Tools for assessing students' socio-emotional competencies. A systematic literature review

Social-emotional competencies (SEC) represent an increasingly investigated topic in the educational context, and multiple tools have been developed to measure them. Consequently, an inventory of these tools becomes necessary for research in different educational contexts. This paper aimed to identify and analyse the existing self-reported instruments used to assess secondary school students’ SEC, developed on the CASEL model and published between 2018-2022. The CASEL model was created to help design and conduct SEC development programs and focus on five dimensions: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, managing relationships with others, and responsible decision-making. Most of the social-emotional learning programs are therefore based on the CASSEL framework. Three academic databases were searched (Google Scholar, ERIC, and ProQuest), and1246 articles were identified. After checking the inclusion criteria, fourteen articles were included in the quantitative synthesis. Finally, eight questionnaires assessing the five SEC dimensions according to the CASEL model were identified. From this analysis, a questionnaire was noted that covers all five dimensions (i.e., the Social and emotional competencies questionnaire built by Zhou Ee, 2012), has a relatively low number of items, and is easy to apply to children and adolescents. In addition to this questionnaire utility, developing new SEC measurement tools created on the CASEL model to offer variety remains necessary. The results of the literature review present all eight questionnaires with the dimensions they measure, the number of items, and their internal consistency. Also, this study illustrates the limitations of such a review and suggestions for future research.