Development and Psychometric Validation of the Soft Skills Scale for Teachers (SSS-T)
Abstract
Soft skills support individuals emotionally, cognitively, and behaviorally. Teachers are one of the professional groups whose soft skill levels are expected to develop. This is because teachers not only improve their own soft skills but also help in the development of soft skills in students. To this end, we aimed to develop a valid and reliable scale to assess teachers’ soft skills. The validity and reliability of the Soft Skills Scale for Teachers were established through four separate studies. In Study I, EFA revealed that the scale consists of thirty-seven items and five factors (n= 402). Study II, through CFA, demonstrated that the scale’s fit indices indicate a good fit (n= 248). In Study III, Cronbach’s alpha was calculated as .91 and convergent validity results indicate moderate correlations (n = 122). Finally, Study IV involved a test-retest procedure, and the results indicated that the first and second administrations were highly correlated and found no significant differences between two administrations (n= 57). Collectively, these findings ensure that the scale is a valid and reliable scale for measuring the soft skills of teachers. The Soft Skills Scale for Teachers is crucial because identifying and developing the soft skills of teachers is not only an educational necessity but also a social need. Additionally, the Soft Skills Scale for Teachers offers benefits for groups such as educational institutions, educational policymakers, and teacher training institutions, which are crucial for fostering teaching quality and ensuring student’s soft skills development.
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