Social-emotional Skills: Characteristics, Functions And Examples
Socio-emotional skills They are an aspect that, historically, was little worked on in school despite the fact that they are something fundamental for us, as adults, to be socially adjusted individuals.
There are many skills of this type, all of them very useful and that need to be enhanced in order to relate in a well-adapted way with the social environment.
Below we will look at this concept in more depth, in addition to discovering a few useful social-emotional skills and how to work on them.
We could define socioemotional skills as those learned behaviors that we carry out when we interact with other people and that are useful for us to express our feelings, attitudes, opinions and defend our rights. For example, among them we can highlight self-knowledge, self-control, empathy or the ability to collaborate with others.
Developing these types of skills is very important, since they help us relate assertively and functionally with others, in addition to helping us achieve our goals in a social context from which we cannot separate ourselves.
Although there is no strict classification on what types of socio-emotional skills there are, there is We can classify them into more basic skills and more complex skills
We could understand the basic ones as those that are relatively simple, but essential to be able to acquire more complex skills. Among them we could highlight being able to listen, maintain a conversation, assertiveness, thank you, introduce yourself… while in the complex ones we would have, for example, taking the initiative, establishing objectives or resolving conflicts.
Socio-emotional skills in childhood
Socio-emotional skills They can be worked on at any age, however, it is during childhood that it is most productive to acquire them It is well known that when we are children it is easier for us to automate certain types of behaviors and acquire new knowledge. These behaviors and knowledge can include socio-emotional skills and for this reason childhood is such an appropriate period to teach them.
In addition to the family environment, The school exerts a great weight on the behavior and personality of the individual It is in this place where not only new academic knowledge is acquired but also the various socio-emotional skills can be put into practice, especially by interacting with other classmates. For this reason, educational centers, under a more modern training perspective and not so focused on the cognitive, have been incorporating the implementation of various social and emotional competencies into the academic curriculum.
Not acquiring socio-emotional skills such as self-control, communicating assertively, resolving conflicts or empathy can be a problem for the child once he or she becomes an adult. in adulthood It is very good to have in-depth knowledge of a certain subject, but it is not of much use if you do not have socio-emotional skills to be able to express them or relate to others.
Types and examples
There are many socio-emotional skills that we could highlight, but the fundamental ones are those described below.
1. Resilience
Resilience is a fundamental capacity in every person, since it is what makes us suffer more or less in a situation that is adverse to us, such as difficult, stressful or traumatic events.
This ability is fundamental to the extent that no one has a perfect life We all go through ups and downs at some point in our lives, so it is necessary to learn to manage them and, to the extent it is in our hands, learn to cope with them.
For example, having good resilience is synonymous with the fact that, in the event that our parents divorce, we break up with our partner, or our sisters tend to make our existence miserable, we will have and recover the physical and mental energy to overcome the bad time.
2. Self-knowledge
We understand self-knowledge as the ability to know oneself, both cognitively and emotionally. That is, it is about the ability to know what we are feeling at all times, make realistic evaluations in relation to our own abilities and know what we are good at and what we have difficulties with.
This skill combines aspects related to emotional intelligence, specifically intrapersonal intelligence, and also cognitive aspects, especially metacognition.
3. Tenacity
Tenacity or perseverance is the ability to continue working to achieve a goal that we have set for ourselves, in the medium or long term. Perseverance occurs when, despite not having the desired results, we continue working to achieve our goal.
Social awareness is the understanding that others are also feeling things and being able to adopt different perspectives when interacting with them. Being socially conscious is understanding that we are not alone in the world and that, in the same way that others have obligations and rights, so do we.
5. Collaboration
Collaboration is the ability to coordinate with others to achieve a common goal, beneficial for everyone. It is not only about achieving a specific goal, such as working in a work group to obtain approval or finishing a project, but also collaborating to be able to have an adequate coexistence. It is cooperating so that we all feel well-being together.
6. Empathy
Empathy is widely known as the ability to put yourself in the shoes of others and synchronize with their emotions. It is experiencing what others are feeling and it is, clearly, a capacity closely related to emotional intelligence, of an interpersonal type.
7. Self-management
Closely related to self-knowledge, we understand emotional self-management as the ability to Identify our emotions and use them as drivers to reach a goal It is learning to be aware of the need to delay rewards to achieve our goals, and developing perseverance to tolerate frustration.
We can manage positive emotions and negative emotions. If we are happy we can use that good mood to continue studying for an exam or talk to a friend. If we are angry, instead of taking it out on someone close to us, we can manage it by channeling our anger by going for a run or, if we know someone who can listen to us, talk to them so we can vent peacefully.
8. Responsible decision making
Although it is perhaps still something complicated during childhood, educating in correct decision-making can be a fundamental aspect so that the child, once he or she has reached adulthood, behaves in a controlled and well-adapted way.
Throughout life there are many situations in which we have to decide which path to take One may involve more risks than the other, but also more benefits. Learning to decide correctly, based on more or less objective criteria and not based on impulses, can be a good way to avoid disappointments in the future.
For example, good decision making is deciding not to start smoking when a friend invites us for a cigarette, or deciding to avoid drinking alcohol during the week. In these decisions, the decision to have good health has prevailed rather than social pressure.
9. Assertive communication
Assertive communication is a very useful communication style for any situation, since it is the learn to communicate what we want to say without hesitation Each person has the right to express themselves and, as long as it is done with respect and tolerance, each person can assert their opinion.
10. Personal relationships
Socio-emotional skills They have a component clearly related to emotions and are used for social purposes The most useful purpose of these is their application when relating to others.
Learning to introduce yourself, talk to others and interact in a friendly way are fundamental aspects if you want to have adaptive relationality and be a socially adjusted individual. You cannot have friends if our communication and relational style is passive-aggressive, or does not invite us to have a good conversation.
How to develop them?
As we have commented, It is very important to focus on enhancing socio-emotional skills during childhood Whether in the family or at school, boys and girls must learn how to relate appropriately with others, in addition to knowing how to manage their emotions for beneficial purposes, such as achieving goals.
Education must focus on and have, as its main function, the social adaptation of the individual. This involves promoting their integration into society, interacting with others, developing diverse ways of feeling, thinking and acting. All of this is essential to be able to end up being a well-adjusted individual upon reaching adulthood.
But although we should try to promote as many socio-emotional skills as possible, it is true that Teaching work should focus on those skills that prove to be most likely and useful in the individual’s life both in the short and long term.
For example, empathy and collaboration are skills that should have some priority over tenacity or resilience, especially during preschool and early elementary years. It is later when those two skills can be introduced, such as late elementary school.
