PSYCHOLOGY IN INDUSTRY 



Operators. For instance, we could find no preference for 

 tall girls or short girls, or girls of medium height. There 

 was about the same proportion of any particular height in 

 the unsuccessful as in the successful group. 



In age, on the other hand, there was a preferred range. 

 Girls nineteen years of age or younger at date of hiring 

 were a little more likely to be successful than those twenty 

 years old or older. The difference was not great. About 50 

 per cent of the younger ones succeeded and about 34 per 

 cent of the older ones. 



As to schooling, the data did not give clear-cut results. 

 Few candidates with high-school training had been hired. 

 Many had not even completed grammar school; indeed, 

 the preference was slightly in favor of those who had not 

 finished the grammar grades. 



As to average length of time on previous jobs, we tried 

 various ranges and finally found this preferred range: if 

 the average was less than one year, it was an unfavorable 

 indication; if it was one year or more, the indication was 

 favorable. 



So we went through all the items available. Most of the 

 findings simply confirmed impressions that the employment 

 interviewers already had in mind, although they may not 

 have been giving as much weight to some of the items as 

 they did after their actual statistical significance had been 

 determined. 



As to nationality, however, some interesting results 

 appeared which had been anticipated only in part. Using 

 the data on the application blank, we classified the em- 

 ployees in five groups according to racial stock. In the first 

 group were the Austrians, Germans, and Scandinavians. 

 Of these, 63 per cent were successful. Then came the 

 Czechoslovak and Polish, the largest group, of whom 

 50 per cent were successful on the job. Of the Italians, 43 

 per cent were successful. Then the Irish, English, and 



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