CHAPTER IV 



SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT AND EUGENICS 



TT/'E have now considered two opposing 

 ^ world views of society as represented 

 in biological and sociological theories respec- 

 tively. Of the two it is apparent that the soci- 

 ological is the more comprehensive, including 

 as it does a consideration of the biological 

 elements. The biological theory, on the other 

 hand, is the result of hasty conclusions drawn 

 from narrow, though admittedly valuable, ge- 

 netic studies. As a working theory it is ably 

 advocated by the eugenists of the old school; 

 fortunately many recent eugenic writers seem 

 inclined to give sociological data due consid- 

 eration. 



I. Biological Extremes in Eugenics 



The purpose of this chapter is to take up 

 some of the statistical evidence for the oppos- 

 ing viewpoints, but it would perhaps be well 

 first to review briefly the position of the bio- 

 logical eugenists — if we may be allowed to 

 use the apparently redundant phrase. Their 



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