Social Competence
Social competence is defined as the ability to handle social interactions effectively.
It is the condition of possessing the social, emotional, and intellectual skills and behaviors needed to succeed as a member of society.
Social competence is about getting along well with others, forming and maintaining close relationships, and responding in adaptive ways in social settings.
Given the complexity of social interactions, social competence is the product of a wide range of cognitive abilities, emotional processes, behavioral skills, social awareness, and personal and cultural values related to interpersonal relationships.
To complicate the understanding of this concept further, social competence is dependent on the following:
- Developmental characteristics - i.e., expectations of social competence vary by the age of person
- Specific social situation - i.e., people may be socially competent in one case but not in another, or a child may appear more competent when interacting with a socially skilled partner than with a shy person
- Cultural characteristics - i.e., specific acts of social competence are bound by cultural expectations
Social competence has been conceptualized as consisting of six categories of competence:
- Adoption of social values
- Development of a sense of personal identity
- Acquisition of interpersonal skills
- Learning how to regulate individual behavior by societal expectations
- Planning and decision-making
- Development of cultural competence
Self-regulation
Self-regulation includes controlling impulses, delaying gratification, resisting temptation and peer pressure, reflecting on one’s feelings, and monitoring oneself.
Much of self-regulation involves the management of emotion.
Emotional regulation is “the extrinsic and intrinsic processes responsible for monitoring, evaluating, and modifying emotional reactions... to accomplish one’s goals”.
This ability to regulate emotions develops from interaction with primary caregivers, the child’s inborn temperament, and the match between caregiving and character.
Interpersonal knowledge and skills
Social competence also includes understanding others’ needs and feelings, articulating one’s ideas and needs, solving problems, cooperating and negotiating, expressing emotion, “reading” social situations accurately, adjusting behavior to meet the demands of different social situations, and initiating and maintaining friendships.Positive self-identity
Positive self-identity, an intrapersonal category of social competence, includes a sense of competence, personal power, a sense of self-worth, and a sense of purpose.Cultural competence
Developing cultural competence includes acquiring knowledge of, respect for, and the ability to interact effectively and comfortably with people of varying ethnic or racial backgrounds.
It also includes recognizing and questioning the unfair treatment of others and acting for social justice.
Adopting social values
This social competence component encompasses caring, equity, honesty, social justice, responsibility, healthy lifestyles and sexual attitudes, and flexibility.
Social values are likely to vary by culture. Some more or less fundamental values may exist from culture to culture, yet these may be valued to different degrees and proportions across cultures.
Social values may be defined and exemplified in varying ways from one culture to another.