Developing and Leveraging Proactive Personality to Bridge the Soft Skills Gap
Date of Conferral
10-16-2023
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Psychology
Advisor
Amy Hakim
Abstract
There is a gap in the current labor market of protean workers who possess the uniquely human soft skills required by the increased reliance on artificial intelligence and digitization brought by the fourth industrial revolution. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to use the agentic perspective of Bandura’s social cognitive theory to understand how existing employees’ proactive personality is seen and experienced in the workplace. Using the human capital view on existing talent, this study explored how the soft skill of proactive personality can be developed in existing employees for the self-identification of opportunities for upskilling or reskilling when faced with skills obsolescence or shifting skill requirements. Six managers and four individual contributors at U.S. organizations participated in semistructured interviews to describe their lived experiences of responding to shifting skill requirements. Findings from coded analysis using Belwalkar and Tobacyk’s tripartite model taxonomy of proactive personality indicated that existing talent can be developed by leaders to provide positive social change that empowers individuals to become and remain relevant and employable throughout their careers. Findings revealed that by developing existing employees to become more proactive, organizations can create sustainable mindset shifts, habits, and behaviors that can mitigate the soft skills gap. Findings could be used to decrease unemployment, poverty, and inequality of income, and could increase societal dignity by keeping people employed and organizations competitive and profitable.
Recommended Citation
Burgess, Heidi, "Developing and Leveraging Proactive Personality to Bridge the Soft Skills Gap" (2023). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 14984.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/14984
