No. l.J 



PSYCHOLOGICAL EXAMINING IN THE UNITED STATES ARMY. 



47 



(c) To their ability from practice to judge their own men. 



(d) To the fear that examinations will encroach upon training time. 



The younger officers who are now and to be company commanders are inclined to believe that the psychological 

 ratings are of value in confirming organization commanders in their estimates of men. 



So far, due to transferring personnel from and to organizations, lack of fixed personnel for the Psychological 

 Division to enable records to be made quickly, and definite instructions to camp personnel officers, no use of value 

 has been made of psychological ratings in organizations, except in depot brigades. Camp personnel officers have, 

 however, used them to some extent when called upon to supply particular classes of men for special services. The 

 application of examination results is yet in its infancy. This and continuous changing of drafted men to and from 

 camps have prevented any systematic use of ratings by division or camp personnel officers. 



The favorableness of Col. Burt's report and recommendations were both surprising and 

 gratifying to the officers of the Division of Psychology, because he had observed the psycho- 

 logical service only in camps in which it was either imperfectly organized or unsatisfactory 

 because of extremely adverse conditions. 



The favorable results of investigation enabled the Division of Psychology to renew its 

 request for additional officers. This was done early in July in the following letter: 



July 10, 1918. 

 From: The Surgeon General, U. S. Army. 

 To: The Adjutant General of the Army. 

 Subject: Officer personnel, Sanitary Corps, for psychological examining. 



1. At present, in compliance with action taken by the War Department January 19, 1918, the Surgeon General's 

 Office is conducting psychological examination of drafted men in 27 National Army and National Guard camps. 

 Examinations should also be in progress in several additional camps and posts which receive or train drafted men, 

 but the officer personnel allowed the Division of Psychology by the General Staff is inadequate to man these additional 

 stations. 



2. The following table indicates the existing distribution of officer personnel for this work and the immediate need. 

 [The detailed table of the needs of camps is omitted. It may be summarized as follows: Number of camps with 



no officers on duty, 7; with 1 officer, 6; with 2 officers, 8; with 3 officers, 10; with 4 officers, 3. 



Number of camps requiring no officers or only 1, none; requiring 2 officers, 10; requiring 3 officers, 5; requiring 4 

 officers, 18; requiring 5 officers, 1. 



Number of camps without shortage of officers, 5; with shortage of 1 officer, 13; with shortage of 2 officers, 14; 

 with shortage of 3 officers, 1; with shortage of 4 officers, 1. 



Officers on duty at camps, 64; officers required at camps, 112; shortage of officers at camps, 48.] 



3. The attached table of organization for psychological personnel, Sanitary Corps, indicates, first, the present 

 distribution of officers now on duty in this service; second, the personnel imperatively needed to conduct psychological 

 service effectively in accordance with the instructions of the Secretary of War. 



4. The following explanatory statements supplement the data given in the proposed table of organization. At the 

 training school in military psychology, Fort Oglethorpe, Ga., four officers are needed continuously for instructional 

 and other camp duties. 



The allowance for National Army and National Guard camps, as indicated in paragraph above, is 112 men. At 

 present only 64 are on duty in these stations. This number is adequate for approximately half the work which should 

 be done. It is clear that if psychological examining is to be conducted it should be provided with an adequate per- 

 sonnel for complete and reasonably thorough work in every camp. The number of officers needed varies with the 

 nature and use of the camp — from two to five. 



For cooperation with psychiatric officers at recruit depots and certain other stations, such, for example, as disci- 

 plinary barracks, Fort Leavenworth, either one or two psychologists are needed. The allowance made in the table 

 for these stations is 16. At least this number is required for immediate assignment in compliance with urgent and 

 repeated requests from Col. Bailey, Chief of the Division of Neurology and Psychiatry, Surgeon General's Office. 



Personnel required by Sanitary Corps, Medical Department, Division of Psychology. 



