向内还是向外：尼日利亚农业企业家的哪些社会情感技能能带来回报？

Socioemotional skills programs are widely used to promote economic empowerment, yet their returns may depend on the type of skills targeted and social context. We study this question using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) among 4,500 aspiring agribusiness entrepreneurs in Nigeria within a large-scale government program. Participants were randomly assigned to an interpersonal-skills curriculum, a combined interpersonal and intrapersonal-skills curriculum of the same length, or a control group. Both trainings substantially increase women’s business performance, raising average profits by 50%. The two trainings generated broadly similar economic impacts overall. Effects are largest in communities with more liberal gender norms, where women report improvements in interpersonal skills such as empathy and negotiation, and better relational outcomes. Despite large economic gains, we find no corresponding increases in women’s empowerment or intrahousehold decision-making. For men, interpersonal-skills training increases household income, while the combined curriculum raises profits but only in the most gender-liberal environments. The results show that the returns to socioemotional skills programs depend not only on which skills are taught, but also on whether prevailing social norms permit individuals to express and deploy those skills. Translating gains into broader empowerment may require complementary programs that relax gender norms.