FEBRUARY 9, 1912] 
specific element after another in singing 
under experimental conditions. 
As a supplement to these measurements, 
there must be other measurements, statis- 
tical data, biographical information, and 
free observations regarding musical train- 
ing, traits of temperament and attitude, 
spontaneous tendencies in the pursuit of 
music, general education and non-musical 
accomplishments, social circumstances and 
physique. 
With this tentative plan of procedure 
before us as a concrete thing to consider, 
let us ask and answer the following three 
questions: How do these measurements ac- 
quire unity in meaning? Do they consti- 
tute an adequate measure of the singer? 
Of what practical significance can they be? 
With reference to the first of these ques- 
tions, it can readily be seen that a group of 
measurements like this is merely a group 
of samples of measurement. Their unity 
in meaning depends upon the degree to 
which they are adequately representative, 
and are interpreted in true perspective. 
They are meaningful only when compared 
with previously established norms, which 
show the mode and extent of distribution 
for a sufficiently large number of cases, and 
are interpreted in the light of the meaning 
ascribed to each level in the distribution. 
Take, for illustration, discriminative action 
in voluntary control of the pitch of the 
voice in singing. Reference to our norms 
shows, for example, that a record of .9 vd. 
means that this ability is within 3 per cent. 
of the best record for individuals under 
similar conditions, and that those who have 
such control are thoroughly qualified to 
render a high class of music in this respect; 
while a record of 9 vd. falls within 8 per 
cent. of the poorest ability measured, and 
is characteristic of an individual who can 
not sing; whereas 3 vd. represents the aver- 
age ability of an untrained individual. 
SCIENCE 
207 
These norms must be worked out with 
much labor and skill in the interest of an 
avowedly applied psychology, and must be 
considered as problems in themselves be- 
fore any measurements can be of service. 
During the last year or two a group of re- 
search men in the Iowa laboratory have 
been engaged in working out eight such 
norms in the psychology of music. After 
extensive preliminary development of 
methods and measuring instruments, they 
have aimed to secure records on two hun- 
dred individuals, constituting a homogene- 
ous group for each norm. These norms 
are: pitch discrimination, vividness of tone 
imagery, span of tone memory, consonance 
and dissonance, rhythmic action, intensity 
discrimination, voluntary control of the 
pitch of the voice, and the singing of inter- 
vals. This is no simple undertaking, and 
so far the work can only be said to be pre- 
liminary. It requires the development of 
technique for each case, and the measure- 
ment must be taken for as many conditions 
as it is desired to vary under control. 
This technique can not be mechanized 
so that every music teacher can handle it. 
Even after means and methods have been 
invented and standardized and norms 
have been established, it requires an ex- 
pert, trained in the technique and skilled 
in the art. This is a field for the consult- 
ing psychologist in music, a person who 
devotes himself to this kind of work pro- 
fessionally. He must not only be able to 
determine the relative rank of a record by 
reference to the normal chart, but he must 
also be able to interpret the meaning of 
this rank in the light of the construction 
which has been placed upon the norm. He 
must be not only a technician, but an 
artist with appreciation for music, full of 
ingenuity, sympathetic and incisive in his 
interpretation. Like the so-called mind 
reader, he must have at his command a 
