(I) Definition of competence
The concept of “competence” was first formally proposed by David McClelland, a professor at Harvard University, in 1973. It refers to the deep-level characteristics of individuals that can distinguish those with outstanding achievements from ordinary people in a certain job. It includes motivation, traits, self-image, attitudes or values, knowledge in a certain field, cognitive or behavioral skills, and any individual characteristics that can be reliably measured or counted and can significantly distinguish between excellent and average performance.
The concept of competence includes three aspects: deep-level characteristics, causal relationships, and criterion references.
1. Deep-level characteristics refer to the potential characteristics of an individual, which can be maintained for a considerable period of time and can predict the individual’s behavior or way of thinking in different situations and work tasks. Its basic level is deep motivation, traits, self-image, attitudes or values, and shallow knowledge and skills.
2. Causal relationship means that competence can cause or predict behavior or performance. Generally speaking, competencies such as motivation, traits, self-concept and social roles can predict behavioral responses, which in turn affect work performance (the relationship between traits, behavior and performance).
3. Criterion reference refers to the ability of competencies to predict the performance of the criterion group according to a certain standard. Criterion reference is a very critical content in the definition of competency. If a competency cannot predict meaningful differences and has no obvious causal relationship with the referenced criterion, it cannot be called a competency (it can establish standards and differences for good or bad performance).
(II) Competency Model
McClelland proposed a famous model, the “Iceberg Model”, which divides the different manifestations of individual qualities into the surface “above the iceberg” and the hidden “below the iceberg”. Among them, the “above the iceberg” includes basic knowledge and basic skills, which are external manifestations, easy to understand and measure, and relatively easy to change and develop through training. The “below the iceberg” includes social roles, self-image, traits and motivation, which are the internal and difficult to measure parts of people. They are not easy to be changed by external influences, but they play a key role in the behavior and performance of personnel.
The onion model evolved from the iceberg model. American scholar Richard: Boyatz conducted in-depth and extensive research on McClelland’s quality theory and proposed the “Quality Onion Model”, which shows the core elements of quality composition and explains the characteristics of each component that can be observed and measured. The onion model summarizes competency from the inside to the outside as a layered structure. The core is motivation, and then it unfolds outward in turn into self-image, social role, knowledge, and skills. The more outward, the easier it is to cultivate and evaluate; the more inward, the more difficult it is to evaluate and acquire.
Generally speaking, the knowledge and skills of the outermost layer of the “onion” are equivalent to the above-water part of the “iceberg”; the motivation of the innermost layer of the “onion” is equivalent to the deepest part of the “iceberg” underwater; the self-image and social role in the middle of the “onion” are equivalent to the shallow part of the “iceberg” underwater.
Compared with the iceberg model, the onion model is essentially the same, both emphasizing core qualities or basic qualities. The assessment of core qualities can predict a person’s long-term performance. In comparison, the onion model highlights the hierarchical relationship between potential qualities and manifest qualities, and can better explain the relationship between qualities than the iceberg model.