Incorporation, Digestion and Incarnation

Abstract

In this article, we highlight why and how industrial and organizational psychol-ogists can take advantage of research on 21st century skills and their assessment.We present vital theoretical perspectives, a suitable framework for assessment, andexemplary instruments with a focus on advances in the assessment of human cap-ital. Specifically, complex problem solving (CPS) and collaborative problem solving(ColPS) are two transversal skills (i.e., skills that span multiple domains) that aregenerally considered critical in the 21st century workplace. The assessment of theseskills in education has linked fundamental research with practical applicability andhas provided a useful template for workplace assessment. Both CPS and ColPS cap-ture the interaction of individuals with problems that require the active acquisitionand application of knowledge in individual or group settings. To ignite a discussionin industrial and organizational psychology, we discuss advances in the assessmentof CPSand ColPSand proposewaystomovebeyondthe currentstate of theart inassessing job-related skills.