Abstract:  The strong increase in digitalisation due to the Covid‐19 pandemic changed many aspects of people’s lives, making it possible to overcome physical barriers, accelerate the simplification of many tasks, and facilitate access to information. Nevertheless, not all segments of the population benefit(ed) from these services in the same manner, therefore increasing social inequalities. The most disadvantaged struggled with access to digital tools; the low‐educated struggled due to problems connected with the use of these tools; and those living in rural areas due to the limited availability of a fast broadband connection. Individuals not in education, employment, or training (NEETs) are usually over‐represented among people with these personal characteristics, reinforcing the need to support their digital inclusion for active participation in the labour market. This article focuses on NEETs aged 25–29 years who identified as “not young, not adults” (NYNA), to verify if a wide use of digital tools is associated with a more active approach to feelings and actions taken to access the labour market. Data used in this study are based on a survey conducted within the EEA grant project Track‐In: Public Employment Services Tracking Effectiveness in Supporting Rural NEETs and refer to the Mediterranean countries of Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Findings suggest the importance of digital competencies in enhancing socio‐emotional skills—key mediators being the capacity to front situations and “trait self‐control”—with the area of residence as moderator, which emphasises the need for region‐specific interventions for rural NYNA NEETs.

Keywords:  digital competencies; digitalisation; labour market; rural NYNA NEETs; socio‐emotional skills

Published:   10 July 2025

Issue:   Vol 13 (2025): The Implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights in the Era of Polycrisis (In Progress)