Work

The ATHENA Competency Framework: An Evaluation of Its Validity According to Instructional Designers and Human Resource Development Professionals

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: The ATHENA (Advanced Tool for Holistic Evaluation and Nurturing of Abilities) competency framework proposes a multidimensional approach to human performance structured around five interdependent dimensions (cognition, conation, knowledge, emotion, and sensori-motion), operationalized through 60 fine-grained facets. Although ATHENA is grounded in contemporary psychological theory and supported conceptually by multivariate research in intelligence, creativity, and skill acquisition, empirical evidence regarding the clarity and practical comprehensibility of its facets remains limited. This study investigates the extent to which instructional designers and human resource development (HRD) professionals-two groups who routinely operationalize competencies for learning, assessment, and workforce development-understand and evaluate the semantic clarity and usability of the 60 facets. Seventy-five practitioners completed a structured evaluation of the ATHENA framework facets, which are designed to be used in a hybrid intelligence system for competency management. This article presents the theoretical background, methodological design, and results concerning users' comprehension of the framework's components. The findings support, in general, the compatibility of ATHENA's facets and practitioners' conceptions.

Source: Journal of Intelligence

DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence14020023

Authors: Jeremy Lamri, Karin Valentini, Felipe Zamana, Todd Lubart

Institutions: Aix-Marseille Université, Université Paris Cité, Laboratoire de Psychologie et d’Ergonomie Appliquées

Language: English

Topic: Competency Development and Evaluation

Subfield: Social Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Quality education

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,137