Gould Flashcards
(Yerkes review)
How was psychology perceived in the early 1900’s ?
Viewed as a soft science.
Lacked objectivity.
How did Yerkes want to change how psychology was viewed ?
Yerkes wanted it to be recognised as a science with number and quantification.
What did Yerkes believe about intelligence ?
That intelligence and behaviour is inherited and unaffected by the environment.
What was Gould’s aim for the review ?
-Look at way intelligence has been measured,
-Look at implications like biased data leading to discrimination based on intelligence.
What was the sample in Yerkes study ?
1.75 million WW1 recruits.
Predominantly white Americans and European immigrants.
What was the alpha test ?
For literate recruits.
Had 8 parts containing analogies, sequences, etc.
-Culturally significant to America.
-To see if they could be put forward for officers.
What was the Beta test ?
Did if failed alpha.
Had 7 parts consisting of pictures, number and symbols.
-Required pencil work.
-Culturally significant to America.
What was the individual spoken exam ?
Did if failed Beta.
Graded A-E.
To see if they were suitable for the army.
Rarely used when it was supposed to be.
Findings of Yerkes
-Changed immigration act.
-Eastern Europeans were less intelligent.
-USA mental age of 13, when should be 16 - “Nation of morons”.
-2/3 officers started in camps with alpha tests.
Conclusions of Yerkes
-Can influence social policy.
-Lack of consistency.
-IQ tests are biased.
-Lead to tragic consequences
-Doesn’t measure innate intelligence.
How can Yerkes be ethnocentric ?
Measuring intelligence, in Yerkes, used questions that are culturally significant to America./
How does Gould link to individual differences ?
Focusses on attempt to develop a test to measure a way in which people differ, through intelligence. Shows how difficult it is to avoid cultural bias in supposedly objective measures.
What method was Gould’s work ?
Peer review.
