Gould (1982)

Question 1

Background

Answer 1

Yerkes was a psychologist at Harvard University who became a Colonel with the outbreak of WW1. He wanted to demonstrate that psychology could be as objective and quantifiable as other scientific disciplines and also believed that intelligence was innate.

He decided to use recruits for the American Army to show testing intelligence was scientific.

Question 2

Aim

Answer 2

Gould aimed to examine Yerkes’ testing of intelligence and identify the following issues in psychology:

1. The problematic nature of psychometric testing in general and the measurement of intelligence in particular.
2. The problem of theoretical bias influencing research in psychology, in particular how psychological theories on the inherited nature of intelligence and the prejudice of a society can dramatically distort the objectivity of intelligence testing.
3. The problem of theoretical bias influencing research in psychology, e.g. societal prejudice.
4. The problem of the political and ethical implications of research, e.g. using biased data to discriminate between people in suitability for occupation or even admission to a country.

Question 3

Sample

Answer 3

1.75 million army recruits in the USA during WW1. The recruits included White Americans, ‘Negroes’ and European immigrants.

Question 4

Procedure

Answer 4

From May to July 1917, Yerkes, together with a number of colleagues who shared his views on the hereditary nature of intelligence, wrote the army mental tests. Together they developed three types of test, the first two of which could be given to large groups and took less than an hour to complete.

Question 5

The Army Alpha Test

Answer 5

Designed for literate recruits. Consisted of 8 parts. Included analogies, filling in next part of a sequence etc.

Although considered to measure ‘native intellectual ability’ was extremely biased, as someone unfamiliar with American culture could not achieve a decent score.

e.g. one question was: “Crisco is a : patient medicine, disinfectant, toothpaste, foot product?”

Question 6

The Army Beta Test

Answer 6

Test for illiterate participants. Consisted of picture completion tasks.

However pictures were again culturally specific and would be difficult to complete if participants had no knowledge of some of the items.

e.g. also a maze test, counting the number of cubes and including the next in a series of symbols.

Question 7

The Individual Spoken Examination

Answer 7

This was taken if recruits failed on the other two tests.

Each participant was graded from A to E. C- indicated a low average intelligence, D indicated a person rarely suited for tasks requiring skill, forethought, resourcefulness or sustained awareness.

Only one fifth of those who failed the Beta Test were allowed to take the individual examinations, e.g. problems arose with black men in particular not being allowed to re-sit.

Question 8

Key Findings from Yerkes

Answer 8

• Data was analysed by EG Boring, Yerkes’ lieutenant, who manipulated results by selecting data to cover to a common standard looking for racial and national averages.
  1. The data showed European immigrants could be graded by their country of origin, e.g. darker people of Southern Europe and Slavs of Eastern Europe were shown to be less intelligent than the fair people of Western and Northern Europe.
  2. White Americans had a mental age of a 13 year old, indicating the country was ‘a nation of morons’, which Yerkes believed was due to interbreeding with African Americans.
  3. The black man had an average mental age of 10.41.

Question 9

Subsequent Developments

Answer 9

1. By the end of the war two thirds of the men promoted had taken the tests and achieved good results.
2. It provided evidence that there was a difference in the intelligence of racial and national groups, however even Yerkes admitted there was a problem for those unfamiliar with English.
3. The Immigration Restriction Act was passed by US Congress in 1924 as a result and people from Southern and Eastern Europe and the Alpine and Mediterranean nations who had scored very badly were no longer welcome in the USA. e.g. It was decided that the quota of immigrants allowed into American would be 2% of each recorded nation taken from the 1890 figures. This meant Jews could not escape persecution later during WW2.

Question 10

Possible Conclusions

Answer 10

1. The tests cannot e seen as valid or reliable because intelligence is a very complex construct that needs to be assessed holistically.
2. The results of Gould’s analysis would imply that intelligence is not innate, but that it is actually learned.