RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Measuring Skills in Developing Countries
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 1018-9805R1
DO 10.3368/jhr.56.4.1018-9805R1
A1 Laajaj, Rachid
A1 Macours, Karen
YR 2019
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2019/10/07/jhr.56.4.1018-9805R1.abstract
AB Measures of cognitive, noncognitive, and technical skills are increasingly used in developing country surveys, but have mostly been validated in high-income countries. We use a survey experiment in Western Kenya to test the reliability and validity of commonly used skills measures. Cognitive skills measures are found to be reliable and internally consistent, technical skills are very noisy, and measurement error in noncognitive skills is found to be non-classical. Addressing both random and systematic measurement error using common psychometric practices and repeated measures leads to some improvements and clearer predictions, though concerns remain. These findings hold for a replication in Colombia.