A study of certain tests with special reference to their value for the prognosis of success in nurses' training

Vocational education and training and with them vocational guidance have made considerable progress in the past twenty years. An attempt has been made to rescue the latter from the domain of necromancy and impressionistic advising and put it on a scientific basis. This has been accomplished chiefly by means of job analyses and, to a limited extent, study of the individuals to whom guidance is being given. Much has been done to disseminate information concerning the exact nature of different occupations, working conditions, possibilities of advancement, etc. There is no doubt that job analyses and surveys of local and national conditions are of the utmost importance for adequate guidance. Equally important, but much more elusive, is the analysis of the special abilities, mental and temperamental qualities necessary for success in different vocations. Assuming for the moment that that has been accomplished there emerges the still more difficult problem of discovering which individuals possess the requisite combination of traits and abilities. The absence of such analyses has constituted a stumbling block to vocational guidance and should offer a challenge to the psychologist, who is primarily interested in the adjustment of human beings to their environment. Earning a livelihood is one of the most important adjustments the average adult is called upon to make. To determine whether an individual has the necessary mental ability, a qualitative analysis is made of his performances on standard psychological tests such as the Witmer Form board, Witmer Cylinder Tests, Dearborn Form Board, and other performance tests. Mention is also made of the necessity of discovering the temperamental characteristics necessary but no suggestion is given as to how this should be done.