PSYCHOLOGY IN INDUSTRY 



Association between Accident Proneness and Various Conditions 



Among Forty-three Motormen with High Accident Records and Forty-three with 



Low Accident Records, Paired for Length of Service, Age, and Operating 



Conditions 



Condition present 



Coefficient of 

 association, Q 



Hernia 



Abnormal blood pressure 



Any health defect 



Psychological trait S (score 3 or more) 



Insubordination (one or more reports, 1926-1928) 



Psychological trait S (score 2 or more) 



Operating delinquencies 



Misses 



Set-backs refused 



Absences 



Overweight 



Psychological trait G (score 10 or more) 



Delinquency record (signs, etc.) 



Psychological trait G (score 5 or more) 



Complaint by patrons 



Dullness (observed during testing) 



Record of shorts and overs 



Overtime (earnings over $2,300) 



Breaks in employment 



Less Reliable Items: 



Drinking 



Economic status (chiefly trusteed wages) 



Defective vision (not serious) 



Difficult home conditions 



Medical not specified above 



1.00 

 0.82 

 0.81 

 0.81 

 0.75 

 0.66 

 0.57 

 0.54 

 0.49 

 0.41 

 0.41 

 0.33 

 0.31 

 0.28 

 0.12 

 12 

 0.04 

 0.06 

 0.08 



0.52 

 0.27 

 0.27 

 0.00 

 0.00 



Explanation of Table: 



Psychological Trait S means relatively poor performance in a serial-action test. 



Insubordination means a recorded instance of insubordination within the past 

 three years. 



Delinquencies means a record of operating ahead of time, not slowing up at 

 street intersections, etc. 



Misses means failure to report. 



Set-backs refused means refusal of operator to follow regulations when he has 

 been long delayed in arrival at the end of his run. 



Psychological trait G means a group factor: relatively poor performance in the 

 whole battery of tests. 



Shorts and overs means turning in more or less money than is shown by the 

 register. 



Overtime means a large amount of overtime work as determined by reference to 

 earnings. (Motormen regularly earn from $1,900 to $2,000 a year. They are 

 paid time and a half for overtime. We made this inquiry into overtime 

 work, to see whether fatigue during overtime tended to increase accidents; 

 but we did not find a relation between the two. Even in excessive overtime, 

 indicated by average annual earnings of at least $2,300, we found the 

 same proportion among the high and the low accident groups. Perhaps the 

 explanation is that the men who secure this extra work are older, safer 

 men, as assignment to overtime work is strictly in order of seniority, 

 among the men available.) 



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