PIAAC Survey of Adult Skills: A review of the research landscape

Abstract

The OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) has transformed international research and policy debates on the assessment of adult skills. Although research using PIAAC data is accumulating, little is known about how these data are used and what they contribute to developing the various disciplines interested in adult skills. In this study we use a data-driven approach to examine PIAAC-based international research to date. Drawing on a comprehensive analysis of 880 publications, the review finds that the field of PIAAC research is young and geographically diverse, with dominant contributions from the United States and Germany. While PIAAC research relies on a diverse pool of researchers with high collaboration rates, only a quarter of publications involve international collaboration. Our analyses also revealed that the field has developed grounded on four interrelated disciplines (education, sociology, psychology, economics) and three differentiated historical paths: theoretical and methodological approaches to the measurement of adult skills (e.g. response processes in computer-based assessments), cognitive skills and problem-solving in technology-rich environments at the workplace, and the role of adult literacy skills for societal and economic development. Moreover, the PIAAC literature addresses a broad range of topics, including cognitive, non-cognitive and basic skills (e.g. literacy and numeracy), human capital, occupational mismatch, migration, returns to skills, informal learning and large-scale assessment methodologies. Implications for the further development of PIAAC research for users of PIAAC data, data-providing institutions and policymakers are discussed.