Measure Your Mind: The Mentimeter and How to Use It

Character of the Test.

This test is applicable to all persons who can read English as readily as the average third-grade public school pupil. For persons of less ability to read but of good ability to understand English, the questions may be asked orally in an individual examination. The results obtained when the questions are asked orally should not be compared with the results obtained when the printed test booklets are employed in a group examination. It is very strongly recommended that the test be used primarily as a group test, according to the instructions given here, in order that direct comparisons may be readily made between the results obtained in various places by different examiners.

The present form of the test is a lengthening of the form used in the Army Alpha series. Twenty-four elements are contained in the Mentimeter form, while only sixteen elements were used in the Army form. Another advantage of the present form over the military edition is the more definite attempt at arrangement of the elements in the test according to their difficulty. Having the series graduated in difficulty, from easy to hard, is a distinct advantage, particularly with young or dull persons, who quickly stop trying unless their first efforts are successful.

The use of questions, in the answering of which thoughtful judgment about every-day affairs would be required, has always been a favourite method of discovering the degree of intelligence possessed by a child or by an adult. Binet, the French psychologist who developed the mental age scale for testing feeble-minded subjects, included in his series a number of test questions of this type. The Stanford Revision of the Binet tests includes three such questions in the Eight-Year-Old series, and three other more difficult questions in the Ten-Year-Old list.

The chief modification of the method in adapting it for group testing was the supplying of three or four answers from which the subject should select the correct reply. This change makes the markings of the results quite simple, but it takes from the test itself some of its virtue as a measure of the richness of ideas possessed by the person tested. Instead of having to think out an appropriate answer, one needs only to read the answers printed and to use good judgment in selecting the one to be checked as “best.”

The Mentimeter form of the test, although superior in its length and arrangement to the military version, is nevertheless not yet ideal as an intelligence test. The simplest questions and answers that can be printed are too difficult for first- and second-grade school pupils to read and understand, while the most difficult questions and answers one could devise would not be general enough in their subject matter to be included in a “general intelligence” test. In other words, the range of ability that this test will measure is not so wide as that measured by some other Mentimeter tests, with the result that the speed of reading and of making judgments plays a larger part in determining the final score than it would in a perfect intelligence test. In spite of the large part played by speed, the test is a useful index of ability to learn in certain lines of work where rapid decisions on practical problems are necessary.

It is probable that the Practical Judgment test will be found more useful in the measurement of intelligence among school children and clerical workers than in the classification of general employees, although the reader may find unexpected relationships between this test and certain routine occupations. Reliance should be placed upon it only after it has demonstrated in actual trials that it has a close relationship to the special ability desired.

Its use in social gatherings as a form of entertainment will be greatest where each person marks the papers of some other member of the group and reports the judgments found incorrect. Most persons are surprised, when they come to look over their booklets carefully, to find how many foolish errors have crept into their records while working at high speed. In order to increase the number of imperfect records and thereby add somewhat to the amusement of the group, the examiner may announce and use two minutes as the time limit, and urge everyone to try to work all of the 24 questions in that time. The general confusion will be increased if the examiner signals the end of the first minute and the end of a minute and a half. Under such conditions, of course, no serious use can be made of the results obtained. The score on the test is not to be used seriously except where the instructions and procedure are exactly as specified below.

Directions for Giving the Test.

Candidates should be comfortably seated at a table or supplied with a convenient writing board. A well-sharpened pencil (or pen with ink) should be in the hands of each candidate before any blanks are passed out. The test booklets should then be distributed, the announcement being clearly made beforehand that “no one will be allowed to open the booklet or turn it over until the signal is given to do so.”

When each candidate has been supplied with a test booklet, title page up, the examiner should say: “Now, write your name on the blank following the word Name.” After a pause long enough to allow this direction to be carried out, the examiner should continue with a similar instruction for each of the other pieces of information required by the title page blanks. “Age at last birthday” should be insisted upon, if there is any question of reporting age in any other way. Group numbers and locations may be left blank where only small numbers of persons are being tested and where there is no probability of getting the papers from one place mixed with those from some other place. The name of the school, factory, or city will usually be sufficient for the blank headed “Location.”

After the necessary identifying information has been entered at the top of the title page, the examiner should ask the candidates to read silently the directions while he reads them aloud. He should then read slowly and distinctly:

“The following pages contain 24 questions and 4 answers to each question. You are to vote for the best answer to each question by making a check mark (✓) in the square that stands before it. The questions are not hard, and you will be allowed 3 minutes to check the best answers, but be sure to work carefully and rapidly. Vote only for the one best answer to each question. Turn the page! Go!”

At the end of exactly 3 minutes after saying “Go!” the examiner should call “Stop! Close your booklets and pass them to me.” All papers should be collected at once in order to avoid unfairness and cheating.

1.

What should one do when he is thirsty?

 

☐ Cry until someone gives him a drink.

 

☐ Eat a piece of salt pork.

 

☐ Get a drink of water.

 

☐ Read a Coca Cola advertisement.

2.

Why do children like to eat candy?

 

☐ It makes them fat.

 

☐ It tastes good.

 

☐ It is good for them.

 

☐ It is a cheap food.

3.

What should one do if it is raining when he starts to work?

 

☐ Put on lighter clothing.

 

☐ Wear a raincoat.

 

☐ Call up the office.

 

☐ Stay at home all day.

4.

What is the thing to do when your house catches fire?

 

☐ Try to find out how it started.

 

☐ Ring the alarm and try to put out the fire.

 

☐ Run in the other direction.

 

☐ Watch it burn and calculate your insurance.

5.

What should one do if he accidently steps on someone else’s toes?

 

☐ Call for help.

 

☐ Run for the doctor.

 

☐ Ask the person’s pardon.

 

☐ Take his own part.

6.

Why do the leaves fall off the trees in the autumn?

 

☐ The frost has killed them.

 

☐ To protect the flowers from freezing.

 

☐ To enrich the ground.

 

☐ So that one can see farther.

7.

Why do people wear heavier clothing in January than in June?

 

☐ To protect them from the colder weather.

 

☐ Because it looks better with furs.

 

☐ Everybody else does it, especially in January.

 

☐ It makes a good impression on other people.

8.

Where might one expect to find the largest number of expert swimmers?

 

☐ At the circus.

 

☐ At the beach of a summer resort.

 

☐ At a Sunday School picnic.

 

☐ At a moving picture show.

9.

What should a person do when he is late getting started to work in the morning?

 

☐ Wait until the next day.

 

☐ Think up some excuse to make.

 

☐ Try to make time by hurrying.

 

☐ Blame it on the street cars.

10.

Why do school houses usually have flag-poles?

 

☐ For the boys to exercise on.

 

☐ To show where to have a flag drill.

 

☐ To display the flag and inspire patriotism.

 

☐ To decorate the school yard.

11.

Why does water freeze in winter?

 

☐ It is warm in summer and we need ice.

 

☐ So the children can skate.

 

☐ Water always becomes solid at low temperatures.

 

☐ So it can be put in refrigerators.

12.

What is the best way to stop up a hole by which mice enter the kitchen?

 

☐ Stuff it with paper.

 

☐ Place a pile of rags in front of it.

 

☐ Put a corn cob in it.

 

☐ Nail a piece of tin over it.

13.

Why is milk a good thing to feed young children?

 

☐ It comes from cows that eat fresh grass.

 

☐ It is an easily digested and wholesome food.

 

☐ It is so pure and white to look at.

 

☐ It can be bought in pint or quart bottles.

14.

What kind of light is best for a reading table?

 

☐ A tallow candle.

 

☐ A mercury vapour lamp.

 

☐ A coal oil lantern.

 

☐ An incandescent electric bulb.

15.

What is the purpose of advertising food products?

 

☐ To make people hungry.

 

☐ To decorate street cars and magazines.

 

☐ To make people think about eating.

 

☐ To create a demand for special brands.

16.

Why is harness put on horses?

 

☐ So that their strength may be utilized.

 

☐ So that their beauty will be recognized.

 

☐ To match the colour of the carriage.

 

☐ To keep them warm.

17.

Why do people put food in refrigerators?

 

☐ To get it out of the way.

 

☐ The low temperature keeps it fresh.

 

☐ To help ice men make a living.

 

☐ Because the law requires it.

18.

Why are fire escapes more frequently put on tall buildings than on one-story buildings?

 

☐ A tall building is more likely to burn down.

 

☐ They would spoil the looks of a low building.

 

☐ Low buildings have fire extinguishers.

 

☐ One could jump from one-story buildings.

19.

What should one do with a baby when it cries?

 

☐ Discover and remove the cause of its crying.

 

☐ Spank it and put it to bed.

 

☐ Get it a drink of water and rock its cradle.

 

☐ Give it a bottle of milk or sing to it.

20.

Why is country air considered more healthful than city air?

 

☐ It has fewer impurities in it.

 

☐ Trees and grass grow in the country.

 

☐ More people die in the city.

 

☐ The wind is stronger in the country.

21.

Why do railroads use electric engines in some cities?

 

☐ They run faster than steam engines.

 

☐ They look better than steam engines.

 

☐ To avoid making the city smoky.

 

☐ In order to make less noise.

22.

What is the main purpose of lightning rods?

 

☐ To decorate the roof of the house.

 

☐ To make the lightning strike somewhere else.

 

☐ To show which way the wind blows.

 

☐ To remove the electricity from the air.

23.

What is the safest altitude and speed for flying in an airplane?

 

☐ Low and slowly.

 

☐ Low and rapidly.

 

☐ High and rapidly.

 

☐ High and slowly.

24.

What is the chief purpose of newspaper headlines?

 

☐ To make the paper attractive.

 

☐ To show what actually happened.

 

☐ To help one decide where to read.

 

☐ To guide public opinion wisely.

Directions for Scoring the Test.

The score in this test is the number of questions correctly answered. A stencil is furnished with each package of tests, which makes it possible to check up at a very rapid rate the accuracy of the votes cast, without ever reading a single word of the answers. The stencil is merely to be adjusted to the page, according to directions given on its face, and where the check mark made by the candidate corresponds to the printed mark on the stencil the question has been correctly answered, while if there is not agreement between stencil and candidate’s check no credit is to be allowed on the question. Any fairly careful clerical worker can learn in two minutes to score such a test with a stencil as rapidly and accurately as a thoroughly trained psychologist could do it.

The final score should be entered in the lower right-hand corner of the front or title page, where it will be easily associated with the name and other information about the candidate.

Character of the Test.

This test is to be given to large groups of individuals at the same time, although it may be given as a part of an individual examination. It will not be found worth while to give this test to individuals who have not had at least the equivalent of an elementary school education. The solution of the problems contained is so difficult that not more than half of the pupils of the sixth or seventh grade of the elementary school would be able to answer correctly more than five or six of the problems.

The method of the test is to present a short hypothesis, introduced by the word “if” and followed by four different conclusions introduced by the word “then.” The individual being examined should read carefully the first part of the statement and understand exactly what it means, and should then put a check mark before the conclusion which would logically follow the hypothesis. There are twelve of these problems, beginning with one which is quite simple and elementary, and progressing to more difficult and more complex statements of a similar nature. The explanations by which this test is introduced are illustrated by an example and are not difficult to understand. The difficulty of the test lies in keeping clearly in mind just what are the implications of the introductory statement or hypothesis.

The present test is almost entirely new, both in its form and in its content. The nearest approach to this particular test was made by Dr. Agnes L. Rogers at the suggestion of Professor Thorndike, when she prepared a list of six problems of which the following is a good sample: “P is larger than Q, R is smaller than Q, therefore P is ........ R.” The blank is to be filled in. It will be observed that the present Mentimeter differs from Doctor Rogers’s test in that names of familiar persons or objects are used in place of the capital letters and that four conclusions are stated from which the subject is to select the proper one, rather than leaving to the subject the formulation of his own conclusion.

Because of its newness, it will be impossible to state here just what is measured by this test, but certainly the ability to read and understand the words is one factor, and the ability to think clearly about the logical implications of these words is another very important element making for success. The ability to see the relations between the words is probably as near to what may be called “logical ability” or “reasoning” as to any other popularly recognized “mental qualification.” Although Doctor Rogers found a coefficient of correlation of .65 between her form of the logical reasoning test and a composite measure of mathematical ability, the present Mentimeter is so different that its true value can only be indicated by the comparisons which its users will be able to make between their results and the most accurate measures obtainable of special ability.

This test will probably have very little usefulness in commercial or industrial fields, although it may be very helpful for a professional group such as lawyers, educators, etc., in the selection of clerical or professional assistants. In the public schools, it is quite certain that it should not be used below the high school grades. Even in the high school, it is probable that only those with very great ability in handling abstract ideas and symbols of ideas will be able to make a high score.

The subject matter of those statements which appear in the test is such as would not be found in ordinary life and has very little value in itself. As an entertainment feature, this test will not be successful except among a very specially selected group of people who believe themselves to be extraordinarily keen intellectually. It might be held in reserve as a special “stunt” for any persons who seem to think that they have demonstrated their “high-brow” qualities by making high scores in other tests. Shortening the time limit from five minutes to three minutes would further add to the consternation of such persons.

The examiner should distribute one test booklet to each candidate, announcing at the beginning of the distribution that the booklets should not be opened or turned over until an order to that effect is given. Since the blanks on the front cover of the booklet will be self-explanatory to any person capable of taking the test, the examiner may direct that each candidate fill out the blanks on the title page of his booklet as soon as he receives it.

When the information blanks have been filled satisfactorily the examiner should ask the candidates to read the directions silently while he reads them aloud. This reading should be at a very deliberate rate and in good, clear tones:

“The following pages contain twelve sentences, each sentence being printed with four different endings. Only one of these endings can be true if the first part of the sentence is true. You are to decide which ending or conclusion is truest or agrees best with the first part, and to make a mark in the square standing in front of that best ending. Notice the example:

“If roses cost more than violets, then violets

“The only one of the four endings which can be true, if the first part of the sentence is true, is the third, ‘violets do not cost as much as roses,’ so the square in front of this third conclusion should be check-marked.

“You will have five minutes in which to read and mark the twelve sentences. Think carefully and get all of your marks correctly placed. Ready! Go!”

At the end of five minutes exactly, call “Stop! Time up! Give me your papers.” All papers should be collected at once.

1.

If John is older than James, then John is

 

☐ younger than James

 

☐ older than James

 

☐ not as old as James

 

☐ not older than James

2.

If Mary is younger than Will, then Will is

 

☐ younger than Mary

 

☐ not older than Mary

 

☐ not as old as Mary

 

☐ older than Mary

3.

If Dot is taller than Pet, then Pet is

 

☐ as tall as Dot

 

☐ shorter than Dot

 

☐ not shorter than Dot

 

☐ taller than Dot

4.

If May is heavier than Jean, then Jean is

 

☐ not lighter than May

 

☐ as heavy as May

 

☐ not heavier than May

 

☐ heavier than May

5.

If Walter runs faster than William, and William runs faster than David, then David runs

 

☐ faster than Walter

 

☐ as fast as William

 

☐ as fast as Walter

 

☐ slower than William

6.

If Edna is smarter than Bertha, and Bertha is not as smart as Mabel, then Mabel is

 

☐ not as smart as Edna

 

☐ not as smart as Bertha

 

☐ smarter than Edna

 

☐ smarter than Bertha

7.

If Mr. Jones is wealthier than Mr. Smith, and Mr. Smith is poorer than Mr. Brown, then Mr. Smith is

 

☐ not as poor as Mr. Jones

 

☐ richer than Mr. Jones

 

☐ not as rich as Mr. Jones

 

☐ not poorer than Mr. Jones

8.

If Robert is noisier than Harold and Harold is as noisy as George, then George is

 

☐ not noisier than Robert

 

☐ noisier than Robert

 

☐ noisier than Harold

 

☐ not as quiet as Robert

9.

If Henry drives faster than Joseph, and Joseph drives no more slowly than Peter, and Peter drives more rapidly than Edgar, then Edgar drives

 

☐ as rapidly as Henry

 

☐ no more slowly than Joseph

 

☐ as swiftly as Peter

 

☐ less rapidly than Henry

10.

If Monday was cooler than Wednesday, and Tuesday was cooler than Monday, and Thursday was hotter than Wednesday, then Monday was

 

☐ not hotter than Tuesday

 

☐ not cooler than Thursday

 

☐ not warmer than Thursday

 

☐ cooler than Tuesday

11.

If Mrs. Brown is exactly as extravagant as Mrs. Smith, and Mrs. Smith is less extravagant than Mrs. Jones, then Mrs. Jones is

 

☐ more frugal than Mrs. Brown

 

☐ not as frugal as Mrs. Brown

 

☐ less extravagant than Mrs. Smith

 

☐ not more extravagant than Mrs. Smith

12.

If there were four parades in a month, and the first was larger than the fourth, and the third was smaller than the second, and the second was not smaller than the first, then the fourth was

 

☐ larger than the second

 

☐ equal to the second

 

☐ not smaller than the second

 

☐ not larger than the second

The score in this test is the number of sentences for which the correct conclusion is checked. The stencil furnished with the test booklets makes this process of counting the number correct so simple that a child can do it almost at a glance. The degree of intellectual capacity is indicated roughly by the score as follows:

Attention should be invited here again to the fact that this is a new test and that its reliability and implications will need to be carefully tested and measured before one can be sure what it measures or how accurate it is.