Skill Contextualization

The process of making a generic skill more specific by placing it in an increasingly narrow context.

Example: “measure” → “measure the size of objects” → “measure furniture dimensions” → “measure antique furniture for restoration”

Each step adds specificity. The broader skill contains the narrower one. The narrower skill is applicable in fewer situations but carries more meaning in those situations.

Decontextualization is the inverse: abstracting an occupation-specific skill into a form that transfers across sectors. “Mix cocktails” decontextualizes to “combine ingredients according to recipes” which applies beyond bartending.

This is the core operation in building skills taxonomies. Too generic and the skill loses practical meaning. Too specific and it doesn’t connect to related skills or transfer to related occupations.

ESCO models this through hierarchical broader/narrower relationships between skills, with reusability levels (transversal, cross-sector, sector-specific, occupation-specific) as guideposts for the appropriate level of abstraction.

Related: 06-atom—skill-reusability-spectrum