SOFT SKILLS AS A PREDICTOR OF ACADEMIC STAFF JOB PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC COLLEGES OF EDUCATION IN OGUN STATE
Keywords:
Soft skills, Academic Staff Job Performance, Emotional Intelligence, Problem Solving Skills, Leadership Skills, Communication SkillsAbstract
The success of any educational institution depends largely on the effectiveness and efficiency of its academic staff. The study therefore examined how soft skills predicted academic staff job performance in public colleges of education in Ogun State. The descriptive research of survey type was adopted for the study and the population of the study comprised all the 497 academic staff in the two public colleges of education in Ogun State. The sample of the study was 250 academic staff which was selected using simple random sampling technique. Two researcher-self developed questionnaires tagged Soft Skill Questionnaire (SSQ) and Academic Staff Job Performance Questionnaire (ASJPQ) were used to gather data. The instruments were validated by experts in the field of Measurement and Evaluation, Tai Solarin University of Education and the reliability co-efficient of the instruments were .74 and .70 respectively. The data collected were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) and the hypotheses were tested at .05 level of significance. The findings revealed that there was significant relationship between emotional intelligence and academic staff job performance (r = .533, p < .05); that there was significant relationship between emotional intelligence and academic staff job performance (r = .718, p < .05); that there was significant relationship between emotional intelligence and academic staff job performance (r = .765, p < .05). Lastly, that there was significant relationship between communication skills and academic staff job performance (r = .659, p < .05). The study therefore concluded that soft skills are crucial for effective teaching, efficient management of academic responsibilities, and fostering positive relationships with students and colleagues. It is therefore recommended that Open communication should be encouraged through feedback mechanisms, active listening exercises, and teaching aids can ensure clearer interactions with students and colleagues, thereby enhancing job performance.
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