The issue of competences has won today a major forum for discussion on human development. The theme was reissued by D. Mc Clelland in the Psychology of the seventy, with new meanings and uses that not always conform to the requirements of development of psychology as a science and profession. Neither it conforms to the demands of advanced education, one of the largest fields of application of concept.In this paper we analyse the issue, attempting to clarify theoretical and practical implications of the concept, from a critical standpoint. We found different arguments, about the the term competence: on the hand, it has a conventional content due to instrumental and utilitarian purposes, and on the other hand, its use delays the development of psychology as a science and profession. However, the concept can be used in certain circumstances, which are also clarified. The sources we use for analysis were the author's observations and the published literatura in the area, leading to a historical and cultural study of the concept
Education; competences; human development