CHAPTER 6. 



DEVELOPMENT OF A SUBSTITUTE GROUP TEST FOR ILLITERATES AND FOREIGNERS. 



Section 1. — Experiments in the camps. 



The imperative need for a group test for foreigners and illiterates which would measure 

 general intelligence led to experimentation in all the camps looking toward the adaptation 

 of various lands of performance tests for group use. The most systematic and thoroughgoing 

 efforts in this direction were made at Camp Devens and Camp Lee. Important work was also 

 done at Camp Dix and two minor experiments were made at Camp Taylor. The Devens and 

 Lee experiments utilized pencil and paper tests, while the experiments at Dix and Taylor 

 made use of tests of more strictly the performance type. The Devens experiment was carried 

 further than any of the others and served in the main as the basis for group examination beta. 



Camp Dix. — In an important experiment at Camp Dix an entire regiment of engineers 

 was given group examination a, the Stenquist test, 1 and the following supplementary tests 

 adapted for group use: The Porteus maze, 2 Ruger's wire puzzles, 3 the Whipple digit symbol 

 test, 4 memory for designs, and the cube construction test. 5 The regiment consisted of approxi- 

 mately 900 men, all of whom were given examination a, regardless of literacy. Practically 

 all were given the Stenquist test and most were given the supplementary tests. Those who 

 failed to take the supplementary tests constituted a nonselected group and therefore the results 

 of the different tests are representative for this regiment. The supplementary tests were given 

 as follows : 



1. Porteus mazes for years, 10, 11, 12, and 13 were painted on a blackboard. Each man 

 was given a maze blank and a pencil. Instructions: "Take your pencil, begin at S, and mark 

 the shortest way out of this maze." One minute was allowed for each maze. 



2. Ruger's puzzles: Each subject was given a box containing six wire puzzles, the simplest 

 puzzle placed to the left, and was told to take as many apart as he could in five minutes. 



3. Digit symbol: The Whipple sheets were used. The procedure was explained by demon- 

 stration. Time, five minutes. The Pyle symbol-digit 5 test was given in the same way and 

 the score combined with that for the digit-symbol test. 



4. Memory for designs: The Terman designs from the Examiner's Guide, enlarged 10 

 times, were shown one at a time on a chart. Verbal instructions; time, one minute for each 

 part; scoring as in Examiner's Guide. 



5. Cube construction: This was part (e) of test A of the individual examination series. 

 Each subject was given a 3-inch painted cube and 27 1-inch cubes. Verbal directions as in 

 Examiner's Guide. Time, three minutes. 



The intercorrelations (Pearson method) are shown in Table 43. 



Table 43. — Intercorrelations of Dix tests. 



i The form of test used in the Army was one developed by Stenquist from the earlier form described in the following article: Stenquist, J. L., 

 Thomdiie, E. L., and Trabue. M. R. ThelntelleetualStatusofChildren WhoarePublicCharges. Arch. Psychol., vol. 5, no. 33, 1915, pp. 1-9. 



' Porteus, S. D. Mental Tests for Feeble-Minded: A New Series. J. Psycho-Asthonics, vol. 19, no. 4, 1915, pp. 200-213. 



'Ruger, H. A. The Psychology of Efficiency. Arch. Psychol., no. 15, 1910. 



< Whipple, G. M. Manual of Mental and Physical Tests. Part 2, 1915, pp. 502-503. See also Pyle, W. H. The Examination of School Chil- 

 dren, pp. 18-22. 



<• Loc. cit. 363 



