been spared this humiliation and disgrace if they had received the vocational gdance such as now exists in some cities. The teachers, parents and pupil concerned, all working together, can find out what sterling virtues that pupil possesses. They can determine whether he has general ability above the average, or any particular ability that is very marked; they can determine whether he possesses courtesy, tact, courage, honesty, perserverance, and the like, all of which are essential to success in mest vocations. All of these things can be determined by them, and in this way compiete failures can for the most part be prevented. But on the other hand, only the psychologist can determine the finer mental differences, which make the difference between success and getting along passably well, the difference between living and existing in a given vocation,

But the question has often been put as to whether psychology is able to give us any such light in respect to the subject's intellectual abilities. Professor Thorndike of Teachers College in an address before the Education section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science made the following statement: "Suppose the men and women of this audierce were measured in respect to these eight tests, four trials of each being given (He gives the names and descriptions of the tests which I omit). The time required wou'd be approximately two hours, say thirty minutes a day on four days chosen at random. From the combined score made by an individval in these eight tests, his general intellectual ability-his capacity, that is, for science, scholarship and the management of Bleas of all sorts—could de prophesied with a surpnsing small eron” And further he says: "It not not be long before the members of this section will remember with a msement the time when obation waited for the expensive test of actual tral to tel bow ret & der or girl would sccceed with a given trade, with the work of college and professional school, or with the general task of kad ga docent budding Noure He བ

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with juvenile courts to assist the judge in forming wise decisions in regard to the cases? To use psychological tests in determining vocational aptitudes is not a new departure it is simply an extension of the work that is already being done.

Perhaps one or two illustrations of what has actually been done in this field will make clear some of the possibilities of psychological tests. Taylor* tells how in a certain bicycle ball factory the work of the girls was carefully studied with the results that the qualities most needed in this work were seen to be, besides endurance and industry, a quick responsive action. All the girls were now given psychological tests and those whose reaction time. was found to be slow were discharged, and other girls with a quicker reaction time were employed. The result was the possibility of shortening the hours and of reducing more and more the number of workers with the final outcome that thirty-five girls did the work formerly done by one hundred twenty, and that the accuracy of the work at the higher speed was twothirds greater than at the former slow speed.

Münsterberg made a study of several different vocations with the view of determining what particular mental processes or combination of mental processes are necessary for success in these vocations. For example, after a study of the work of street car motor-men he came to the conclusion that for success in this line of work normal senses, a quick reaction time and a peculiar combination of attention and imagination are necessary. He then proceeded to devise laboratory experiments for testing the subject with the view of finding out whether he possessed this needed combination of attention and imagination. The results of his experiments showed a far-reaching correspondence between efficiency in the experiment and efficiency in the actual service. In commenting on the results obtained Münsterberg says, "There can be no doubt that the experiments could be improved in many directions. But even in this first, not adequately tested, form, an experimental investigation of this kind which demands from each individual hardly ten minutes would be sufficient to exclude perhaps one-fourth of those who are nowadays accepted into the service as motormen. This twenty-five per cent of the applicants do not deserve any blame. In many other occupations they might render excellent service; they are neither careless nor reckless, and they do not act against instructions, but their psychical mechanism makes them unfit for that particular combination of attention and imagination which ought to be demanded for the special task of the motor-men.”5

One great difficulty at present in determining vocational aptitudes by means of psychological tests is that we do not know just what mental qualities and combination of qualities are essential to success in many vocations. However, as I have already pointed out, enough has been done to show the value and importance of this work. And fortunately much of this work has been done where it will count for the most, viz.: in those vocations which boys and girls of fourteen commonly enter. We now have enough knowledge of the psychological characteristics essential to success in many voca

'tions to be of great help, if that knowledge were only made use of. Why should not our psychological clinics which are being established in connection with our school systems enlarge their work to include the examination of boys and girls with the view of determining their vocational aptitudes, instead of confining their attention solely to backward and defective children? In this way the psychologist could supplement the work of the vocational counselors. He is not to take their place, but merely to assist them in making a more accurate diagnosis and prognosis than they could possibly make without his assistance. In this way a start could be made and the work would grow as it proved to be of value.

PRACTICAL PSYCHOLOGY APPLIED TO TELEPHONE

OPERATORS.

MR. R. C. SACKETT, TRAFFIC SUPERVISOR, MICHIGAN STATE TELEPHONE COMPANY.

The man today who is not a vocational misfit is indeed lucky. And by man I mean all classes of laboring people both male and female.

Prosperity, and industrial and financial growth have come so rapidly in the past decade or two, that little or no attention has been paid to the proper relationship existing between the Man, the Job and the Boss The average employer has always selected his men by chance or at least by guess. A man is employed because of some relationship to a foreman or because of his nationality, or because of his religious tendencies. Time, money and the best brains of industry have always been put on the material equipment, apparatus and plant in general. But times are changing and owners are beginning to look to the person who can size up a prospective employe and tell for a certainty whether or not that man is going to be an asset or a liability to the company in the particular position or job for which he is being considered.

It has only been in the last year or two, since business has reached that high stage of development, in which every small economy counts in order to successfully meet competition, that business men have begun to investigate such things as the high percent of resignations, failures and dismissals in their force, and have begun taking steps to ascertain their causes, and if possible secure the right man for the right job. Every man should be in the place in the world for which he is best suited.

Plenty of jobs and positions are waiting for the right man on every hand, but on every hand there is an over-supply of mediocre aspirants. It is very seldom that a man who fails in his chosen vocation and is thrown out, happens to find a career in which he can make a success. Statistics

show that there is an increasing burden and danger being thrown on society by the great numbers of those who do not succeed and who by their lack of success become embittered and discouraged.

The consideration of resignations and their causes in The Michigan State Telephone Company, together with a very interesting address and practical demonstration given at a noon-day luncheon in the city of Saginaw last April, led me to begin the study of this problem in the interest of our company. The address and demonstrations were on the subject of "Character Analysis as a Method of Selecting Employes" as advanced by Dr. Katherine M. H. Blackford of the Emerson Co.

When I say that the resignation in our force of telephone operators in the State of Michigan run between 90 and 100 per cent per annum of our entire force, and that the average period of service is about 20 months, you will readily see that there is opportunity for such work. But this company is only typical of thousands of others.

ago.

I approached the study of Scientific selection from three angles, namely:
I. Graphology-or the science of reading character from handwriting.
II. The Science of Character Analysis—to which I referred a moment

III.

Practical Psychology-of which I am to say something today.

I wish to just touch on the first two subjects mentioned before taking up this last phase.

Of Graphology I will say that in the short time I have been investigatit, I have only been able to get a few of the essentials in mind. An illustration or two will serve my purpose. I picked a girl over in Grand Rapids for the position of Record Clerk in our organization, from the characteristics shown in her handwriting. And she has made good. Then, again, after our Chief Operator had received the written applications of three new operators and engaged them, I examined these applications and from the handwriting told the Chief Operator what I thought she could expect from them in actual service, and they have performed according to the way I predicted.

As to the second subject, Character Analysis, which bases its conclusions on a few natural characteristics, such as texture, form, color, body build, proportion, consistency and expression, I have made some general observations, and am prepared to say that I believe it can be applied in selecting telephone operators.

As to the third, and for our purpose the most important phase of the question-Practical Psychology-I have a good deal to say.

The experiments which I will describe were performed by myself, in Grand Rapids during January and February of this year.

The first step necessary in properly selecting any employe is to determine what the requirements are for the position for which he or she is applying.

Every girl cannot successfully fill the position of a Telephone Operator. E she does she must be able to sit facing a switchboard for two periods of four and one-half hours each day, with a fifteen minute relief in each period, and answer from 200 to 250 calls an hour.

The everyday examination of applicants requires them to successfully schmit to tests of hearing, enunciation, eve-sight, education and general appearance. After this they are put through a regular school under a competent instructor before being allowed to operate a switchboard. The actual cost of training an eperator is in the neighborhood of $100 and when you consider that in one city in this state 20 new operators are taken on each week, you can see that the most efficient selection is necessary to get the Jongest period of service.

There are many steps in the psychological process of an operator. Not being a psychologist and never having studied the subject. I could merely pick out in the shortest possible time what I considered essential for a good operator. I determined upon seven essentials and selected simple tests for them. The essentials are:

Attention, Association, Memory, Intelligence, Speed. Space-Percep zon, AromaT.

Of these I consider Attention by far the most important for operators handling local exchange calls For it is now evilant to me that many of ear girls who become nervons and leave the service do so because it requires an excessive physical and mental stram on them to sit for hours and confine their attention to the work before them. On the other hand Memory is the most essental dharacteristic for a Long Distance Operator or an Information Operator

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