Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-01
PSYCHOLOGY NOW HELPS
PUT PEOPLE in RIGHT JOBS
Formed With Belief Ire.
mendous improvements in Prodtlc-
ton and Happiness Are Possible.

dIn 4 cut OUT OuJ WndG
ton can At myself FORE" This Is be-
cause every one, even a moron, can
At himself to do quite number of
things both successfully and happily.
In fact, the old notion that somewhere
there is just the right sized hole for
every square peg has been exploded by
scientific psychology Both the pegs
and the holes can be adjusted. IN both
size and shape, to a considerable de-
gree, especially by training the emo
tons, interests and attitudes
However, these mind readers" and
character readers" will tell you by the
shape of your head or your body build
or-heaven save us!-by the color OF
your eyes and skin just what you are
"cut out for" and whether you are
"asthenic," or psychoplastic." or
gressive," or what-not. Most OF the
people I have known personally who
have consulted these Psychologist
have been told they were dominating
and aggressive and were cut out for
executives. We will all pay money to
be assured we are extraordinary, but
the only ones who get any picnic" out
of this sort of hocus-pocus. so lar as
can find, ere the per5ons-some OF them
honestly self -dsluded ignoramuses-who
sell the hocunn.
Many FSycn0iOgiStS AVaHdDleS
I therefore esteem it a privilege to
urge young people to seek vocational
advice and character reading" either
from persons who are members OF the
American Psychological Association, OF
which there are about 1000, or from
persons who have a good standing as
medical psychologists and psychiatrtsts,
or persons whom your school principal
or superintendent recommends.
For you must not gather that no one
except those 500 members of the PSy-
Geological Corporation is qualified to
give very reliable vocational counsel.
Most large city schools now have voca-
tional counstlorS, some of them very
competent, especially in their detailed
knowledge of the occupations in their
own vicinitieS. In fact, at this point OF
contact the Psychological Corporation
desires to cooperate with all institu-
tons and agencies both for the training
of vocational counSelors in public
schools, business houses and industries,
and to aid these counselors by providing
constantly better tools and "instru-
ments'' for use in their work.
But you can be assured that sciens
tific psychologist cannot read your
mind" or judge your qualifications for
job in any way except by giving you
numerous standardized tests and study
The reason he cannot read your mind
| is just because nobody on earth can
read anybody elSe'S mind-or even his
own mind-in any other way. think,
| in fact, can bring this out best by
telling you just how these psychologists
go about their job of helping you choose
the right job and what the corporation
is doing and planning to do in this re-
spect The corporation itself was organ
lied in 1921 and has worked along
cautiously, until within the last year it
has undertaken to set up a wider serv-
ice to the public and carry out larger
scale projects.
10000 Minimum Need.
As I have said. about 400 psycholo-
gists have agreed TO cooperate for
mental testing and vocational advice
an appallingly small number consider
ing that the country needs at least
10000. When one wishes to consult one
Of these psychologists he Is sent the
names of the psychologists nearest his
home. He also receives blank with
several pages Of questions to be answered
questions about age, health, home cir
cumstances, schooling. the jobs one has
had, how well or Ill he has succeeded in
them, the applicants outstanding per-
sonality traits as he sees them, etc. This
is filled out and sent to the nearest
psychologist so that he will have a sort
of acquaintance with the applicant
when he comes for his interview. The
idea is to make the interview as friendly
and happy a personal experience as
possible.
When the applicant arrives and gets
acquainted, the examiner, as he usually
calls himself, gives him some tests of
general intelligence. You may occa-
sionally hear or read criticisms Of intel
ligence tests. Most popular criticisms
of intelligence tests are by persons who
know very little or nothing about them,
or else they are echoes Of arguments
that very properly are going on all the
time among experimental psychologists
| upon technical points involved; for ex-
ample, whether they measure 'heredity"
or environment" Unborn capacities or
education. In fact. the public IS no
! more capable of comprehending the real
questions involved in the heredity-en-
v1ronment problem-or, indeed, the
problems of mental measurements
than it is of compromising the theory
of relatively or the problem of entropy:
that is, whether the universe Is winding
up or running down. But you can be
assured that all competent psychologists
believe intelligence tests and many be-
havior tests and tasks are great aid
in helping both them and you in get
ting at your fitness for particular
occupations.
Pick Job Your Own Size.
Indesd, right here is one thing that
these psychologists have done that
most character and mind readers have
not-that is, they have made extensive
studies of what the major occupations
require in the way of both intelligence
and training In order to do well in
them. For example, if they have found
that good stenographerS rate about 10
On their tests they would be real friends,
should they find your mental rating
was 95, if they would suggest other oc-
equations in which you would be much
happier and more likely to succeed. If
engineers are found to rate around 100,
1t would be very unwise for boy with a
rating of 100 to try to become an engi-
neer. He should get interested In some
thing else; as We say in fighting. pick q
job of his own size. The most unhappy
person in the world is the one who has
job too big for him, and the next most
unhappy is the one who has q job too
little for him. One is continually
straining to do the impossible and the
other has too much idle time for worry.
The word worry brings us to what
may be the next test the psychologist
gives you, test for finding out how
much or how little you worry-your
poise and self-control. One of the best
instruments" as they call these tests
and rating sheets is known as the ''per-
sonality schedule" devised by Drs. L. L.
and Thelma GWinn ThurStone of the
University Of Chicago. It aids both you
and the examiner to get a pretty clear
picture of your minor worries, fears and
emotional disturbances, in case you have
any, or it brings out your freedom from
these difdculties. OF course, If you show
serious mental disturbances, he advises
you to see a clinical psychologist