J.— PSYCHOLOGY. 175 



best. And for this reason I believe they will the sooner repay study. 

 Smith's six-foot high-jump can never be spoiled by Jones collaring him 

 low at the take-off. 



These distinctions may be obvious. But I have never seen them made 

 in scientific discussions of skill. A little less obvious, perhaps, is the 

 thought that different types of competition are excelled in by persons of 

 different temperaments. Too much of the fighter's spirit and too little 

 of the artist's and thinker's may lose many games. 



In many skills emotion is an ' accident.' Obviously a player should 

 keep his head. But coolness may be but indirectly related to skill. Some 

 play better when keyed up, fearing nerves less than stodginess ; some 

 wilt at the thought of spectators ; others admit, even seek, the inspiration 

 of a friendly and understanding crowd. 



Though emotion as an accidental factor may help or hinder the 

 expression of skill, yet in music and acting it may blend with and form an 

 integral part of the expression. Actors, for example, sometimes genuinely 

 feel the emotion which they are portraying.^ 



To discuss the problem of what is loosely called ' nerve ' in sport is 

 impossible here. 



(b) In work. — In industry many skilled actions are performed in 

 unvaried conditions, with little or no emotion. Important exceptions 

 exist which the public often finds it convenient to forget, as, for example, 

 in coal-mining. However, it would not be surprising if the problems of 

 skill in industry, complex though many of them are, proved to be easier 

 than those of skill in sport. 



Thus far an attempt has been made to filter the general concept of 

 skill and to reject irrelevant meanings. In dealhig with industrial skill 

 I am indebted to an article by Miss Anna Bezanson.^ She writes : 



Considering the glibness with which workmen are pigeon-holed as 

 ' skilled,' ' semi-skilled,' and ' labourers ' in many industries, it is 

 surprising to find little definition of what constitutes skill or lack of 

 skill. Everyone takes it for granted that precisely what he means is 

 understood by referring to a workman as possessed of ' skill.' 



We may utilise her collection of ' accidental ' factors in industrial skill. 



(1) Accepting responsibility for many independent decisions. — Though 

 arriving at these decisions may involve skill, the acceptance of responsibility 

 is due to other factors. When the acceptance is voluntary and congenial, 

 these factors are domniating sentiments. In our country the more 

 expensive systems of education successfully inculcate such a ready 

 acceptance of responsibility. Sometimes, however, their pupils seem 

 puzzled by the lack of a similar readiness in those who have been schooled 

 more cheaply. Remedies for this will be gladly suggested by the teachers 

 concerned. Smaller classes and larger playing fields come early on their 

 lists. 



(2) Learning about the capabilities of materials. — This involves the 

 ordinary processes of acquiring knowledge. Muscular or kintesthetic 

 knowledge can only be obtained by doing. But with the progress of 

 science it is every day easier to get from books knowledge which was 



" Cf. W. James's chapter on the Emotions in his Principles of Psychology. 

 '■> Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. xxxvi, 1921-2, pp. 626-45. 



