SECTIONAL TRANSACTIONS.— J. 403 



intuition, faith, and mysticism. It briefly discusses Freud's recent theory of the 

 ' ego-ideal 'or ' super-ego ' in illustration of the contrast between a psychological and 

 a philosophical treatment of the problem of value. 



20. Dr. Mary Collins. — British Norms for Pressey's XO Test. 



21. IMiss J. Lodge. — The Illusion of Warmth Test for Suggestibility. 



22. Miss W. Spielman.— Lecture on Recent Progress in Vocational Selec- 



tion. (Illustrated.) 



The older methods of vocational selection — entirely unscientific or quasi-scientific 

 -—are compared with modern methods employing mental and physical tests. Illustra- 

 tions of various types of tests and of the results obtained in practice are given to show 

 the recent trend of development. A description is also given of the study that has 

 recently been made of the technique of the interview (including rating-scales for the 

 assessment of personality) to supplement the teats. 



Attempts are made to weigh the economic and social advantages of the new 

 method and to forecast its future lines of development. 



23. Dr. E. PiCKWORTH Farrow. — Psycho-analysis by a Process of Self- 



analysis and some Results obtained by it. 



This paper describes a method of self-analysis by following which any mentally 

 fairly healthy person should eventually be able to remember quite clearly one or more 

 incidents which occurred to him when he was only about six months old — naturally, 

 a long time before he was able to speak. 



Briefly, the method consists in writing down absolutely any and every thought 

 which occurs to one on blank paper for periods of one or two hours at a" time and 

 continuing this process over a number of periods. What happens is, apparently, 

 that by this process, affect or feeling gradually becomes completely worked-ofif the 

 memories of recent happenings and, as this process continues, the mind gradually 

 remembers incidents further and further back in one's life. There is no doubt 

 whatever about the validity of a certain type of early recollection which is obtained 

 in this way, for the recollections in cases of this type are so clear and definite — both 

 of the incidents in question and of a large number of the circumstances surrounding 

 the individual at the time of occurrence of the incidents. In very many cases sub- 

 sequent verification of these surrounding circumstances may be obtained from one's 

 parents, and one may later also recognise, or realise the existence of, various objects 

 about the house which ' first ' appeared in the analytic recollections of the incidents — ■ 

 i.e. various definite objects to the existence of which one had previously been 

 comparatively blind, subsequent to the occurrence of the incidents, owino- to 

 repressed emotion associated with these early incidents, until this repressed emotion 

 had been removed by the analytic process. 



The results obtained by this process of self-analysis strongly confirm Prof. Freud's 

 results concerning tlie mode of working of the human mind, except that they rather 

 suggest that Prof. Freud may perhaps not have given due or proportionate weight to 

 the egoistic or self-preservative group of instincts. The paper concludes with an 

 appeal to all psychologists to try such a method of self-analysis upon themselves, for 

 the results they would obtain are certainly extremely interesting and beneficial, and 

 they might also be very valuable and important. This method of psychological 

 research needs no apparatus of any kind — only patience, a pen, and some paper — ■ 

 and thus anybody can follow it and test the ultimate definite recollection of extremely 

 early incidents for himself. A detailed description of this process appeared in the 

 British Journal of Medical Psychology, Vol. V., Part 2, 1925 ; and some results 

 obtained by the reader of the present paper through following it have appeared in 

 the Internalional Journal of Psycho- Analysis, Vol. VI., Part 1, 1925 ; The Medical 

 Press, April 29, 1925 ; the Journal of Neurology and Psychopatlwlogy, August 1925 ; 

 the Journal of Mental Science, October 1925 ; and in the Internationale Zeitschrift 

 fur Psychoanalyse, Bd. XIT., Heft 1, 1926. 



BD 2 



