage 3 - Competence: Greater appreciation for task complexity. Recognition of larger set of cues and ability to focus on most important cues. Reliance on absolute rules begins to disappear; risk taking and complex trade-offs occur.
- Stage 4 - Proficiency: Calculation and rational analysis seem to disappear, and unconscious, fluid, effortless performance begins to emerge.
- Stage 5 - Expert: Holistic recognition and intuition rather than rules. Framing and reframing strategies as they read; changing that cues that others do not perceive or read.
p. 65: ... global leadership competency research has, for the most part, taken a content approach. There is an unspoken assumption that effective managerial action will flow from an appropriate content of competencies. p. 71: ... The first distinction we make is between competencies and traits. Competencies are abilities, skills or knowledge usually acquired through experience. In contrast, personality is a relatively enduring set of characteristics, tendencies and temperaments significantly formed by inheritance and by sociocultural and environmental factors. ... Traits may predict success, but because of their enduring nature, they cannot be easily or, in most cases, significantly altered. Competencies, however, can be taught or acquired. For example, people can learn how to interact effectively with people from other cultures. It is far harder to convert people who are pessimists into optimists. The second distinction we make between traits that may contribute to successful global managing versus those that are essential (threshold traits).
--05.08.27-- Bassellier, Reich and Benbasat, 2001, IT Competence of Business Managers
The concept of competence is used in many different areas of research, including psychology, education, management, human resources, and information systems. It is also used in a variety of ways - sometimes as a synonym for performance, other times as a skill or personality trait. It is sometimes referred to with different prefixes or suffixes, such as in the terms 'competency', meta-competence', or 'supra-competence'. These different uses generate some confusion as to the meaning of the concept. Competence is the potential that leads to effective behavior. Competence is often used as an umbrella term to cover almost anything that might directly or indirectly affect job performance. Various definitions can be grouped into three main ideas: - Competence as skill: a large portion of the competence literature is discipline-specific and refers to the development of specific skills or "competencies" for a particular job or profession. The idea is that there should be a fit between the employee's skills and the job requirements. This approach assumes a predefined task. Competence is a fit between an individual and the task. It focuses on the minimum skills an employee needs to to do an effective job.
- Competence as a personality trait: other researchers use a broader definition of competence. ... generic knowledge, motive, trait, social role, or skill of a person linked to superior performance on the job. ... include general of specialized knowledge, physical and intellectual abilities, personality traits, motives, and self-images. ... often associated to a lifetime competency perspective.
- Competence as knowledge (here I think they make a confusion): ... two types of knowledge, explicit and tacit. ... the ability to perform well is tacit knowledge, or know-how. Practice, or experience, where the individual modifies his action based on the results of previous actions... worldviews add a cognitive component to tacit knowledge.
--05.08.20-- It seems that there are some different perspectives on competence. - Normative vs. descriptive. Normative competences are a set of competencies that certain job roles and function require. Descriptive ones are those that a certain individual possess.
- Proficient vs. expert. They may vary in levels, from novice to proficient (just enough) to expert (superior). This leads to a dynamic perspective on competence, that is, competence develops along time.
- Generic vs. specific. Generic competences apply to a range of functions. Specific ones are more numerous, and describe in detail the requirements for a specific job.
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