The Mental Testing Movement

Precursors: – Galton – Bessel and the personal equation James McKeen Cattell ( ) –Took his PhD in Leipzig, under Wundt Dissertation: Dissertation on objective measures of reaction time –Returned to US First job at Bryn Mawr, then U of Pennsylvania, then Columbia First American professor of psychology Fired from Columbia for pacifism during WWI (1917), sued and won $40K settlement that he used to found the Psychological Corporation. Also founded Psychological review, edited Science, founded the AAUP, and began American Men of Sciences (now American Men and Women of Science.

–Studied RT as f(sense mode, attention, forewarning), fatigue, reward and punishment) Built mental measurement battery based mainly on RT measures. Later research: no relation with school performance Alfred Binet ( ) –Early bad experience with hypnotism/magnetism as cures for mental afflictions Led to resignation from the Salpetriere (1890) –Observational studies of intellectual growth of his daughters (published in 1903) led to some early attempts to test for intellectual differences among people. Tests not highly correlated with each other; presumably didn’t measure intelligence.

–With Theodore Simon ( ) Appointed by French govt. to develop method of distinguishing mentally deficient children from those with normal intelligence. –Began with criterion groups and chose measures that differentiated them. Binet-Simon test (1905) –The Binet-Simon test New ideas: –Items graded in difficulty –Difficulty related to age of child »Intelligence increases through childhood –Child compared to others of same age –Idea that intelligence is made up of many skills (unlike Galton who believed in a single, “theoretically basic”, measure of intelligence) »Intelligence isn’t based on sensory acuity or special training –Idea that intelligence is not innately restricted –Believed that remedial training would improve intelligence –Concept of mental age »In 1911, William Stern invents concept of IQ (MA/CA x 100) »This definition no longer used, since raw scores don’t continue to rise with chronological age after yrs of age. (If you are an average 19 yr old with IQ of 100, what will your IQ be when you are 55, assuming ability stays the same? 19/55 * 100 = 35!!!

–Lasting contributions to intelligence testing Used tests for which all subjects could be expected to have the required experience Used tests of abstract reasoning, e.g., –Unwrap and eat a sweet –Remember shopping lists –Order weights (3, 6, 9, 12, 15 grams) & lines (3 cm, 4 cm.. Etc) –Make rough copies pf line-drawn square, diamond, cylinder –Construct sentences containing given words (e.g., “Paris”, “fortune”, “river”) –Example from the Binet test: figure copying »Task: child shown one simple figure and asked to draw it from memory (detailed accuracy and neatness unimportant) »Results: Square can be copied by average 5 yr old; diamond by 8; cylinder by 10. Acc. To Jensen, this test correlates with other childhood abilities. »Note: problem here is not merely perceptual or manual – it is analytic. The 8 yr old who can’t copy the diamond, for example, will have been able to copy the square. Note, too: Training on one figure doesn’t transfer to the other, harder, figures David Wechsler ( ) –Started testing similar to Binet but for adults (1930’s) –Established the Deviation IQ as the measure

Intelligence Testing in the US –H.H. Goddard ( ) Translated Binet-Simon test into English Kallikak family study –Normal and “feebleminded” descendents from one man and his wife & mistress –Promoted genetic view of intelligence; little weight given to environmental factors –Resulted in sterilization laws in several states (upheld by Supreme Court) and deportation of immigrants with low intelligence test scores Applied terms idiot, imbecile, and moron to intelligence levels (1910, 1916) –Lewis M. Terman ( ) Took degree from G. Stanley Hall at Clark University; did most of his work at Stanford Revised Binet-Simon scales to give an “average” IQ of 100 at each age level Stanford-Binet became standard instrument for measuring intelligence in children and was good predictor of school performance Believed intelligence was –mostly determined by heredity –Unitary –Relatively stable »Opposite of Binet in these judgments Recommended that schools develop different tracks for students of different abilities

–Longitudinal study of genius Identified 1470 gifted children (avg. IQ = 151) through statewide testing in CA. (“Termites”) Tested them frequently on obtained life history information from 1921 until the 1950’s Found that gifted children tend to become well adjusted, successful adults with wide interests Leta Hollingworth –PhD from Columbia –Became prof. of education at Columbia Teachers College –Applied studies in intelligence Early studies: no gender differences; no impairment during menstruation Later studies: many cases of “mental deficiency were really cases of social or emotional impairment Studies of gifted children led to methods of enriching education for bright students

Robert M. Yerkes ( ) –PhD and faculty member at Harvard –Devised intelligence scale for group administration (1917) Army Alpha (for English-speaking subjects); Army Beta (for non-English & illiterates) First mass administrations of intelligence tests (1.75 million men) Permitted group comparisons Score was a point total, not IQ. Raised concern about “national intelligence” Data used to promote racial segregation & theories of racial superiority However, Army didn’t find the data especially useful –Better contribution: Established comparative psychology in the U.S. (Yerkes Regional Primate Lab in Atlanta named for him) President of APA (1917)

As APA president, Yerkes chaired Army testing committee, which included Terman and his doctoral student, Arthur Otis (Otis test served as basis for construction of the group tests) Questions have been raised about significance of psychologists’ contributions to WWI. But…. Huge boost to mental testing movement. After the war: –Terman claimed tests improved military efficiency and predicted they would be universally used in schools Got Rockefeller Foundation funding to adapt tests for school use Developed “National Intelligence Tests” for grades 3-8 for use in 1920 Testing widely adopted in schools in 1920’s- 30’s. Creation of hierarchical tracking system, programming for gifted

–Hereditarian interpretation of intelligence challenged in early 20’s when results of WWI testing were released. Critics raised questions about –Whether tests measure innate intelligence –Cultural bias –Lack of opportunity By 1930’s testers most closely associated with reports of racial/ethnic differences recanted their views. With respect to racial/ethnic differences, the heredity argument was put to rest until revived in 1970’s by Arthur Jensen—hereditarian interpretation of racial differences –Nature-nurture debate over tested intelligence was not put aside with respect to American schoolchildren. Terman continued to advocate for hereditarian interpretation of IQ differences among schoolchildren Environmentalist challenge most prominently offered by group from Univ. of Iowa, led by George Stoddard.

–Mass IQ testing in schools continued well into 1960’s. Goal was to make long-term predictions regarding intellectual potential Galton-Terman heredity interpretation maintained dominance over Binet-Iowa environmentalist view. –In 1960’s, in context of civil rights movement and War on Poverty, the Iowa tradition of studying effects of environmental enrichment again became prominent –In conservative climate of Nixon presidency (no, this isn’t Nixon-bashing) Environmentalist position challenged. Interesting aside: Nixon had been one of Terman’s subjects in the longitudinal study –Issue remains hot today; reflects social/political forces