The Effect of Higher Education on The Development of Social Emotional Competencies: An Empirical Analysis Based on the data of Chinese Family Panel Studies

As the core competitiveness in the 21st century, social emotional competence is an important indicator for evaluating the quality of talent cultivation in higher education in the new era. Based on the data of Chinese Family Panel Studies, this study employs a propensity score matching method to accurately estimate the impact of higher education on the development of social-emotional competencies. The study found that compared with primary education, higher education significantly improved individual s' altruism, but had no significant effect on responsibility, open-mindedness, joyfulness and emotional regulation. Heterogeneity analysis showed that the gain of altruism mainly came from undergraduate education and pre-expansion higher education, whereas associate degree education and higher education after the expansion have no significant effect on any of the five social emotional competencies. Therefore, it is imperative for higher education institutions in China to prioritize the development of students' social-emotional competencies to cultivate high-quality talents capable of adapting to and leading future social development.