# 3.2. Socioemotional skills

Table 12 provides the balance table for our socioemotional skills treatment. Results indicate that randomization has done a fairly good job in generating subsamples that are similar to each other apart from the treatment. In addition, a joint significance test provides an F-statistic of 0.47, implying that variables do not jointly affect the treatment variable.<sup>23</sup> Our socioemotional skills treatment is visible only when the applicant’s CV is clicked. This is why we only consider the treatment effect on callbacks for an interview and not the earlier stages of screening, and why our preferred specification is that conditional on the CV being clicked.<sup>24</sup> Table 13 shows the results from OLS regressions using cluster-robust standard errors at the vacancy level. Model 1 shows an overall insignificant treatment effect for signaling socioemotional skills. On the other hand, in Model 2 we get a differential result by interacting the treatment variable with a dummy variable that takes on the value 1 if the vacancy asks for the skill we signal in treatment CVs. Models 2 to 4 show that employers evaluate a socioemotional skill signal negatively when not asked for in the vacancy, although this effect becomes insignificant when vacancy characteristics are added (Model 4). Including the signal when it is asked for in the vacancy increases the probability of receiving a callback: the coefficients of socioemotional skills treatment and its interaction with whether the signaled socioemotional skill is required in the vacancy are jointly significant at the 10 percent level.<sup>25</sup> Finally, Model 5 shows that, while the effect sizes may change according to cluster, results are qualitatively similar across all clusters.<sup>26</sup>

**Result 2.** Signaling a socioemotional skill decreases the probability of being invited for an interview if the skill is not solicited in the vacancy, and it increases the probability of being invited for an interview if the skill is asked for in the vacancy text.

We finally investigate whether the probabilities of callback for our treatment CVs are different according to the applicant’s gender. Table 14 provides the results from OLS regressions conditional on the applicant’s CV clicked, and with cluster-robust standard errors at the vacancy level. Models 1 to 3 show that female candidates with socioemotional skill signals in their CVs are around 5 percentage points less likely to be invited for an interview when the vacancy text does not solicit the signaled socioemotional skill. On the other hand, Models 4 to 6 show that the same effect is close to zero for the male candidates.

**Result 3.** Firms that do not ask for the signaled socioemotional skills in the vacancy text evaluate these skill signals negatively only for female applicants.

> 23 Separate balance tables for each sector are available upon request. Balance tables look very similar across sectors. 24 Unconditional versions of these regressions are available upon request. Results do not vary.

> 25 Using Model 4, a joint significance test for SE skills * Signaled SE skill required in vacancy and SE skills gives an F- statistic of 3.60, with a p-value of 0.0579.

> 26 Separate regressions for each cluster are in line with these findings and are available upon request from the authors.