Psychology 2990A/B Lecture Notes - Army Beta, Army Alpha, Lester B. Pearson

• School: Western University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: Psychology 2990A/B
• Professor: Doug Hazlewood

Document Summary

1913: munsterberg publishes the psychology of industrial efficiency . To increase productivity; we should select people with skills that match the job requirements. 1917 (ww1): industrial psychology merges in response to us army"s practical problem: Psychologists develop two intelligence tests: army alpha and army beta. Army alpha recruits who could read and write english. Army beta recruits couldn"t read or write english. Then, new tests to select best officers, best pilots; to eliminate most neurotic recrutis. Psychological test could be used to screen and classify large nubers of ppl. Then, businesses and schools want their own tests to select and classify ppl. Eg: even when applying to jobs, there are tests. Main goal is to evaluate and place them in appropriate jobs. If in army, why not in business or schools: organizational psychology (1924): The hawthorne studies at western electric plant (in hawthrone illinois) The effect of environmental factors on productivity (eg: alering lights, temp, rest periods, etc)