Work in Progress
Differing skill requirements across countries and over time
Summary
- Item:
- 10427
- Title:
- Differing skill requirements across countries and over time
- Type:
- Managed research project
- Project no:
- NR07508
- Status:
- Project in progress
- Date commenced:
- 3 April 2009
- Estimated publication date:
- 30 June 2013
- Theme:
- Students and individuals > General
- Contact:
- Tabatha Griffin
- phone: 08 8230 8431
- email: tabatha.griffin@ncver.edu.au
- Principal researcher:
- Chris Ryan
- Social Policy Evaluation, Analysis and Research Centre, Australian National University
- Related program:
- Securing their future: Older workers and the role of VET
Purpose
This project will investigate how literacy and numeracy use at work differs across English-speaking countries and how it has changed over time.
Approach
Quantitative
Research questions
This project will address the following questions:
- How does literacy and numeracy use differ across English speaking countries and how did it change over time?
- Are there differences in the way workers with specific skills are matched to jobs with differing requirements across countries?
- Are these changes in line with shifts in the occupational distribution?
Methodology
The project would extend the literacy and numeracy use at work scales developed in 2008 to the analysis of job requirements in other countries and to assess how these requirements have changed over the past decade. The picture of the changing requirements that emerge could be compared with other approaches to assessing such change, such as shifts in the occupational distribution towards ‘high-skilled’ occupations. The analysis may aid our understanding of changes in productivity performance between different countries.
The analysis would utilize data from the 1994-1996 International Adult Literacy Survey (or Survey of Aspects of Literacy as it was called in Australia) and the 2006 Adult Literacy and Life Skills (ALLS) Survey. Both surveys include information on skill requirements, employment status and literacy skills of individuals. A comparison of the relationship between literacy skills and skills usage in the two surveys across countries would allow an examination of differences in the way workers with specific skills are matched to jobs with differing requirements across countries.
The analysis undertaken in this project will be similar to that undertaken for literacy skill usage in the 2008 stage one report, except that it will be extended to involve a comparative analysis of skills use in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.
