fifteen seconds, the next word should be pronounced as follows: “The
second word is ‘at,’—at.”
It is the intention that each individual shall have ample opportunity to
understand the word to be spelled and to write his spelling of it, but
that the conditions shall remain uniform for all.
LIST A
1. go
2. at
3. can
4. run
5. ten
6. bed
7. good
8. little
9. like
10. book
11. make
12. hand
13. tell
14. five
15. spring
16. plant
17. game
18. hard
19. week
20. mile
21. summer
22. express
23. railroad
24. ticket
25. death
26. learn
27. district
28. pleasure
29. prison
30. family
31. factory
32. president
33. illustrate
34. education
35. century
36. difference
37. organize
38. estimate
39. foreign
40. difficulty
41. reference
42. secretary
43. athletic
44. February
45. preliminary
46. annual
47. decision
48. principle
49. judgment
50. recommend
LIST B
1. Christmas
2. interest
3. popular
4. treasure
5. search
6. complete
7. against
8. consider
9. tomorrow
10. general
11. distribute
12. injure
13. service
14. article
15. feature
16. manner
17. increase
18. convention
19. together
20. diamond
21. common
22. purpose
23. director
24. attention
25. already
26. according
27. provision
28. object
29. different
30. prefer
31. busy
32. vessel
33. prepare
34. wreck
35. promise
36. illustrate
37. secure
38. adopt
39. success
40. toward
41. machine
42. publication
43. visitor
44. salary
45. entertain
46. wear
47. education
48. avenue
49. combination
50. forenoon
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
No word should be given credit unless it is spelled correctly. If a word
is so illegible that the examiner cannot easily tell whether or not it
is correctly spelled it should be counted as wrong. The total number of
words correctly spelled should be entered in the lower right-hand corner
of the title page of the test leaflet, and should be followed by a
notation of the list used.
_In List A_
Scores from 0 to 20 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 21 to 35 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 36 to 45 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 46 to 50 indicate High Average or Superior Ability
_In List B_
Scores from 0 to 10 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 11 to 24 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 25 to 40 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 41 to 46 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 47 to 50 indicate Superior Ability
It is not to be expected that an individual’s score will be the same
exactly in List A as in List B or that his classification based on this
score will be just the same. The two lists are not perfectly adjusted in
this matter and if they were it would still be possible for a person of
“Average Ability” in List A to obtain “Low Average” scores in List B.
In public school work teachers will probably find List A more
instructive than List B, although List B will be almost as useful in
classifying pupils, especially when used in connection with the
following table of average results.
The average Second Grade pupil should spell 6 words in List B
The average Third Grade pupil should spell 14 words in List B
The average Fourth Grade pupil should spell 25 words in List B
The average Fifth Grade pupil should spell 33 words in List B
The average Sixth Grade pupil should spell 40 words in List B
The average Seventh Grade pupil should spell 44 words in List B
The average Eighth Grade pupil should spell 47 words in List B
MENTIMETER NO. 18
RANGE OF INFORMATION
_Character of the Test._
This test is a very entertaining and useful task for any group to work
upon. It is based upon the assumption that general intelligence will
result in the extension of one’s general knowledge and information about
affairs in many fields. The test requires, for its perfect solution,
knowledge of all sorts of facts in a great variety of fields.
The General Information test used in the Army Alpha series was very
frequently subject to criticism from officers and men because not a
sufficient number of questions was asked about matters which pertained
to their own field of work. The physicians, for example, expressed
regret that there were so few questions referring to medicine or
anatomy, while the engineers were just as much inclined to believe that
the test would have been improved had it included a larger number of
questions applying directly to their field. Of course the purpose of the
test is to avoid specializing in any particular field and to cover just
as wide a range as possible of general information.
An effort has been made to graduate the difficulty of the questions
asked in the Mentimeter form of this test, in order to obtain as much
additional merit as possible in the measurement of intellectual
capacity. This test will be useful in almost any educational or
industrial organization. It is probable, however, that its usefulness in
school will not be as great as in life outside of the schools. As little
of the material has been drawn from educational experiences as seemed
possible. A great deal of amusement can be obtained in a social group by
reading aloud the answers checked by members of the group.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
When the candidates are comfortably seated and provided with pencils,
the examiner should distribute the booklets to them with the request
that they be not opened until directions are given. When the information
blanks on the title page have been filled out satisfactorily, the
examiner should ask the candidates to read silently the directions
printed on the title page while he reads them aloud.
“On the inside of this booklet, when you are told to open it, you will
find 40 different sentences, at the end of each one of which there is a
list of words from which you are to choose the proper one to be the last
word. When you are told to turn the page, begin with the first sentence
and make a check mark (✓) in the little square in front of the best word
to use as an ending. Choose the word which will make the truest
sentence. Choose only one word for each ending. If you are not
absolutely certain which is the most truthful, make a guess and try the
next sentences. Ready! Go!”
(FOR TESTS SEE PAGES 204–207)
Make a check mark (✓) in the square in front of that one of the four
words which makes the best sentence and tells the most exact truth.
1. The JERSEY is a kind of ☐ COW ☐ DOG ☐ CAT ☐ HORSE
2. GOLF is played with ☐ CARDS ☐ DICE ☐ CLUBS ☐ BUTTONS
3. FATIMA is the name of a ☐ CIGAR ☐ CLOTH ☐ PIPE ☐ CIGARETTE
4. A SAW is used by a ☐ PAINTER ☐ PLUMBER ☐ CARPENTER ☐ PLASTERER
5. An EMERALD is ☐ GREEN ☐ RED ☐ BLUE ☐ BLACK
6. DETROIT is noted for its ☐ BREWING ☐ TEXTILES ☐ AUTOMOBILES ☐
PRINTING
7. A SPANIEL is a kind of ☐ SHEEP ☐ GOAT ☐ DOG ☐ MULE
8. MAUDE ADAMS is noted as a ☐ DANCER ☐ ACTRESS ☐ NURSE ☐ WRITER
9. CANDY is made by ☐ FORD ☐ HUYLER ☐ COLGATE ☐ MACMILLAN
10. The CIVIL WAR began in ☐ 1848 ☐ 1860 ☐ 1861 ☐ 1865
11. The SHERIFF is an officer of the ☐ CITY ☐ COUNTY ☐ STATE ☐ NATION
12. RUBENS is famous as a ☐ POET ☐ SCIENTIST ☐ CARTOONIST ☐ PAINTER
13. The HARLEY DAVIDSON is an ☐ AUTOMOBILE ☐ AËROPLANE ☐ MOTORCYCLE ☐
KITE
14. MEREDITH NICHOLSON is a ☐ HUMORIST ☐ NOVELIST ☐ POET ☐ MUSICIAN
15. BUILT LIKE A SKYSCRAPER is an “ad” for a ☐ BED ☐ TRUNK ☐
FILING-CASE ☐ STOVE
16. The KILOMETER measures ☐ ELECTRICITY ☐ DISTANCE ☐ GAS ☐ WATER
17. The TIBIA is in the ☐ LEG ☐ ARM ☐ CHEST ☐ HEAD
18. CORAL is found in ☐ TREES ☐ REEFS ☐ MOLLUSKS ☐ MINES
19. CLYSMIC is a kind of ☐ WINE ☐ CLOTH ☐ WATER ☐ METAL
20. UNCLE TOM’S CABIN was written by ☐ POE ☐ STOWE ☐ HAWTHORNE ☐ IRVING
21. JOHN HAY was a ☐ BANKER ☐ ENGINEER ☐ PREACHER ☐ STATESMAN
22. VASSAR COLLEGE is at ☐ POUGHKEEPSIE ☐ ITHACA ☐ BOSTON ☐ CAMBRIDGE
23. A SUBPOENA is used in ☐ INSURANCE ☐ MEDICINE ☐ LAW ☐ WAR
24. The number of a BANTU’S legs is ☐ ONE ☐ TWO ☐ FOUR ☐ EIGHT
25. SAMPSON BRASS is a character in ☐ SCOTT ☐ POE ☐ DICKENS ☐ BURNS
26. The HANDLEY-PAGE plane is made in ☐ FRANCE ☐ JAPAN ☐ ENGLAND ☐
AMERICA
27. The FALCON is an ☐ INSECT ☐ BIRD ☐ TOOL ☐ STONE
28. DRIBBLE is a term used in ☐ HUNTING ☐ THEOLOGY ☐ LAW ☐ ATHLETICS
29. PHEZ is a ☐ FABRIC ☐ DANCE ☐ GAME ☐ DRINK
30. HIGGINS manufactures ☐ FURNITURE ☐ BOOKS ☐ GLASSWARE ☐ INK
31. GUAVA is a kind of ☐ FISH ☐ BIRD ☐ ANIMAL ☐ FRUIT
32. An EQUILATERAL TRIANGLE is also ☐ RIGHT ☐ ISOSCELES ☐ SCALENE ☐
ACUTE
33. The BATTLE OF HASTINGS was in ☐ 1066 ☐ 1215 ☐ 1453 ☐ 1607
34. The AORTA originates in the ☐ HEAD ☐ FEET ☐ ALPS ☐ HEART
35. ENDIVE is a kind of ☐ STONE ☐ TOOL ☐ PLANT ☐ ANIMAL
36. SEOUL is in ☐ PERSIA ☐ KOREA ☐ INDIA ☐ SYRIA
37. JOSEPH PRIESTLEY discovered ☐ PONGEE ☐ AUSTRALIA ☐ OXYGEN ☐
PRINTING
38. The OBOE is used in ☐ MUSIC ☐ MEDICINE ☐ GEOLOGY ☐ RELIGION
39. CHALLIS is a kind of ☐ DISH ☐ DRINK ☐ DANCE ☐ CLOTH
40. A RHESUS is a kind of ☐ FISH ☐ BIRD ☐ ANIMAL ☐ REPTILE
At the end of four minutes the examiner should call “Stop! The time is
up!” He should use care to see that no answers are checked after the
signal to stop has been given.
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of sentences in which the right
conclusion has been checked. Credit should not be given for checking any
other word than the correct one. The use of the stencil, which is
provided with each package of test booklets, will save a great deal of
eye strain, mental fatigue, and time in marking these tests. This
stencil makes it possible for an ordinary clerk to score the 40
sentences accurately in a fraction of a minute.
The total score in the test should be entered at the lower right-hand
corner of the title page of the test booklet.
Scores from 0 to 3 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 4 to 10 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 11 to 23 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 24 to 30 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 31 to 40 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 19
READING VOCABULARY
_Character of the Test._
One of the most valuable measures of any individual or group of
individuals is the extent of the vocabulary found necessary for
communication and social activities. The Vocabulary test which is used
in connection with the Stanford Revision of the Binet test, and which is
quite similar to Mentimeter No. 14, has been shown to be unusually
reliable as a measure of general intelligence. The Reading-Vocabulary
test is probably not so widely usable as the Speaking-Vocabulary test,
but it can be applied as a group test and is therefore probably destined
to much more extensive usefulness than the individual test.
The Reading-Vocabulary test cannot, of course, be given to individuals
whose ability in reading is less than that ordinarily possessed by
third-grade public school children. The candidate must not only be able
to recognize the words that appear in the test and to know their
meanings, but he must also be able to classify them as belonging to a
particular group of objects. The method of the test requires the child
to make a check mark under the family name which would include the
particular word appearing on the vocabulary list. The instructions will
not be understood except by fairly intelligent persons, but for those
who can understand the instructions and who do their best on the test, a
very useful measure will be the result.
Although this test would seem at first glance to be particularly well
adapted to the selection of clerical workers, past experience has
convinced the writers that it is also useful in the selection of
organizers and directors of men as well as of organizers and directors
of thought. The relationship between the score in this test and the
general efficiency of an employee is unusually high.
Teachers will find the Reading Vocabulary a splendid index of the
advancement attained by new pupils coming into their rooms for the first
time or of the pupils who have been with them for some time. It is
useless to try to have pupils explain the meaning of magazine articles
or of selections from their geographies when they do not even understand
the words used in these discussions. It would be very much worth while
for a teacher, when she has employed this test, to compare the
difficulty of the words which cause the majority of her class to stumble
and fail with the difficulty of the words used in the ordinary
text-books of the school.
In any social group the classification of the forty words in this list
would be found rather interesting particularly when the errors made by
different members of the group were read aloud for the amusement of the
entire group. It should not be suggested, when the test is to be used in
this way, that there is any distinct relationship between achievement in
the test and achievement in life, else some of the group will be very
much disappointed in their scores.
Every effort should be made to have such a group feel that this was
simply a new type of puzzle. The results obtained under such conditions
should not be compared with the results obtained under the standard
conditions outlined below.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
The candidates to be examined should be comfortably seated and provided
with well-sharpened pencils. The examiner should then announce that the
booklets which he would distribute were not to be opened until
instructions to that effect were issued. Booklets should be distributed
unopened, one to each individual. Further directions should be issued as
soon as each candidate is supplied with the booklet, authorizing each
individual to write his name, his age, and such other information as is
desirable on the title page of the booklet. When these preliminaries
have been finished the examiner should say:
“When I ask you to open your booklet, you will find on the inside a list
of forty different words. The test is to determine how many of these
words you can read and identify. At the top of the page you will find
the words, Animal, Body, Bird, Colour, Clothes, Fish, Time, Tool, and
War. Each of the forty words to be identified is connected with or is a
kind of Animal, Body, Bird, Colour, or other kind of thing mentioned at
the top of the page. The page is ruled both ways. You are to look at
each word in the column on the left and to make a check mark at the
right of it, under the general word showing whether the word you are
marking is an Animal, a Body, a Bird, or something else. You will be
allowed exactly four minutes in which to check the words. Mark as many
of the words as you possibly can but be sure to check them correctly.
Ready! Go!”
Indicate the meaning of each of the forty words in the column on
the left by making a mark (✓) under the proper word.
CONNECTED WITH, OR A KIND OF
══════════╤══════╤════╤════╤══════╤═══════╤════╤════╤════╤═══╤══
│ANIMAL│BODY│BIRD│COLOUR│CLOTHES│FISH│TIME│TOOL│WAR│
──────────┼──────┼────┼────┼──────┼───────┼────┼────┼────┼───┼──
arm │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 1
cow │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 2
stocking │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 3
yellow │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 4
sparrow │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 5
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
shirt │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 6
calf │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 7
hammer │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 8
shin │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ 9
saw │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │10
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
wren │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │11
tan │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │12
cod │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │13
troops │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │14
year │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │15
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
conquer │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │16
stag │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │17
minnow │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │18
month │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │19
kimono │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │20
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
rampart │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │21
thigh │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │22
carmine │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │23
partridge │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │24
sturgeon │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │25
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
ratchet │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │26
interim │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │27
peccary │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │28
mauve │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │29
citadel │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │30
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
ephemeral │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │31
tartan │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │32
peritoneum│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │33
petrel │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │34
tench │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │35
│ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │
vomer │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │36
burgonet │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │37
burin │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │38
desman │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │39
tinamou │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │40
──────────┴──────┴────┴────┴──────┴───────┴────┴────┴────┴───┴──
At the end of exactly four minutes the examiner should call “Stop! Time
up! Close your papers and hand them to me.” All papers should be
collected at once.
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The total score in this test is the number of words correctly checked.
The work of checking the accuracy of marks made by the candidates is
very much simplified by the stencil which accompanies each package of
examination booklets. This stencil indicates exactly where a check
should be made in each case.
The total number of words correctly checked should be entered in the
lower right-hand corner of the title page of the examination booklet.
Scores from 0 to 8 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 9 to 14 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 15 to 24 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 25 to 29 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 30 to 40 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 20
READING: DIRECTIONS
_Character of the Test._
In the United States Army an officer frequently calls one of his
orderlies to his desk and issues orders somewhat as follows: “Present my
compliments to Lieutenant Smith and ask him to report at my office
to-morrow afternoon at 3.15 for his orders regarding the disposition of
garbage from the kitchen of Company E. Tell Corporal Jones in Barracks
17 to take a detail of four men and report at 5.00 o’clock this evening
to Sergeant Katz at the Second Battalion Officers’ Mess. Deliver this
package to the Adjutant of the Base Hospital and ask him to let me know
at once what should be done with the S. C. D. papers brought to me this
morning by Lieutenant Johnson.” The orderly must be able to carry out
these orders without their repetition or explanation. He should reply,
“Yes, sir,” by way of making it clear that he has understood and will
obey the directions, but should say nothing more.
The first test in the Alpha series used in the Army was intended to
measure how complicated a series of directions could be grasped by the
soldier and executed without errors. The Mentimeter test differs from
its military counterpart in that the directions are to be printed rather
than spoken, and in that the increasing difficulty arises from the
increasing complexity and obscurity of the words employed rather than
from the length of the directions to be held in mind. Whether these
changes will increase or decrease the value of the test cannot be stated
in advance of actual trials.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
As soon as the candidates have been provided with pencils, writing
surfaces, and comfortable seats, the examiner should distribute the
examination leaflets with the instruction that the blanks at the top of
the title page be filled out at once and that no one should turn the
leaflet until the direction to do so be given.
The test should be introduced by the request from the examiner that
everyone look at the directions on the title page while they are being
read aloud, “When you are told to turn your leaflet and go to work, you
will find on the other side very full directions as to what you are to
do. This is a test to find out how well you can understand directions,
so read them carefully and do exactly what they tell you to do. Ready!
Turn your leaflets and go to work.”
Exactly three minutes should be allowed for this work. At the end of
three minutes the examiner should call “Stop! The time is up! Turn over
your leaflet and hand it to me.” The test sheets should be collected at
once.
Do what it says.
1. Write your name on this line. ..........
2. Make a cross in the square. □
3. Make a cross in the circle and a dot in the square.
□ ○ ▭
4. Make a figure 1 under the letter M and a figure 2 under the letter
W.
A N W V H M Z U Y
5. If Decoration Day comes in the winter, write the word “No.” If not,
write the word “Yes.” ..........
6. Cross out the shortest word in this sentence and draw two lines
around the ninth word.
7. Look at the three blanks printed below. On the first blank write
the number of days in a week, on the second the number of months in
a year, and on the third the number of years in a century.
__________ ___________ __________
8. Write in the square on the left the right answer to the question:
“How many dimes make a dollar?” In the second square make a small
circle, and in the third triangle write the letter “C.”
□ △ □ △ □ △
9. If a peck is a greater magnitude than a bushel, cross out the word
“pint” unless a pint holds a smaller quantity than a quart, in which
case draw a line under the first word after bushel.
QUART BUSHEL PECK PINT
10. If a centimeter is more than half as long as an inch, write in the
square the number of inches in a yard. If a meter is more than three
feet, then write in the circle the number of meters in a kilometer.
○ □
11. If the oscillations of a pendulum were not facilitated by any
other force than gravity, what would be the effect upon their
amplitude? Check the best reply:
It would gradually be
☐ augmented.
☐ flagellated.
☐ diminished.
☐ swaged.
12. If ontogeny invariably ingeminates phylogeny, circumscribe the
word giving the location of the OURCQ; if not, underscore the word
that locates the MANDIBLE.
England Foot Utah Face Peru France Arm India
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score is the number of directions which were perfectly obeyed
without error. A failure to do any part of the thing directed or the
performance of extra things not asked should act to withhold credit for
an element. The total number of credits should be entered in the lower
right-hand corner of the title page of the test leaflet.
Scores from 0 to 2 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 3 to 5 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 6 to 8 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 9 to 10 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 11 to 12 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 21
READING: INTERPRETATION
_Character of the Test._
This test is a specially devised method of determining the ability of an
individual to secure from the printed page the ideas which are expressed
in sentences and paragraphs. It is probable that no single test of
reading can be devised which would measure all phases of the subject
equally well. This particular test attempts to measure the special
ability to interpret the meanings of sentences and paragraphs, although
it assumes that the words of which these larger units are composed are
recognized and understood by the reader.
The test is arranged with very simple sentences at the beginning
followed by more and more difficult sentences until at the last there
are statements the meaning of which very intellectual people might fail
to grasp at first sight. The questions which are asked regarding the
paragraphs likewise increase in difficulty so that the ultimate score
obtained by the candidate indicates rather distinctly how difficult are
the sentences or paragraphs he is able to understand and answer
questions about.
It is not probable that a great field of usefulness will be found for
this test in industrial life, although it might very well be used in any
establishment where the question of the degree of literacy in the
employee was of any importance. Tests fashioned on this order would be
tremendously valuable as a basis for classifying according to degree of
literacy the immigrants entering this country. Some such objective
measure as this is very much needed in the taking of the census. Where
at present almost any man or woman who can barely write his or her name
is entered on the census records as being able to read and write, the
crude examination for literacy which was employed by the psychologists
in the U. S. Army illustrates conclusively that about three times as
many people are unable to make any practical use of reading and writing
as the census figures would lead one to believe. It seems certain from
the facts obtained in the Army that at least one half of the population
of the United States would be unable to answer more than eight of the
sixteen questions included in this Mentimeter.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
It is particularly desirable that the room in which the test is given
should be well lighted and comfortable. Before distributing the tests
the usual caution, “Do not open this booklet until you are told to do
so,” should be given. One test booklet should then be given to each
candidate. As soon as all have received their blanks the examiner should
give the directions for filling out the information blanks on the title
page of the booklet. If very young children or very dull adults are
being examined it will be necessary to give specific directions about
these blanks. As soon as the blanks are filled the examiner should ask
the group to read silently the directions as he reads them aloud.
“When you are told to turn the page you will find on the inside three
paragraphs of printed matter. You are to read these paragraphs very
carefully and then, turning the page once more, you will find sixteen
questions about the three paragraphs you have just read. You are to
write the answers to the questions on the blank lines provided for the
purpose. You may turn back to the printed matter and look for the
answers as often as you need to, but you will only have ten minutes in
which to do your reading and the answering of the questions, so be sure
to answer all the questions you can. The first questions are easier than
those which follow, so answer them in the order in which they come.
“Remember that when I say ‘Go’ you are to begin reading and to read as
fast as you can, then to answer as many questions as you can on the next
page. Ready, Go.”
Exactly ten minutes after saying “Go” the examiner should call “Stop!
The time is up! Close your papers and hand them to me.” All papers
should be collected at once.
=FIND THE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS BY READING WHAT IT SAYS BELOW=
Boys like to run and play in the street. Girls like to stay in the house
and play with their dolls. As the girls grow older some of them learn to
cook and to help their mothers in the home, while others learn to work
in shops, mills, and offices. Some boys learn as they grow up to work on
the farms, while others obtain positions in stores, mines, and
factories. Even before they grow to be men and women, people differ in
the things they enjoy and in the things they are able to do.
It is fortunate that people are so different, for the world has all
sorts of work that must be done. Wheat, corn, and cattle must be raised
to supply the world with food. Cotton and wool must be made into
clothing to keep us warm, while wood and stone must be made into houses
to protect us from the rain and the snow. The work of the world requires
that some people be farmers, others manufacturers, others merchants,
others doctors, and so on. If we were all exactly alike in our tastes
and abilities, much of the world’s work would have to be done by persons
whose inclinations and capacities were in fields of endeavour entirely
different from those in which they would be required to labour. The fact
that people are so different makes possible an adjustment whereby the
ability and interest of the labourer may be in proportion to the
difficulty of the undertaking to which he is assigned.
Perhaps nothing makes a larger contribution to the happiness and
contentment of the world than this adjustment of the individual to his
vocation, and yet the problem of securing such an adjustment is
complicated by an enormous number of practical difficulties. One of the
most annoying elements in this problem of adjustment has been the
impossibility of making expeditiously an effectual classification of
candidates according to native capacity and endowment. Psychologists and
statisticians have, however, during the past decade evolved methods of
intellectual measurement which demonstrate the feasibility and economic
utility of the procedure and adumbrate to some extent the social
satisfactions that will ensue when the science of personnel engineering
has been consummated.
=WRITE THE ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS=
1. Who like to play in the street?
2. Where do little girls like to play?
3. Who learn to help their mothers?
4. Where do older boys find jobs?
5. In what two ways are people said to differ early in life?
6. What kinds of food are mentioned?
7. For what purpose do people work with wool and cotton?
8. What reason is given for building houses?
9. What is the topic of the first paragraph?
10. Why are differences between people spoken of in the second
paragraph as a wise provision of nature?
11. Check the right answer to this question: What does the second
paragraph suggest as the probable result upon the world’s work if
all people were just alike?
☐ It would not be done.
☐ Some of it would be improved.
☐ It would be well done.
☐ Much of it would be poorly done.
12. What characteristic of a task needs to correspond to the ability of
the worker?
13. What is suggested in the third paragraph as the probable result of
failing to place men in positions suited to their abilities?
14. It is quite common to determine a man’s ability by trying him out
in the job. What objection to this plan does any word in the
third paragraph suggest?
15. What procedure is said to be a practical means of saving time and
money in the selection of men for positions?
16. What is stated as a probable cause for general gratification at
some future time?
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of questions correctly answered. A
stencil is provided with each set of test booklets by the aid of which
it is fairly simple to mark an answer as right or wrong. An answer
should be considered wrong if it does not prove in itself that the
candidate had read the paragraph and obtained his information from it.
Any answer which is true in general life but which is not suggested by
the reading material on the previous page, should not be accepted.
Scores from 0 to 3 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 4 to 7 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 8 to 12 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 13 to 14 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 15 to 16 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 22
DISARRANGED SENTENCES
_Character of the Test._
Publishers and editors have for many years insisted upon having
intelligent compositors and type-setters. The printer’s pi is probably
as comprehensive a test of intelligence as any in the Mentimeter series.
In the Binet tests, one of the most interesting parts of the examination
is where children are asked to take certain words and rearrange them to
make a sentence. This is not exactly the same problem that the
type-setter faces with pi, but it is related to it. A disarranged
sentence test was used in the military examinations, but in order to
make the scoring simple and to include elements of intellectual capacity
other than ability to rearrange words, the soldiers were asked to check
the resulting sentence as “true” or “false.” Here again, without being
able to read a single word of the sentences which had been disarranged,
the soldiers would be able to make check marks in the correct place by
mere chance in half the cases. The method of scoring used in the Army
was calculated to overcome this difficulty, but even then the results
were not as reliable as they should be in the case of the Mentimeter
form presented below.
This test contains twenty-five sentences in each one of which the words
have been mixed up and disarranged so that a real amount of imagination
is necessary in order to guess what the sentence was in the first place.
The first sentence contains only three words and is very easily
arranged, while the later sentences are quite complicated and difficult.
In order to indicate what the true arrangement of the original sentence
was, each candidate is asked to place a period at the end of the word
which would be last if the sentence were properly arranged. The
resulting score may be taken as a fairly reliable index of ability to
“unscramble” words in sentences.
This test is very closely related to several of the other tests which
appear in the Mentimeter series in that it involves the ability to think
about words and the things for which words stand and the relationships
between these words and these things. The type of ability necessary for
this test is the sort which makes for success in education and the
learned professions, provided social and personal qualities are equal to
the intellectual attainments.
This test is also very entertaining as a parlour game and may be used
without offense to any one, if no mention is made of the relationship of
the results to mental ability.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
When the candidates have been seated and supplied with pencils, the
examiner should distribute copies of the test booklets with the
direction that none be opened until the instruction to do so is given.
After having the identifying information called for on the blanks of the
title page filled out by the candidates, the examiner should ask that
all candidates look carefully at their papers and read silently the
directions while he reads them aloud: “A sentence is a list of words
which says something that we can understand. When you open the papers,
you will find on the inside twenty-five sets of words which are not good
sentences as they stand, but which would make good sentences and would
sound sensible if they were changed around and put in a different order.
Look at the samples given below:
Sample A: KILL MICE CATS
Sample B: HAS BOOK IT PICTURES THE IN
“Sample A would make a good sentence if it were arranged in the order
‘CATS KILL MICE’ and therefore there should be a period after the word
‘mice’ to show the end of the sentence. In Sample B, we should have a
good sentence if the words were changed around to read: ‘THE BOOK HAS
PICTURES IN IT.’ The end of the sentence is ‘it,’ and therefore there
should be in sample B a period after the word ‘it.’
“When you turn the page, begin with the first set of words and study out
what the sentence would be, then put a period after the word which would
come last. Work right down the page until time is called. You will have
two minutes in which to put in the periods of as many sentences as
possible. Ready! Open your books! Go to work.”
Exactly two minutes after saying the word, “work,” the examiner should
call “Stop! Close your books! Give them to me.” The papers should be
collected at once.
Put a period at the end of the word which would come last if the words
on each line were arranged in a sentence.
1. IS WHITE SNOW 1
2. THE IS BIRD A ROBIN 2
3. WATER IN FISH SWIM 3
4. WHITE IN LIVE HOUSES PEOPLE 4
5. WITH TO ARE HEAR EARS OUR 5
6. THE IN SETS WEST SUN THE 6
7. GOOD FIGHT COUNTRY SOLDIERS THEIR FOR 7
8. WINTER THE COLDEST THE ARE MONTHS 8
9. IS A MILK AND FOOD HEALTHFUL GOOD 9
10. FROM EARTH DIAMONDS THE MINED ARE 10
11. FOOD VALUABLE POTATOES AS ARE A 11
12. AND ON GROW ORANGES TREES APPLES 12
13. FOUGHT FRANCE GERMANY AND AGAINST ENGLAND 13
14. ALWAYS DEEDS SHOULD BAD PUNISHED BE 14
15. SEVERAL OCEAN THE TAKES DAYS CROSS TO IT 15
16. FEW MAKING A IMPOSSIBLE AVOID IT TO IS MISTAKES 16
17. CAN NIGHTS ON BE MANY NOT THE SEEN MOON 17
18. CLOTHING USEFUL ARE FOR AND MAKING WOOL SILK 18
19. BY COMMONLY IS DEBATERS VERY METHOD IRONY A USED 19
20. EXTREMELY POISONOUS WARFARE MANY THE OF ARE IN USED GASES 20
21. UNFORTUNATE IT MANUAL CONSIDERED IS THAT SOMETIMES LABOUR
DEGRADING 21
22. CERTAIN THE ARE OF AND CRIMES NAMES BIGAMY LEGAL PERJURY 22
23. THE BETWEEN BY AND ARE DIFFERENCES STUDIED REASONING
PSYCHOLOGISTS HABIT BEING 23
24. MORE TRAITS DESIRABLE CHARACTER STEALING TIMIDITY OF AND ARE
MEEKNESS THAN 24
25. FACT CAN OBSERVED MAY KIND METHODS TO APPLIED EVERY STATISTICAL
THAT BE OF 25
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of sentences in which the period
has been correctly placed. If a mark appears to be accidental, it should
not be held against the credit of the candidate. The stencil provided
with the test leaflets simplifies very greatly the marking of this test.
The total number of points credit should be entered in the lower
right-hand corner of the title page of the test leaflet.
Scores of 0 to 3 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores of 4 to 7 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores of 8 to 16 indicate Average Ability
Scores of 17 to 20 indicate High Average Ability
Scores of 21 to 25 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 23
COMPLETION OF SENTENCES
_Character of the Test._
This is one of the most satisfactory group tests available for persons
with a reading knowledge of the English language. The test consists of a
series of sentences in each of which certain words have been omitted.
Dotted lines appear at those places where words are missing. The persons
being examined are asked to write on the dotted lines the words which
have been left out. The blanks left in the sentences are all of the same
length in order not to suggest the word to be used. The Mentimeter form
of the test contains 20 sentences, graduated in difficulty, from very
simple sentences which the average second-grade public school pupil can
complete easily, to very difficult sentences which the average college
student will be unable to complete satisfactorily within the time limit.
The ease with which one can understand what is to be done in this test
makes it particularly useful with children in the elementary schools,
and with adults of little education, as a measure of language ability
and general intellectual capacity in the manipulation of ideas and
words. Although it has been used by many teachers and supervisors as a
test of reading ability, it should probably be classified rather as an
intelligence test than as an educational measuring instrument. Teachers
do not and should not give direct instruction in the art of writing
missing words, for almost no situation will arise in practical life
where this sort of skill would be necessary.
It is very difficult to determine just what mental powers are tested by
the sentence completion test. Quite certainly the result obtained is a
complex effect. The person who is successful in this test must first of
all be able to read and understand the words which are actually present
in any sentence; he must have certain habits of associating other words
not present with those which do appear; from all of the words which come
to his mind as associates of the printed words, he must choose those
which fit most aptly the thought expressed; and from those words which
would fit into the thought of the sentence he must use good judgment in
selecting and writing the one which makes the smoothest and best
sentence. Lack of mental ability or of familiarity with the English
language will result in a poor showing at almost any step of the process
and in a low score in the test as a whole.
This test will probably be found most useful in selecting those
commercial and industrial workers who in the course of their work will
be called upon to make extensive use of language and printed symbols,
although it has been used successfully in many parts of the country in
the selection of salesmen, shop foremen, firemen, policemen, and other
non-clerical workers. The relationship between success in this test and
general success in life is extraordinarily close.
In the public schools this test is particularly valuable as a first
means of identifying pupils of unusual ability. Any child who makes five
or more points above the average for his grade should be further tested
with the Number Series Completion (Mentimeter No. 9) and the Analogies
tests (Mentimeter No. 24). If his scores in these tests are distinctly
above the average, he should be sent to the psychologist for special
examination, and if the psychologist’s findings agree with the findings
of these tests, as they usually will, then the child should be given
special opportunities for rapid progress and more varied activities in
school. Similarly, if a pupil obtains a score which is five or more
points below the average for his grade, he should be examined with the
Completion of Form Series test (Mentimeter No. 6) and the Pictorial
Absurdities test (Mentimeter No. 2), and if his scores in these tests
are also below the average, he should be referred to the psychologist
for special examination and recommendations as to type of instruction
best suited to his mental abilities.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
When all candidates have been seated and provided with convenient
writing materials, one copy of the examination booklet should be given
to each candidate. A general announcement should be given either before
distributing the booklets or while they are being distributed, to the
effect that no one is to open the booklet or turn it over until directed
to do so. The candidates may be instructed to fill out the blanks on the
title page if they are intelligent enough to understand what is wanted
on these blanks. If young children are being examined, the examiner
should state very clearly just what is to be done. For example: “Write
your name on the dotted line after the word ‘Name.’ Write your age at
your last birthday on the dotted line which follows the words ‘Age at
Last Birthday’.” Care should be taken that no child gets an unfair
advantage by opening his book and beginning work before the following
directions have been read aloud by the examiner while the children read
them silently from their booklets.
“When you open your booklets you will find on the inside twenty
sentences, from each of which one or more words have been left out. You
are to guess what words were left out and to write them on the dotted
lines which show where these words should be. Be very careful to write
the best word you can think of on each blank. Write only one word on
each of the blanks. Make each sentence sound just as sensible as you
can. You will have ten minutes in which to write. Work rapidly and
carefully. Ready! Go!”
Exactly ten minutes after saying, “Go!” the examiner should call “Stop!
Time up! Give me your papers!” All papers should be collected at once.
Write only one word on each blank.
1. The dog’s name .......... Jack.
2. Little children go .......... bed early.
3. The boy .......... two dollars to the Red Cross.
4. The little .......... likes .......... play with her dolls.
5. Puppies .......... kittens grow to be .......... and cats.
6. The best children .......... the most friends.
7. One should .......... be rude to his ..........
8. The poor .......... was hurt when he slipped and ..........on the
street.
9. It .......... amusing .......... watch men chasing their hats on
a..........day.
10. Almost any man .......... if he really tries.
11. The elephant is a favourite .......... with children because of
.......... .......... and shape.
12. The .......... who .......... a club and .......... a uniform was a
policeman.
13. .......... a hot day nothing .......... thirst so well as a
.......... of .......... water.
14. .......... is more than merely .......... a flag and cheering when
the soldiers .......... .......... home.
15. Anything .......... is not .......... doing .......... is hardly
worth .......... at all.
16. One .......... not .......... money to .......... worthy charity.
17. .......... learning a new operation it is sometimes .......... not
to .......... .......... all than to practise the .......... way
of .......... it.
18. Those things .......... .......... no fear .......... sometimes
.......... harmful.
19. .......... drink .......... one is .......... is a ..........
pleasure.
20. .......... one .......... their presence .......... not, ..........
does .........., .......... a rule, .......... one’s guests.
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of sentences completed perfectly
within the time limit. No credit should be given for any sentences in
which the language is not smooth and meaningful, although errors in
spelling should not be counted against the person tested. This test is
intended to measure ability to complete sentences rather than ability to
spell words. No credit should be allowed unless every blank in a
sentence has been properly filled. One error in any one of the blanks
will leave the sentence imperfectly done and therefore without credit.
The stencil for scoring this test is less convenient than those
furnished with the majority of the Mentimeter tests. The reason for this
is the very great possibility of new variations appearing, even after
long experience in scoring the test. When more than one blank appears in
a single sentence the question as to whether or not a certain word is
proper for one of the later blanks depends entirely upon what choice was
made in the first blank. It should be held in mind by those who score
this test that the stencil does not give all of the possibilities, but
only suggests the type of completion which should be considered correct.
Anything that is as good as the completions appearing in the stencil
should be given full credit, while anything which is not as perfect
should be considered incorrect.
The final score obtained by counting the number of sentences perfectly
completed should be entered in the lower right-hand corner of the title
page of the booklet.
Scores from 0 to 5 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 6 to 9 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 10 to 16 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 17 to 18 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 19 to 20 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 24
ANALOGIES OR MIXED RELATIONS TEST
_Character of the Test._
The Analogies test lends itself easily to wholesale or group
administration. It cannot be used with illiterate candidates but
requires at least three years of educational background in order to give
a satisfactory index of mental capacity. The test blank presents the
tasks to be done in a manner so easily understood that little
explanation needs to be given orally by the examiner. It is also simple
in its method of scoring and yields a very reliable measure of an
individual’s clearness of thought about the relations of words and the
things for which the words stand.
Psychologists have used various forms of this test for many years and
have found it unusually accurate and reliable. It is considered
particularly valuable as a test of ability to adapt one’s self quickly
and accurately to new situations, which is undoubtedly one of the most
important elements in what is called “general intelligence.”
The method of the Analogies test is known as the “controlled-association
method.” Two words are presented having a very definite relation to each
other. A third word is then presented, followed by a blank space upon
which the candidate is to write a fourth word which will have the same
relation to the third word as the second word has to the first. The
relation between the first two or key words in each element of the test
differs from the relation between the key words of the previous element,
resulting in a constant change in the problem to be solved, which
requires quick readjustments in the candidate’s thought processes. The
candidate must be intellectually alert to discover the true relation
between the key words, his mind must be well supplied by experience with
words and ideas associated with the third word, and then he must use
good judgment and discrimination in the selection of that word which has
the _proper_ relation to the third word. A slip at any of these points
will mean failure. The value of the present series as a test of
intelligence is greatly increased by the fact that there is a
progressive increase in the difficulty of the elements presented, so
that the _number_ of elements correctly supplied has a very definite
relation to the _difficulty_ of the tasks the candidate can do.
Because of its relation to intelligence, the Analogies test will be
found very useful in the classification of candidates for clerical and
administrative positions in industry. Any group of tests selected for
classifying such employees should contain a list of graded analogies
such as that here supplied. Unless a candidate makes a record of at
least fifteen correct responses out of a possible thirty in the three
minutes’ time allowed in the test, he should be studied very carefully
before being entrusted with a task where ideas and symbols must be
handled quickly. Such a man might be able to work with things and
people, but he will probably be found slow in his grasp of abstract
principles and ideas.
In the schoolroom, the Analogies test may be used with some confidence
in classifying pupils for instruction. If it is found that a pupil is
far below his grade in ability in this test, and if he is also found
below his grade in the Completion of Sentences and Number series, it may
be assumed that the pupil will probably not succeed in the abstract work
of the school. Such pupils should be sent to the clinical psychologist
for special study, and a special type of training should be prescribed
upon the basis of the psychologist’s diagnosis. In the same manner,
pupils unusually brilliant in the handling of abstractions may be
located through the use of this and other tests of this nature.
The Analogies test is also a very entertaining type of parlour
amusement, especially when some of the absurd answers are read aloud for
the amusement of the group. When it is so used, however, no suggestion
should be made of the relation between ability in this test and general
intellectual quickness, lest someone should take offence. If the test is
given without the exact and formal directions, and if the spirit of fun
is introduced by the examiner, certain clever persons are quite certain
to write words which have very amusing associations with the words which
serve to set the problems in the various lines.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
All candidates should be furnished with pencils and writing
surfaces—either tables, chair-arms, or writing boards. One test booklet
should be supplied to each candidate, the blank being presented unopened
and with the title page up. The examiner should announce clearly as the
papers are distributed that, “The booklets are not to be turned over or
opened up until the signal is given to do so.” Candidates should also be
directed to sign their names, ages, group numbers, and locations on the
blank spaces provided on the cover of the booklet for this information.
When each candidate has properly filled out the information blanks on
the outside of the test booklet the examiner should speak as follows:
“This test is to find out how carefully and how rapidly you can think
about the relations of words and of the things for which these words
stand. Now look at your papers and read silently the directions, while I
read them aloud.
“When you are told to open your booklets, you will find on the inside
thirty lines of words—three words and a blank space being printed on
each line. In each of these lines, the first two words are related to
each other in a certain way which you are to study out. You are then to
write, in the blank space at the end, a fourth word which has the same
relation to the third word as the second word has to the first.
“Look, for example, at the first sample, in which the second word is the
plural of the first. Boxes means more than one Box, so the fourth word
should be Cats, meaning more than one Cat.
Write a fourth word which fits the
third in the same way the second
word fits the first.
1st Sample: BOX Boxes CAT ........
2nd Sample: DOWN Up IN ........
3rd Sample: EYES See EARS ........
“In the second sample, the fourth word should be Out, because Up is the
opposite of Down, and Out is the opposite of In.
“In the third sample, the fourth word should be Hear, for See tells what
Eyes are used for, and Hear tells for what Ears are used.
“You will have three minutes in which to write the fourth word in the
thirty lines on the next pages. Work as rapidly as you can without
making mistakes. Be sure to stop as soon as I call ‘Time up.’ Now turn
your papers and begin.”
Allow exactly three minutes (180 seconds) after saying “Begin,” and then
say “Stop! Time up! Turn your papers over.” All papers should be
collected at once to avoid corrections with resulting unfairness.
Write a fourth word which fits the third in
the same way the second word fits the first.
FIRST SECOND THIRD FOURTH
1. CAR Cars DOG ........ 1
2. FRONT Back NEAR ........ 2
3. HAT Head SHOE ........ 3
4. BOY Boy’s CAT ........ 4
5. ICE Cold FIRE ........ 5
6. BIRD Flies FISH ........ 6
7. MEN’S Man HENS’ ........ 7
8. BREAD Eat WATER ........ 8
9. ACTOR Theater TEACHER ........ 9
10. HE Him SHE ........ 10
11. PRIEST Religion ATTORNEY ........ 11
12. CAT Kitten HORSE ........ 12
13. DO Did BUY ........ 13
14. SCULPTOR Statue PAINTER ........ 14
15. BOY Man LAMB ........ 15
16. TOP Bottom CEILING ........ 16
17. WATER Fish AIR ........ 17
18. TRAIN Engineer AUTOMOBILE ........ 18
19. STAND Stood BE ........ 19
20. CATTLE Herd FISH ........ 20
21. WORK Day SLEEP ........ 21
22. THREW Thrown ROSE ........ 22
23. GOOSE Gander DUCK ........ 23
24. BANTAM Fowl MERINO ........ 24
25. GIRL Girls’ WOMAN ........ 25
26. WRONG Right STEAL ........ 26
27. FOOT Feet AVIATRIX ........ 27
28. HOUSES House CRITERIA ........ 28
29. QUEEN Queens’ JONES ........ 29
30. PESSIMIST Optimist EXOTERIC ........ 30
_Scoring the Test._
The Analogies test is scored according to the number of lines in which
the candidate has written the proper fourth word. With each package of
test blanks a stencil is furnished by means of which any one may score
the results very quickly. The stencil is to be placed along the page
next to the written column of words, and where the written word on the
page corresponds to the word or words printed on the stencil at that
level the written word stands as correct. Where there is disagreement
between the written word and the words printed at that level on the
stencil, a diagonal line (/) should be drawn through the number at the
end of the written word to indicate that an error has been made. Where
no word has been written on the blank, the number at the end of the
blank may be circled to indicate the omission.
The final score should be written in the lower right-hand corner of the
front cover of the test booklet. This final score is found by adding all
the correct responses (the numbers not crossed out or circled). Since
there are thirty lines, the maximum score possible is 30.
Scores from 0 to 5 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 6 to 12 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 13 to 23 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 24 to 26 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 27 to 30 indicate Superior Ability
About 30 per cent. of a group of college graduates should be expected to
secure Superior ratings, about 50 per cent. High Average, and the
remainder only Average ratings.
Mentimeter No. 25
HANDWRITING
_Character of the Test._
Many pseudo-scientists have claimed the ability to interpret character
and intelligence, and the past and the future, by means of an
individual’s handwriting. The present test has no relation to such
misguided efforts. This test is designed to measure accurately the speed
at which one can write, and to indicate the general quality of the
product produced at that speed.
Large groups of individuals may be examined at the same time by this
test, although it may be used as a test of an individual if necessary.
It is quite certain that an individual who works at such a task as that
set by this test in the company of other people will succeed better than
if he works at it alone. The results obtained when an individual is
tested alone are not exactly comparable, therefore, to the results which
would be attained if he were tested in a group.
The general quality of one’s handwriting has very little relation to his
general intellectual ability. Some of our most intelligent men write a
hand which is hardly legible, and the authors have seen some beautiful
handwriting produced by feeble-minded children. It is, nevertheless,
worth while for many employers to have in their records of the
qualifications of employees an exact record of the speed and quality of
each employee’s handwriting. This record may never be of any use, but,
on the other hand, it may at some time be of very great value
unexpectedly.
In the public schools, measurements of handwriting quality may be
crudely done with the present Mentimeter or more accurately done with
the scales of Thorndike, Ayres, or Starch. It seems probable that by the
time children have attained the “Average” quality contained in the
Mentimeter and are writing at “High Average” speed it would be worth
while for the teacher to excuse them from further drill as long as they
maintain that standard in their every-day work. It will hardly be found
necessary in practical life outside the school to write a better quality
than “Average” except in a very few specialized occupations.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
Candidates should be supplied with pen and ink and seated at a
convenient table or desk. The test leaflet should then be passed out and
explanations given of how to fill out the blanks on the title page. When
all of the identifying information has been entered on the title page,
the examiner should direct as follows: “This test is intended to
discover how rapidly and how well you can write with pen and ink. Turn
your papers over and notice at the top of the page the two printed
lines:
“Mary had a little lamb
Its fleece was white as snow.
“When you are told to begin you are to copy these two lines over and
over again just as many times as you possibly can before I call ‘Stop.’
Try to use your very best handwriting every time you copy. I shall allow
you two minutes in which to write. As soon as I say ‘Stop,’ I want you
to hold your pen up so that I can see you have obeyed the command.
Remember that when I say ‘Write,’ you are to copy the two lines over and
over again as rapidly and as well as you can. Ready, Write.” Exactly two
minutes (120 seconds) after saying “Write” the examiner should call
“Stop! Hold up your pens! Now lay them down on the table. Blot your
paper and hand it to me.” All papers should be collected at once to
avoid unfair work.
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
Each handwriting leaflet is to receive two scores, one for quality of
handwriting and one for speed. The score in speed should be obtained by
counting the number of letters written and dividing the result by two,
this will be simplified somewhat by remembering that the sentence, “Mary
had a little lamb” contains 18 letters and that the sentence, “Its
fleece was white as snow” contains 23 letters, which makes 41 letters
for each time the two sentences are repeated. The score in speed thus
obtained by taking half of the total number of letters written should be
entered on the proper blank at the lower right-hand corner of the title
page.
Speed score from 0 to 30 indicates Inferior Ability
Speed score from 31 to 50 indicates Low Average Ability
Speed score from 51 to 75 indicates Average Ability
Speed score from 76 to 90 indicates High Average Ability
Speed score from 91 and upward indicates Superior Ability
The score in quality of handwriting is to be determined by comparing the
candidate’s handwriting with samples on the Mentimeter for Handwriting
Quality:[3] a grade of “A,” indicating superior quality, should be
assigned if the candidate’s handwriting is as smooth, beautiful and
legible as the sample marked “A,” or if the quality more nearly
approaches the quality of sample “A” than the quality of sample “B.” The
sample should be given a rating as quality “C” if its general beauty and
quality be nearer to the printed sample “C” than to printed samples “B”
or “D.” =Give to any sample that grade which indicates the printed
quality that most nearly equals it in beauty, legibility, and general
merit.=
Footnote 3:
The samples in the Mentimeter are selected from the Thorndike list and
have the following values on the Thorndike Scale E, “Inferior” equals
8.0; D, “Low Average” equals 10.5; C, “Average” equals 12.2; B, “High
Average” equals 13.4; A, “Superior” equals 16.
In making a record of any candidate’s performance in the handwriting
test both quality and speed should be recorded. “C–71” would mean that
in the Mentimeter test this individual had written quality “C” at a
speed of 71 letters per minute. The speed and quality together are
necessary in order to know the entire truth about one’s handwriting, for
many people produce a beautiful handwriting by taking great pains and
wasting much time.
[Illustration: Mentimeter for Handwriting Quality]
MENTIMETER NO. 26
ENGLISH COMPOSITION
_Character of the Test._
Only persons who have had the benefit of a fairly complete elementary
school education will succeed very emphatically in this test of ability
to write a composition in the English language. The test may be given to
large numbers of people at the same time just as readily as to a single
individual. The result of the test is, however, a very good index of the
general intellectual capacity of the individual, unless he is
handicapped by lack of familiarity with the language.
The most common use which most of us have for ability at composing in
English is in writing letters to our friends or to those with whom our
business brings us into contact. For this reason, the test consists in
the statement of a condition under which any one of us might find
ourselves and in asking the candidates to write an appropriate letter.
The result is graded into one of five groups, according to its general
quality.
The problem presented to the candidate is fairly complex. First of all,
he must be able to understand the situation described by the examiner
and to appreciate what type of letter would be most appropriate under
these circumstances. He must also be able to write the words which would
express his feelings in the described situation, and in order to make
his feelings clearly understood he should be able to punctuate and
organize his sentences effectively. The result is a useful index of the
general efficiency and maturity of any candidate who has been taught to
write in English.
In industrial life there are many types of positions for which persons
whose ability to compose written English need not be better than
“Inferior,” although there are other positions which would require “High
Average” quality of English composition. The advantage of the following
Mentimeter lies in the possibility it gives of identifying more exactly
just what quality is meant when one speaks of “High Average” composing
ability.
In the public schools the Mentimeter will serve as a crude basis for
classifying the general quality of the compositions written, but for
highly scientific work it would be desirable to secure some form of the
“Hillegas Scale” which is much more exact and well standardized. A very
entertaining evening could be enjoyed by giving this test to a group of
people gathered together for social purposes, especially with a group
which had tired of the ordinary means of entertainment. Reading the
products written should in such a case be entrusted to some one or two
individuals of good reading ability and wise judgment. Frequently the
results would contain very amusing paragraphs.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
Each candidate should be comfortably seated and provided with writing
material before any instructions are given. It will usually be well to
furnish paper on which there are lines, as many people find the lack of
ruling a distinct hindrance to the flow of their thoughts. When everyone
is ready, the examiner should direct that each individual write his or
her name, age, address, and any other information which seems desirable.
The following directions should then be given:
“This test is planned to discover how well you can use the English
language in expressing your thoughts and feelings. Imagine yourself
employed in a large business house in the city. While you are waiting to
find out whether or not you are going to be one of those fortunate
people who will be granted a vacation, imagine that you receive a letter
from a friend in the country asking you to spend your vacation on the
farm. Since you do not know that you will have a vacation, it is
impossible for you to accept the invitation at once, but it is necessary
for you to acknowledge the fact that you have received the invitation.
Write a letter to this friend in the country saying that the invitation
has been received and that you appreciate it. You need not make the
letter long, but write it just as well as you can.” At least twenty
minutes should be allowed for the writing of this letter. At the end of
twenty minutes all papers should be collected, whether the letters are
complete or not—enough will have been written to demonstrate the quality
of letter each can write.
MENTIMETER FOR QUALITY OF ENGLISH COMPOSITIONS
Quality: Superior, A.
MY DEAR JEAN:—
Your letter made me peculiarly happy this morning. The joys of last
Summer so wrapt themselves about me that, instead of hurrying down
Broadway to business, I was sitting on the veranda with you and little
Bobby at sunset watching the Hudson creep slowly in and out among the
hills. One by one the little villages dropt out of sight as the fog came
down from the Catskills, crept across the river, up through the woods
and finally nestled among the neighbour’s fir trees. Black crows cawed
as they flew lazily over the house, and the little birds came up close
to the edge of the woods to sleep in the barberry bushes. Bobby said
they came up close so we would hear if anything got them. The little
dear! Tell him I have saved a number of stories for him—two new ones
about light-houses.
I am rather doubtful as to whether I will be granted a vacation this
year. Business conditions are so far from normal, and we are very short
of help. However, I may be lucky, and if I am nothing would make me so
happy as to spend every day of it with you and little Bobby. I expect to
know definitely by the end of next week concerning my vacation and shall
write to you immediately.
I thank you more than I can say, Jean. Your invitation has made me very
happy.
Sincerely,
Quality: High Average, B.
MY DEAR MR. SMITH:
I appreciate your invitation expressing the desire to entertain me again
at your farm during my Summer vacation. I should enjoy coming back this
Summer, although I have occasionally been afraid that I was something of
a hindrance to your work. It is such a change for me to get to the
country that I shall certainly come if possible.
I shall let you know just as soon as I find out whether or not I am to
have a vacation this Summer. Thanking you for your kind invitation, I
remain,
Sincerely yours,
Quality: Average, C.
MY DEAR FRIEND:
Your letter of June 10th has been received, and in reply I would say
that I am not sure that I will get my vacation this summer. The boss
hasn’t said anything about vacations yet. I would like to come just as
much as you would like to have me, but I can’t promise until the old man
lets us know. I’ll write to you just as soon as I learn what to expect.
Thanks for your invitation.
Yours,
Quality: Low Average, D.
DEAR FRIEND
I got your letter alright, but it don’t look like I was going to get any
vacation this summer. We have all been tryin to hint to the boss about
how tired we all was but he has to be knocked down to take a hint I
guess.
I sure do hope he lets me off. You know how I’d like to come and I want
you to keep plenty of green truck growin in the gardin for me to eat.
Yours truly
Quality: Inferior, E.
DER FREND
id lik to cum out to yer farm ef the flise ant tou bad but i got to wate
the boss hant told us we can tak ar vakashins yit hous the frut & burys
this yere il cum ef i can
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
Each composition should be compared with the five contained on the
Mentimeter for English Composition quality. Give the written composition
a mark as “Average,” “Superior,” or “Low Average” according to its
quality. If a composition seems to be better than the one on the
Mentimeter which is called “Average” but poorer than the one called
“High Average,” try to decide which it is nearer in general quality.
“Average,” therefore, will mean that a composition is nearer in its
quality to the sample printed as “Average” than it is to the sample
printed as “High Average,” or to the sample printed as “Low Average.”
Any composition which is distinctly better than “Superior” should be
rated as “Superior,” and any composition which seems poorer than the one
printed as “Inferior” should be rated as “Inferior.”
MENTIMETER NO. 27
POETIC DISCRIMINATION TEST
_Character of the Test._
Differences in the intellectual abilities of people manifest themselves
in three fairly distinct ways: first, in ability to accomplish results;
second, in ability to think clearly about the situations in which they
find themselves; and third, in the feelings which these situations
arouse. Practically all of the tests now available for measuring
educational achievements or intellectual ability are concerned primarily
with the ability to do or to think about situations. This member of the
Mentimeter family is concerned chiefly with the way in which one _feels_
about different types and qualities of poetic expression. The test
cannot be given to illiterate or foreign language speaking persons. It
is planned as a group test of persons who read and understand English
readily.
The test consists of six short stanzas selected from recognized English
poets.[4] Two false versions of each stanza have been prepared and
appear on the same page with the original. The group being examined are
asked to read each version, trying to think how it would sound if read
aloud, and to choose the one which they like “best” and the one which
they consider the “poorest” poetry. The differences between the false
versions and the true in the first set are smaller than the differences
found in the succeeding ones. The score obtained by any individual
therefore depends upon how small a difference he can notice.
Footnote 4:
The Best Version in each set is selected from the writings of
recognized poets:
Set I William Wordsworth in “She Dwelt Among.”
Set II Agnes Millay in “My Tavern.”
Set III Percy Bysshe Shelley in “To——”
Set IV Algernon Charles Swinburne in “Étude Réaliste.”
Set V Edward Coote Pinkney in “Health.”
Set VI James Thompson in “Sunday Up the River.”
Mr. Earl Hudelson contributed the Middle and Poorest Versions for Set
II. One of the present authors is responsible for the mutilated forms
of the other selections. A much more scientific and accurate
instrument for measuring poetic discrimination is being developed by
Prof. Allan Abbott and one of the present authors.
Although this test is very interesting and entertaining its reliability
is not determined and its usefulness is as yet questionable. It
certainly would have no great value in industrial life and only small
importance in public school work; its chief service will be
entertainment in the home and at social gatherings. It is surprising how
poor the judgment of many people is regarding the quality of poetic
products. It would be interesting at social affairs at which this test
is used to make a tabulation of just how many of those present have
selected each different version.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
The examiner should distribute the examination booklets and writing
materials with the following instruction:
“Do not open this booklet until I tell you to do so. Notice on the title
page a number of blanks for your name, your age, and the like. Fill out
these blanks at once but do not look inside the booklet.”
As soon as the blanks on the title page have been filled the examiner
should ask the candidates to read carefully the directions while he
reads them aloud.
“When you open your book you will find six different sets of poetic
stanzas. Each set appears in three different versions. You are to read
each version carefully, trying to think how it would sound if read
aloud, and then to record on the blank space provided for it which
version you think is ‘best,’ which version you think is ‘poorest’ and
which version you think is of ‘middle’ value. If you decide that version
Y is best then write ‘Y’ after the word Best. If Z is the worst, then
write ‘Z’ after the word Poorest, and ‘X’ after the word Middle.
“Think carefully about each set and choose the one which you really
think is the best poetry. You will be allowed fifteen minutes in which
to read and decide about the six sets. Begin with set No. I and take
them in order. Ready! Open your papers and begin work.”
Exactly fifteen minutes after saying “Begin” the examiner should call,
“Stop! The time is up. Let me have your papers.” All papers should be
taken up at once.
SET I
Read each version carefully and try to think how it would sound if it
were read aloud.
Which version is the poorest poetry, and which is the best poetry?
=Best= ........
=Middle= ........
=Poorest= ........
_Version X_
Once there was a violet,
Growing near a stone;
It reminded me of a star
All alone in the sky.
_Version Y_
A violet grew by a mossy stone,
Where it was hard to see;
It looked like a star, for it shone
As pretty as could be.
_Version Z_
A violet by a mossy stone
Half hidden from the eye!
—Fair as a star, when only one
Is shining in the sky.
SET II
Read each version carefully and try to think how it would sound if it
were read aloud.
Which version is the poorest poetry, and which is the best poetry?
I’ll keep a little tavern
Below the high hill’s crest,
Wherein all gray-eyed people
May set them down and rest.
=Best= ........
=Middle= ........
=Poorest= ........
_Version X_
There shall be plates a-plenty,
And mugs to melt the chill
Of all the gray-eyed people
Who happen up the hill.
Ay, ’tis a curious fancy—
But all the good I know
Was taught me out of two gray eyes
A long time ago.
_Version Y_
There shall be dishes a-plenty,
And something to take off the chill
Of as many gray-eyed people
As are willing to climb the hill.
’Tis truly an odd fancy,
But everything good that I know
I learned out of two gray eyes
Many years ago.
_Version Z_
And when those gray-eyed people
Have entered in the gate,
We’ll pass the cheering mug around,
And also pass the plate.
It may sound rather funny,
But I was helped a lot
By someone who had gray eyes
When I was a little tot.
SET III
Read each version carefully and try to think how it would sound if it
were read aloud.
Which version is the poorest poetry, and which is the best poetry?
=Best= ....
=Middle= ....
=Poorest= ....
_Version X_
Music, when faint voices cease,
Continues in the memory—
Odours, when the violets fade,
Linger where their smell was made.
_Version Y_
Music lives in the memory,
Though the songster’s voice is done.
Sweet odours haunt the nose,
Though the violets that waked them are gone.
_Version Z_
Music, when soft voices die,
Vibrates in the memory—
Odours, when sweet violets sicken,
Live within the sense they quicken.
SET IV
Read each version carefully and try to think how it would sound if it
were read aloud.
Which version is the poorest poetry, and which is the best poetry?
=Best= ....
=Middle= ....
=Poorest= ....
_Version X_
No rosebud yet has e’er been seen,
Or flower in tropic lands,
To equal these, more beauteous e’en—
A baby’s hands.
_Version Y_
No rosebuds yet by dawn impearled
Match, even in loveliest lands,
The sweetest flowers in all the world—
A baby’s hands.
_Version Z_
No flower that grows,
In this or any other lands,
Compares with these, of daintiest rose—
A baby’s hands.
SET V
Read each version carefully and try to think how it would sound if it
were read aloud.
Which version is the poorest poetry, and which is the best poetry?
=Best= ....
=Middle= ....
=Poorest= ....
_Version X_
She speaks in tones of silver
With the voice of morning birds,
And every word that’s spoken of her
Echoes the music of her words.
_Version Y_
Her every tone is music’s own,
Like those of morning birds,
And something more than melody
Dwells ever in her words.
_Version Z_
Her tones are pure as silver chimes,
Her notes of birdlike beauty;
The words she speaks are at all times
Replete with life and beauty.
SET VI
Read each version carefully and try to think how it would sound if it
were read aloud.
Which version is the poorest poetry, and which is the best poetry?
=Best= ....
=Middle= ....
=Poorest= ....
_Version X_
A pipe and a book,
By the side of the brook,
With the world and her troubles forgot;
Just to read and to smoke,
Man forgets that he’s broke,—
And he finds, after all, that he’s not.
_Version Y_
Give a man a pipe he can smoke,
Give a man a book he can read;
And his home is bright with a calm delight,
Though the room be poor indeed.
_Version Z_
Let a man smoke,
And let a man read;
A pipe and a book in any old nook,
Lend peace which is wealth indeed.
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is determined in a somewhat more complicated
manner than is the case of any other of the Mentimeter series. Two
points are allowed each candidate for selecting as “Best” the original
version in any set and one point of credit is allowed for selecting the
poorest version as “Poorest.” It will be observed that the maximum score
on any set will be three points if the candidate arranges the versions
in the correct order, two points for selecting the best and one point
for selecting the worst. This makes the total maximum score, for six
sets, eighteen points.
The correct order of merit for each set of selections has been
determined by the judgment of approximately one hundred competent
judges. It is as follows:
SET I II III IV V VI
Best Z X Z Y Y Y
Middle Y Y X X Z Z
Poorest X Z Y Z X X
Write the final score obtained on the total of the six sets in the lower
right-hand corner of the title page of the examination booklet.
Scores from 0 to 3 indicate Very Inferior Ability
Scores from 4 to 7 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 8 to 11 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 12 to 14 indicate Superior Ability
Scores from 15 to 18 indicate Very Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 28
ARITHMETIC REASONING
_Character of the Test._
Teachers in schools have for a long while based a large part of their
judgment about any individual’s intellectual ability almost exclusively
upon the facility with which he solved arithmetic problems. Although the
ability to solve arithmetic problems has not been so frequently
recognized by investigators as an index of intellectual ability as has
ability in English, the teachers have found it much easier to estimate
intellectual ability upon the basis of showing in arithmetic, because it
is easier to judge of success in arithmetic than to judge of success in
English or other fields. A child can either solve the problem or else he
cannot. This objective nature of the subject of arithmetic has made it a
very important subject for the teacher in deciding upon promotions.
In practical life, arithmetic has been recognized as being of value
because the training in arithmetic was supposed to enable a student to
keep other people from cheating him in financial transactions. The
writers have known employers, on a small scale, who used certain tricky
arithmetic problems as the basis upon which to judge the intellectual
ability of prospective employees. Arithmetic problems have had and will
continue to have a distinctive place in the measurement of intellectual
capacity. It is probable that this place is well deserved.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
As soon as the candidates are seated, they should be supplied with
pencils, and the examination leaflet should be distributed with the
instruction that it is not to be turned over until special instructions
are given to that effect. In order to keep the candidates busy, the
examiner should ask them to fill out the blanks on the title page,
giving name, age, etc. When this information has been obtained, the
examiner should ask the candidates to read the directions silently while
he reads them aloud.
“On the other side of your papers you will find fourteen problems in
arithmetic. The first problems are simple and easy and the last ones are
more difficult. Begin with the first problem and solve as many as you
can in the four minutes after I say ‘Go!’ Write your answer at the
right-hand side of the questions on the dotted lines provided for the
answers. You may figure on the left-hand side or on the back of the
blank, if you wish. Solve as many problems as you can but be sure to get
the answer right. Ready! Go!”
Allowing exactly four minutes after saying the world “Go!” the examiner
should call “Stop! Turn your papers over. Give them to me.” All papers
should be collected immediately.
Write the answers to these problems on the blanks
Use the other side of the sheet to figure on
ANSWERS
1. How many are 5 men and 3 men? ..........
2. If you earn 2 dollars each day, how much do you earn in
6 days? ..........
3. If you have 10 nickels and lose 3 of them, how many
would you have after you found 2 of those that were
lost? ..........
4. How many benches will be needed in order to seat 20
people at a picnic, if 4 people sit on each bench? ..........
5. If James sold 3 Sunday papers for 5 cents each and then
bought an apple for 3 cents and an orange for 4 cents,
how much money had he left? ..........
6. How much change should you get from a dollar bill after
buying 39 cents’ worth of potatoes, 12 cents’ worth of
celery, and 26 cents’ worth of butter? ..........
7. If the price of lemons is 2 for 5 cents, how many can
you buy for 40 cents? ..........
8. If 29 merchants each bought 34 quarts of canned peas at
a wholesale house which had previously sold 2,387
quarts of the same brand, what was the total number of
quarts of this brand sold? ..........
9. If a wholesale merchant sold for $50 sugar which he had
purchased for $45 and thereby gained 1 cent per pound,
how many pounds of sugar were there? ..........
10. If four and a half pounds of fancy onions cost 27 cents,
how much will eight and a half pounds cost? ..........
11. Half of the people in a certain city block were born of
American parents, one eighth have American fathers and
foreign-born mothers, one eighth have American mothers
and foreign-born fathers, and both parents of the rest
are foreign-born. Of the 1,200 people living in this
block, how many have American fathers? ..........
12. A factory used 1,288 tons of coal in 23 days. During the
first ten days after a new addition to the factory was
opened, the average daily coal consumption was 78
tons. How many more tons were burned per day than
previously? ..........
13. A man spent for cigars and tobacco one sixteenth of his
wages for one day. He spent five times as much for
food, and half of what remained for repairs on his
watch, which left him a dollar and a half. How much
did he receive per day? ..........
14. At the middle of the month a merchant had $1,200 in the
bank. He deposited $30 each day for six days and on
Monday morning wrote checks for two thirds as much as
his deposits for the week. Tuesday afternoon he
deposited a check one fourth as large as his balance
in the bank. What was his balance on Tuesday night? ..........
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of problems with absolutely correct
answers. No credit should be given for partially correct answers. The
total score of the test should be entered on the blank at the lower
right-hand corner of the title page.
Scores from 0 to 3 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 4 to 7 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 8 to 10 indicate Average Ability
Scores of 11 and 12 indicate High Average Ability
Scores of 13 and 14 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 29
PRACTICAL JUDGMENT TEST
_Character of the Test._
This test is applicable to all persons who can read English as readily
as the average third-grade public school pupil. For persons of less
ability to read but of good ability to understand English, the questions
may be asked orally in an individual examination. The results obtained
when the questions are asked orally should not be compared with the
results obtained when the printed test booklets are employed in a group
examination. It is very strongly recommended that the test be used
primarily as a group test, according to the instructions given here, in
order that direct comparisons may be readily made between the results
obtained in various places by different examiners.
The present form of the test is a lengthening of the form used in the
Army Alpha series. Twenty-four elements are contained in the Mentimeter
form, while only sixteen elements were used in the Army form. Another
advantage of the present form over the military edition is the more
definite attempt at arrangement of the elements in the test according to
their difficulty. Having the series graduated in difficulty, from easy
to hard, is a distinct advantage, particularly with young or dull
persons, who quickly stop trying unless their first efforts are
successful.
The use of questions, in the answering of which thoughtful judgment
about every-day affairs would be required, has always been a favourite
method of discovering the degree of intelligence possessed by a child or
by an adult. Binet, the French psychologist who developed the mental age
scale for testing feeble-minded subjects, included in his series a
number of test questions of this type. The Stanford Revision of the
Binet tests includes three such questions in the Eight-Year-Old series,
and three other more difficult questions in the Ten-Year-Old list.
The chief modification of the method in adapting it for group testing
was the supplying of three or four answers from which the subject should
select the correct reply. This change makes the markings of the results
quite simple, but it takes from the test itself some of its virtue as a
measure of the richness of ideas possessed by the person tested. Instead
of having to think out an appropriate answer, one needs only to read the
answers printed and to use good judgment in selecting the one to be
checked as “best.”
The Mentimeter form of the test, although superior in its length and
arrangement to the military version, is nevertheless not yet ideal as an
intelligence test. The simplest questions and answers that can be
printed are too difficult for first- and second-grade school pupils to
read and understand, while the most difficult questions and answers one
could devise would not be general enough in their subject matter to be
included in a “general intelligence” test. In other words, the range of
ability that this test will measure is not so wide as that measured by
some other Mentimeter tests, with the result that the speed of reading
and of making judgments plays a larger part in determining the final
score than it would in a perfect intelligence test. In spite of the
large part played by speed, the test is a useful index of _ability to
learn_ in certain lines of work where rapid decisions on practical
problems are necessary.
It is probable that the Practical Judgment test will be found more
useful in the measurement of intelligence among school children and
clerical workers than in the classification of general employees,
although the reader may find unexpected relationships between this test
and certain routine occupations. Reliance should be placed upon it only
after it has demonstrated in actual trials that it has a close
relationship to the special ability desired.
Its use in social gatherings as a form of entertainment will be greatest
where each person marks the papers of some other member of the group and
reports the judgments found incorrect. Most persons are surprised, when
they come to look over their booklets carefully, to find how many
foolish errors have crept into their records while working at high
speed. In order to increase the number of imperfect records and thereby
add somewhat to the amusement of the group, the examiner may announce
and use two minutes as the time limit, and urge everyone to try to work
all of the 24 questions in that time. The general confusion will be
increased if the examiner signals the end of the first minute and the
end of a minute and a half. Under such conditions, of course, no serious
use can be made of the results obtained. The score on the test is not to
be used seriously except where the instructions and procedure are
exactly as specified below.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
Candidates should be comfortably seated at a table or supplied with a
convenient writing board. A well-sharpened pencil (or pen with ink)
should be in the hands of each candidate before any blanks are passed
out. The test booklets should then be distributed, the announcement
being clearly made beforehand that “no one will be allowed to open the
booklet or turn it over until the signal is given to do so.”
When each candidate has been supplied with a test booklet, title page
up, the examiner should say: “Now, write your name on the blank
following the word Name.” After a pause long enough to allow this
direction to be carried out, the examiner should continue with a similar
instruction for each of the other pieces of information required by the
title page blanks. “Age at last birthday” should be insisted upon, if
there is any question of reporting age in any other way. Group numbers
and locations may be left blank where only small numbers of persons are
being tested and where there is no probability of getting the papers
from one place mixed with those from some other place. The name of the
school, factory, or city will usually be sufficient for the blank headed
“Location.”
After the necessary identifying information has been entered at the top
of the title page, the examiner should ask the candidates to read
silently the directions while he reads them aloud. He should then read
slowly and distinctly:
“The following pages contain 24 questions and 4 answers to each
question. You are to vote for the best answer to each question by making
a check mark (✓) in the square that stands before it. The questions are
not hard, and you will be allowed 3 minutes to check the best answers,
but be sure to work carefully and rapidly. Vote only for the one best
answer to each question. Turn the page! Go!”
At the end of exactly 3 minutes after saying “Go!” the examiner should
call “Stop! Close your booklets and pass them to me.” All papers should
be collected at once in order to avoid unfairness and cheating.
=MARK (✓) THE SQUARE IN FRONT OF THE BEST ANSWER TO EACH QUESTION=
1. What should one do when he is thirsty?
☐ Cry until someone gives him a drink.
☐ Eat a piece of salt pork.
☐ Get a drink of water.
☐ Read a Coca Cola advertisement.
2. Why do children like to eat candy?
☐ It makes them fat.
☐ It tastes good.
☐ It is good for them.
☐ It is a cheap food.
3. What should one do if it is raining when he starts to work?
☐ Put on lighter clothing.
☐ Wear a raincoat.
☐ Call up the office.
☐ Stay at home all day.
4. What is the thing to do when your house catches fire?
☐ Try to find out how it started.
☐ Ring the alarm and try to put out the fire.
☐ Run in the other direction.
☐ Watch it burn and calculate your insurance.
5. What should one do if he accidently steps on someone else’s toes?
☐ Call for help.
☐ Run for the doctor.
☐ Ask the person’s pardon.
☐ Take his own part.
6. Why do the leaves fall off the trees in the autumn?
☐ The frost has killed them.
☐ To protect the flowers from freezing.
☐ To enrich the ground.
☐ So that one can see farther.
7. Why do people wear heavier clothing in January than in June?
☐ To protect them from the colder weather.
☐ Because it looks better with furs.
☐ Everybody else does it, especially in January.
☐ It makes a good impression on other people.
8. Where might one expect to find the largest number of expert
swimmers?
☐ At the circus.
☐ At the beach of a summer resort.
☐ At a Sunday School picnic.
☐ At a moving picture show.
9. What should a person do when he is late getting started to work in
the morning?
☐ Wait until the next day.
☐ Think up some excuse to make.
☐ Try to make time by hurrying.
☐ Blame it on the street cars.
10. Why do school houses usually have flag-poles?
☐ For the boys to exercise on.
☐ To show where to have a flag drill.
☐ To display the flag and inspire patriotism.
☐ To decorate the school yard.
11. Why does water freeze in winter?
☐ It is warm in summer and we need ice.
☐ So the children can skate.
☐ Water always becomes solid at low temperatures.
☐ So it can be put in refrigerators.
12. What is the best way to stop up a hole by which mice enter the
kitchen?
☐ Stuff it with paper.
☐ Place a pile of rags in front of it.
☐ Put a corn cob in it.
☐ Nail a piece of tin over it.
13. Why is milk a good thing to feed young children?
☐ It comes from cows that eat fresh grass.
☐ It is an easily digested and wholesome food.
☐ It is so pure and white to look at.
☐ It can be bought in pint or quart bottles.
14. What kind of light is best for a reading table?
☐ A tallow candle.
☐ A mercury vapour lamp.
☐ A coal oil lantern.
☐ An incandescent electric bulb.
15. What is the purpose of advertising food products?
☐ To make people hungry.
☐ To decorate street cars and magazines.
☐ To make people think about eating.
☐ To create a demand for special brands.
16. Why is harness put on horses?
☐ So that their strength may be utilized.
☐ So that their beauty will be recognized.
☐ To match the colour of the carriage.
☐ To keep them warm.
17. Why do people put food in refrigerators?
☐ To get it out of the way.
☐ The low temperature keeps it fresh.
☐ To help ice men make a living.
☐ Because the law requires it.
18. Why are fire escapes more frequently put on tall buildings than on
one-story buildings?
☐ A tall building is more likely to burn down.
☐ They would spoil the looks of a low building.
☐ Low buildings have fire extinguishers.
☐ One could jump from one-story buildings.
19. What should one do with a baby when it cries?
☐ Discover and remove the cause of its crying.
☐ Spank it and put it to bed.
☐ Get it a drink of water and rock its cradle.
☐ Give it a bottle of milk or sing to it.
20. Why is country air considered more healthful than city air?
☐ It has fewer impurities in it.
☐ Trees and grass grow in the country.
☐ More people die in the city.
☐ The wind is stronger in the country.
21. Why do railroads use electric engines in some cities?
☐ They run faster than steam engines.
☐ They look better than steam engines.
☐ To avoid making the city smoky.
☐ In order to make less noise.
22. What is the main purpose of lightning rods?
☐ To decorate the roof of the house.
☐ To make the lightning strike somewhere else.
☐ To show which way the wind blows.
☐ To remove the electricity from the air.
23. What is the safest altitude and speed for flying in an airplane?
☐ Low and slowly.
☐ Low and rapidly.
☐ High and rapidly.
☐ High and slowly.
24. What is the chief purpose of newspaper headlines?
☐ To make the paper attractive.
☐ To show what actually happened.
☐ To help one decide where to read.
☐ To guide public opinion wisely.
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of questions correctly answered. A
stencil is furnished with each package of tests, which makes it possible
to check up at a very rapid rate the accuracy of the votes cast, without
ever reading a single word of the answers. The stencil is merely to be
adjusted to the page, according to directions given on its face, and
where the check mark made by the candidate corresponds to the printed
mark on the stencil the question has been correctly answered, while if
there is not agreement between stencil and candidate’s check no credit
is to be allowed on the question. Any fairly careful clerical worker can
learn in two minutes to score such a test with a stencil as rapidly and
accurately as a thoroughly trained psychologist could do it.
The final score should be entered in the lower right-hand corner of the
front or title page, where it will be easily associated with the name
and other information about the candidate.
Scores from 0 to 3 indicate Inferior Ability
Scores from 4 to 8 indicate Low Average Ability
Scores from 9 to 14 indicate Average Ability
Scores from 15 to 19 indicate High Average Ability
Scores from 20 to 24 indicate Superior Ability
MENTIMETER NO. 30
LOGICAL CONCLUSIONS TEST
_Character of the Test._
This test is to be given to large groups of individuals at the same
time, although it may be given as a part of an individual examination.
It will not be found worth while to give this test to individuals who
have not had at least the equivalent of an elementary school education.
The solution of the problems contained is so difficult that not more
than half of the pupils of the sixth or seventh grade of the elementary
school would be able to answer correctly more than five or six of the
problems.
The method of the test is to present a short hypothesis, introduced by
the word “if” and followed by four different conclusions introduced by
the word “then.” The individual being examined should read carefully the
first part of the statement and understand exactly what it means, and
should then put a check mark before the conclusion which would logically
follow the hypothesis. There are twelve of these problems, beginning
with one which is quite simple and elementary, and progressing to more
difficult and more complex statements of a similar nature. The
explanations by which this test is introduced are illustrated by an
example and are not difficult to understand. The difficulty of the test
lies in keeping clearly in mind just what are the implications of the
introductory statement or hypothesis.
The present test is almost entirely new, both in its form and in its
content. The nearest approach to this particular test was made by Dr.
Agnes L. Rogers at the suggestion of Professor Thorndike, when she
prepared a list of six problems of which the following is a good sample:
“P is larger than Q, R is smaller than Q, therefore P is ........ R.”
The blank is to be filled in. It will be observed that the present
Mentimeter differs from Doctor Rogers’s test in that names of familiar
persons or objects are used in place of the capital letters and that
four conclusions are stated from which the subject is to select the
proper one, rather than leaving to the subject the formulation of his
own conclusion.
Because of its newness, it will be impossible to state here just what is
measured by this test, but certainly the ability to read and understand
the words is one factor, and the ability to think clearly about the
logical implications of these words is another very important element
making for success. The ability to see the relations between the words
is probably as near to what may be called “logical ability” or
“reasoning” as to any other popularly recognized “mental qualification.”
Although Doctor Rogers found a coefficient of correlation of .65 between
her form of the logical reasoning test and a composite measure of
mathematical ability, the present Mentimeter is so different that its
true value can only be indicated by the comparisons which its users will
be able to make between their results and the most accurate measures
obtainable of special ability.
This test will probably have very little usefulness in commercial or
industrial fields, although it may be very helpful for a professional
group such as lawyers, educators, etc., in the selection of clerical or
professional assistants. In the public schools, it is quite certain that
it should not be used below the high school grades. Even in the high
school, it is probable that only those with very great ability in
handling abstract ideas and symbols of ideas will be able to make a high
score.
The subject matter of those statements which appear in the test is such
as would not be found in ordinary life and has very little value in
itself. As an entertainment feature, this test will not be successful
except among a very specially selected group of people who believe
themselves to be extraordinarily keen intellectually. It might be held
in reserve as a special “stunt” for any persons who seem to think that
they have demonstrated their “high-brow” qualities by making high scores
in other tests. Shortening the time limit from five minutes to three
minutes would further add to the consternation of such persons.
_Directions for Giving the Test._
The examiner should distribute one test booklet to each candidate,
announcing at the beginning of the distribution that the booklets should
not be opened or turned over until an order to that effect is given.
Since the blanks on the front cover of the booklet will be
self-explanatory to any person capable of taking the test, the examiner
may direct that each candidate fill out the blanks on the title page of
his booklet as soon as he receives it.
When the information blanks have been filled satisfactorily the examiner
should ask the candidates to read the directions silently while he reads
them aloud. This reading should be at a very deliberate rate and in
good, clear tones:
“The following pages contain twelve sentences, each sentence being
printed with four different endings. Only one of these endings can be
true if the first part of the sentence is true. You are to decide which
ending or conclusion is truest or agrees best with the first part, and
to make a mark in the square standing in front of that best ending.
Notice the example:
“If roses cost more than violets, then violets
☐ cost more than roses
☐ cost as much as roses
☐ do not cost as much as roses
☐ do not cost less than roses
“The only one of the four endings which can be true, if the first part
of the sentence is true, is the third, ‘violets do not cost as much as
roses,’ so the square in front of this third conclusion should be
check-marked.
“You will have five minutes in which to read and mark the twelve
sentences. Think carefully and get all of your marks correctly placed.
Ready! Go!”
At the end of five minutes exactly, call “Stop! Time up! Give me your
papers.” All papers should be collected at once.
=MARK (✓) THE SQUARE IN FRONT OF THE TRUEST ENDING TO EACH SENTENCE=
1. If John is older than James, then John is
☐ younger than James
☐ older than James
☐ not as old as James
☐ not older than James
2. If Mary is younger than Will, then Will is
☐ younger than Mary
☐ not older than Mary
☐ not as old as Mary
☐ older than Mary
3. If Dot is taller than Pet, then Pet is
☐ as tall as Dot
☐ shorter than Dot
☐ not shorter than Dot
☐ taller than Dot
4. If May is heavier than Jean, then Jean is
☐ not lighter than May
☐ as heavy as May
☐ not heavier than May
☐ heavier than May
5. If Walter runs faster than William, and William runs faster than
David, then David runs
☐ faster than Walter
☐ as fast as William
☐ as fast as Walter
☐ slower than William
6. If Edna is smarter than Bertha, and Bertha is not as smart as
Mabel, then Mabel is
☐ not as smart as Edna
☐ not as smart as Bertha
☐ smarter than Edna
☐ smarter than Bertha
7. If Mr. Jones is wealthier than Mr. Smith, and Mr. Smith is poorer
than Mr. Brown, then Mr. Smith is
☐ not as poor as Mr. Jones
☐ richer than Mr. Jones
☐ not as rich as Mr. Jones
☐ not poorer than Mr. Jones
8. If Robert is noisier than Harold and Harold is as noisy as George,
then George is
☐ not noisier than Robert
☐ noisier than Robert
☐ noisier than Harold
☐ not as quiet as Robert
9. If Henry drives faster than Joseph, and Joseph drives no more
slowly than Peter, and Peter drives more rapidly than Edgar, then
Edgar drives
☐ as rapidly as Henry
☐ no more slowly than Joseph
☐ as swiftly as Peter
☐ less rapidly than Henry
10. If Monday was cooler than Wednesday, and Tuesday was cooler than
Monday, and Thursday was hotter than Wednesday, then Monday was
☐ not hotter than Tuesday
☐ not cooler than Thursday
☐ not warmer than Thursday
☐ cooler than Tuesday
11. If Mrs. Brown is exactly as extravagant as Mrs. Smith, and Mrs.
Smith is less extravagant than Mrs. Jones, then Mrs. Jones is
☐ more frugal than Mrs. Brown
☐ not as frugal as Mrs. Brown
☐ less extravagant than Mrs. Smith
☐ not more extravagant than Mrs. Smith
12. If there were four parades in a month, and the first was larger
than the fourth, and the third was smaller than the second, and
the second was not smaller than the first, then the fourth was
☐ larger than the second
☐ equal to the second
☐ not smaller than the second
☐ not larger than the second
_Directions for Scoring the Test._
The score in this test is the number of sentences for which the correct
conclusion is checked. The stencil furnished with the test booklets
makes this process of counting the number correct so simple that a child
can do it almost at a glance. The degree of intellectual capacity is
indicated roughly by the score as follows:
Scores 0 to 1 indicate Low Average or Inferior Ability
Scores 2 to 5 indicate Average Ability
Scores 6 to 8 indicate High Average Ability
Scores 9 to 12 indicate Superior Ability
Attention should be invited here again to the fact that this is a new
test and that its reliability and implications will need to be carefully
tested and measured before one can be sure what it measures or how
accurate it is.