The Journal Of Delinquency

Mental Tests and the Immigrant: Vocabulary Review - Summary of the Investigation

• This research consists of a study focused on six small, highly selected groups of steerage passengers arriving at Ellis Island, specifically four groups of "average normals" and two groups of "apparent defectives."

• The study clarifies that it does not determine the actual percentage of feeble-minded individuals among immigrants in general.

• It establishes that mental tests can be successfully utilized on immigrants, though further study is required to develop a completely satisfactory scale.

• The author expresses a conviction that the intelligence of the average "third class" immigrant is low, possibly of the moron grade.

• If immigrants are classified as morons, two practical questions arise:

  1. Is the defect a result of hereditary factors?

  2. Is the apparent defect due to environmental deprivation?

• The author suggests that if the defect is due to deprivation, little fear should be felt for the children of these immigrants. Even if hereditary, society may still find use for moron laborers if they are properly trained.

Historical Context and Preparation

• In $1912$, Henry H. Goddard was invited to Ellis Island to observe conditions and offer suggestions for a more thorough examination of immigrants to detect mental defectives.

• A preliminary report indicated hope that tests like the Binet-Simon could be effective.

• In the spring of $1913$, funds were provided, and the Vineland laboratory was tasked with a serious study of the situation.

• The investigators faced significant difficulties, as few tests were standardized at the time. The Binet-Simon Scale itself was still in an experimental stage.

• Data presentation was delayed for more than $3$ years because standards for tentative evaluation were only recently established.

Study Design and Methodology

• The study was conducted by two members of the Vineland staff (later joined by a third) over a period of $2.5$ months.

• Approximately $165$ immigrants were tested.

• The selected tests included:

  • Binet-Simon Scale

  • Healy's Construction Tests A and B

  • Adaptation Board

  • Norsworthy Form Board

  • De Sanctis Tests

• The research aimed to answer two primary problems:

  1. Whether persons trained in work with the feeble-minded could recognize immigrants with defects by simple inspection.

  2. To what extent mental tests could be successfully applied to detect defective immigrants.

Participant Selection and Constraints

• Investigator selections for the first question included $39$ cases ($20$ Italians and $19$ Russians) who appeared feeble-minded.

• To address the second question, representative groups were picked: $35$ Jews, $22$ Hungarians, $50$ Italians, and $45$ Russians.

• The sample included children under $12$ years of age ($5$ Jews, $2$ Italians, and $1$ Russian).

• Selection Process:

  • Cases were selected after government physicians had already culled out recognized mental defectives.

  • Obviously high-grade intelligent immigrants were intentionally bypassed.

  • The focus remained on the "great mass of 'average immigrants'."

Implementation: Language and Interpretation

• The work was conducted through interpreters, a factor originally feared to be an insurmountable barrier.

• Experience showed this difficulty was overestimated, as excellent interpreters were secured.

• In the Jewish group, an interpreter was eliminated because the examining psychologist spoke the language. Results for this group were practically the same as others, suggesting interpretation for other groups was satisfactory.

The Binet-Simon Scale Results and Data

• The Scale was used in its entirety with specific exceptions: question $XI^5$, $XV^3$ (code), and Adult tests $1$, $2$, $3$, and $5$.

• Out of a total of $148$ cases across all groups, none passed all the tests, and only $2$ scored as high as a mental age of $12$.

• Detailed Jewish Group Analysis (Mental Age Distribution):

  • Tested at $XII$ years: $1$ case

  • Between $XI$ and $XII$: $4$ cases

  • Between $X$ and $XI$: $12$ cases

  • Between $IX$ and $X$: $8$ cases

  • Between $VIII$ and $IX$: $5$ cases (including $3$ children)

  • Between $VII$ and $VIII$: $3$ cases

Quantitative Intelligence Classifications: First Method (Kohs' Criteria)

• Using Kohs' criteria for normality (considering those above $XI^2$ as normal):

  • Normal: $3$ cases out of $30$ (omitting children).

  • Borderline: $2$ cases (those above $X^8$ and below $XI^3$).

  • Feeble-minded: $25$ cases ($83\%$ of the group).

• Most of the feeble-minded classified as morons, except $3$ cases testing at $VII$, $VII^2$, and $VII^4$.

• Other immigrant groups analyzed via this method yielded similar results.

Quantitative Intelligence Classifications: Second Method (Group Standards)

• In this method, the Scale was adjusted to determine which questions were passed by $75\%$ of the immigrant group to establish a valid standard.

• For the Jewish group, questions were valid up to the first question in age $IX$ (making change), plus $IX^4$, $IX^5$, $X^1$, $X^3$, and $X^4$.

• Results of additional items passed from the remaining $17$ questions:

  • $67\%$ passed at least $4$ tests.

  • The standard was adjusted to allow for a mental age rating of $X$.

• Even with this lenient criterion, more than $40\%$ of the Jewish immigrants (and $39.1\%$ for all groups) failed, classifying them as feeble-minded according to the adjusted definition.

Analysis of Qualitative Test Failures

• Definitions (Age IX): Only $40\%$ passed. Definitions were "by use" rather than category.

  • Example: A table is "something to eat on"; a fork is "to eat with"; a horse is "to ride."

• Dates: Many immigrants were ignorant of the date. Questions arose if this was due to the drudgery of life or the complexities of calendars (e.g., in Russia).

• Design from Memory: Passed by $50\%$. Many had never held a pen or pencil.

• Memory for Six Digits: Passed by $40\%$. Factors included lack of experience with figures and the syllable length of numbers in native tongues (e.g., Russian numbers for "four" are three syllables; in Lithuanian, "four," "seven," "eight," and "nine" are three syllables).

• Sentence Construction: Only $40\%$ could construct a sentence including "Philadelphia, money, and river."

• Vocabulary: Only $45\%$ could give $60$ words in $3$ minutes. Normal $11$-year-olds can give up to $200$ words.

• Rhymes: Given by $40\%$.

• Seven Figures: Repeated by $20\%$.

• Dissected Sentences: Practically no one succeeded; it was omitted from the study.

Findings for Children and Specialized Defective Groups

• Measurements for Children:

  • Jewish group: $5$ children ($11$, $11$, $10$, $9$, $9$); only one (an $11$-year-old testing $VII^2$) was considered feeble-minded.

  • Hungarian: One $12$-year-old tested at $X$.

  • Italian: One $8$-year-old tested at $V^4$; one $4$-year-old tested at $III^2$.

  • Russian: One $6$-year-old tested at $VI^4$.

• Investigation of Apparent Defectives:

  • In groups selected by inspection for defect, results were stark: $94\%$ of Italians and $100\%$ of Russians were confirmed feeble-minded by test.

  • Imbecile rates: $32\%$ of the Italian defective group and $22\%$ of the Russian defective group.

Evaluation of Supplemental Tests: Healy Construction and Form Board

• Healy Construction Test A: Recorded time of completion. Standards established by Dr. Gertrude Hall on $180$ school children were used for comparison.

• Healy Construction Test B (Fernald Board): Time was recorded for the $11$ pieces. Standards used suggested that taking more than $183\,s$ indicated a mental age of less than $10$.

• Form Board: Blocks fitting into specific holes. Considered a test of $9$-year mentality if completed in $18\,s$ ($16.95\,s$ to $18.7\,s$ depending on the authority).

  • Standard by Knox: $20\,s$ for $9$-year test.

  • Standard by Doll: $18\,s$ for $9$-year test; $16\,s$ for $10$-year test.

Performance Standards for Healy and Form Board Tests

• Standard Table: Healy Construction Test A (Hall)

  • Age $VII$: $n=30$, Mean Time = $126\,s$, Range = $63\,s$ to $189\,s$

  • Age $VIII$: $n=30$, Mean Time = $133\,s$, Range = $55\,s$ to $211\,s$

  • Age $IX$: $n=30$, Mean Time = $95\,s$, Range = $26\,s$ to $165\,s$

  • Age $X$: $n=30$, Mean Time = $75\,s$, Range = $17\,s$ to $133\,s$

  • Age $XI$: $n=30$, Mean Time = $48\,s$, Range = $14\,s$ to $82\,s$

  • Age $XII$: $n=30$, Mean Time = $41\,s$, Range = $14\,s$ to $69\,s$

• Standard Table: Form Board (Hall)

  • Age $V$: Average time $33\,s$, Range $20\,s$-$41\,s$

  • Age $VIII$: Average time $19\,s$, Range $16\,s$-$23\,s$

  • Age $IX$: Average time $16\,s$, Range $13\,s$-$20\,s$

  • Age $X$: Average time $15\,s$, Range $13\,s$-$17\,s$

  • Age $XV$: Average time $12\,s$, Range $10\,s$-$15\,s$

Analysis of De Sanctis and Adaptation Board Tests

• De Sanctis Tests: Consist of six questions increasing in logic difficulty.

  • Tests includes questions like: "Are large things heavier or lighter than small things?" and "Do distant things look larger or smaller?"

  • Failures on Question $6$ (the logical Reasoning phase) suggested a lack of mentality, as even those passing all tests only showed a $9$-year mental age.

• Adaptation Board: An $8$-year test involving fitting a block into a specific hole and adapting to the board being turned.

  • Failure on both turns is indicated by $(- -)$.

  • Most immigrants passed, but the defective groups showed failure rates significantly higher than the average groups.

Follow-Up Investigations and Practical Adaptation Studies

• Researchers attempted to locate immigrants $2$ years after their arrival using addresses given at Ellis Island.

• Search was mostly unsuccessful. Of $50$ cases sought, many sponsors had never seen the immigrant since their landing.

• Case Study: R. D.

  • Testing: $VII^2$ mental age.

  • Work history: Served as a chambermaid at a Military Academy in Chester, PA, for over a year and later in a private home.

  • Evaluation: Described as honest, reliable, industrious, and good to children, but exhibited "obstinacy" and a "lack of power of comprehension."

• Net result of follow-up: $2$ cases seen and $3$ heard from, all reported to be "doing well."

Social and Economic Implications of the Findings

• Definition of a Moron: The English Royal College of Physicians defines a moron as "One who is capable of earning his living under favorable circumstances but is incapable from mental defect, existing from birth or from an early age, (a), of competing on equal terms with his normal fellows, or (b), of managing himself and his affairs with ordinary prudence."

• Immigrants often succeed because they perform labor others will not do, thus avoiding true competition.

• Society often treats immigrants with the same patience and supervision required for morons (excusing mistakes due to lack of language or custom knowledge).

• The author notes that while moron parents can be managed, their children become Americanized and lose the "immigrant excuse," potentially becoming a social burden if the parental defect is hereditary.

Heredity vs. Environmental Deprivation

• The study asks if low mentality is due to hereditary defect or deprivation.

• Two factors suggest environmental deprivation is a primary cause:

  1. The environments where immigrants originated are known to be poor.

  2. If it were hereditary, there should be a noticeable increase in foreign-born residents in institutions for the feeble-minded. However, a study showed only $4.5\%$ of inmates in such institutions were of foreign parentage.

• If the defect is environmental, children will be of average intelligence if brought up rightly.

Final Conclusion and Policy Recommendations

• The study demonstrates that testing immigrant mentality is feasible, albeit difficult.

• Dr. Williams reported that deportation of aliens for feeble-mindedness increased by approximately $350\%$ in $1913$ and $570\%$ in $1914$ compared to the previous five-year averages.

• If the public demands it, Congress must provide facilities (room, interpreters, medical officers) to detect and exclude feeble-minded aliens.

• Imbeciles should certainly be deported; the treatment of morons remains a broader social and economic question for society to solve.

Appendix: Verbatim Test Explanations

• Binet-Simon scale: Grade of difficulty from $3$-year-olds to average adults. Problems test native intelligence, not school knowledge. Mental age is determined by comparing subject performance to standards for normal children.

• Healy Construction Test A: Five rectangular blocks of different sizes and same thickness must fit into a rectangular frame ($3\,in \times 4\,in$).

• Healy Construction Test B (Fernald Board): A wooden frame where $11$ interchangeable pieces of different sizes must fill the spaces.

• Form Board: A board with $10$ geometric shapes where the subject puts each block into its hole as fast as possible.

• De Sanctis Tests: Graded series of six tests ranging from identifying a ball to answering logical questions about weight and distance.

• Adaptation Board: A board ($22 \times 28\,cm$) with four holes (three $63\,mm$ diameter, one $65\,mm$). Tests the ability to find the larger hole ($64\,mm$ block) after the board is turned from left to right or back to front.