Personality and Economic Background: A Study of Highly Intelligent Children 9780231887953

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PERSONALITY ECONOMIC

AND

BACKGROUND

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND A Study Highly

of

Intelligent

By H E L E N

H.

Children DAVIDSON

Φ KING'S

CROWN

MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS

1

94 3

PRESS · NEW

YORK

COPYRIGHT 1943 BY HELEN

H.

DAVIDSON

Printed in the United States of A m e r i c a

King's Crown Press is a division of Columbia University Press organized for the purpose of making certain scholarly material available at minimum cost. Toward that end, the publishers have adopted every reasonable economy except such as would interfere with a legible format. The work is presented substantially as submitted by the author, without the usual editorial attention of Columbia University Press.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It is a pleasure to express my gratitude to the many persons who lent their support and assistance to this study. I am especially grateful to my friend and teacher, Professor Irving Lorge, who served as sponsor and whose keen appreciation of the varied problems Involved In this Investigation was invaluable in the planning and completion of the work; to Dr. Bruno Klopfer for introducing me to the Rorschach technique as well as for many valuable suggestions concerning methods of analyzing the Borschach material; to Professor Helen Walker who suggested the statistical analysis used in Part II and who also made many excellent recommendations, in particular, with reference to Chapter V; to Mrs. Rose Kushner, Mrs. Edna Mann, and Mrs. Evelyn Per Iman for innumerable services which lightened the task of completing the study; to the administrators, teachers, and children of the Speyer and Lincoln Schools without whose interest and cooperation this research could not possibly have been carried out; and, finally, to my husband, David Davidson, who made it all poseible. Helen H. Davidson

CONTENTS Part I: THE SETTING OF THE PROBLEM I. DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM . . . . Purpose of the Study . . . . . . . Definitions . . . . . . . . . Personality . . . . . . . . Environment . . . . . . . . personality-in-Environment . . . . Changeable and Stable Personality Characteristics The Concept of Variation . . . . . . Environment . . . . . . . . Personality . . . . . . . . The Concept of Uniformity Environment . . . . . . . Personality . . . . . . . Summary of Concepts and Assumptions Concerning the Nature of Personality . . . . . A Common Assumption Concerning the Influence of . . . . . Environment . . Reason for the Study of Very Bright Children . Researches Related to This Study . . . Hypotheses . . . . . . . II. PROCEDURE Selection of Personality Measures . . . General Personality Structure . . . . The Rorschach Method of Personality Diagnosis Social Attitudes Scale of Beliefs The Minnesota Scale for the Survey of Opinions Activities and Interests . . . . . . . . Interest Index . . Personality and Interest Inventory . . Miscellaneous Questions . . . . Wishes, Greatest Problem, Fears, and Dreams . Ideas About Changing the World . . . School Achievement . . . . . .

3 3 3 3 Im.

6 7 7 7 9 . 9 .10

.11 .12 . 12 .13 . 25 26 .26 .26 . 26 29 29 . 30 .32 .32 .33 .3^ . 35 .35 .36

vili

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Selection of Subjects · . . . . Teatine Program . . . . . Methods of Scoring and Tabulating the Results

. . .

-36 -38 . 38

III. THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS 1+1 Measures of Soci o-Economic Status . . . .1+1 Interrelations Among Measures of Socio-Economic Status Used in Previous Investigations . . .1+3 Factor Analysis of Some Socio-Economic Variables Used in Previous Investigations . . . .1+6 Evaluations Concerning the Different Sociu-Economic

Variables . . . . . . . . . Measures of Socio-Economic Status Studied . . Occupational Rating . . . . . Rental Index . . . . . . . . Income Level . . . . . . . Interrelations Among the Three Measures of SocioEconomic Status: The Selection of Income . IV. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP IN THIS STUDY AS RELATED TO INCOME LEVEL Some Statistics . . . . . . . Sex . . . . . . . . . . Chronological Age . . . . . . Mental Age . . . . . . . Intelligence Level . . . . . . Some Family Characteristics . . . . Number of Children in the Home . . . Parental Status of the Family . . . . Racial and Nationality Background . . . Other Factors in the Home . . . . . The School Situation Outward Appearance and Mnner . . . . Summary . . . . . . . . .

1+8 .52 .52 5^ -56 . 58 62 .62 62 .63 .61+ .65 .65 .65 .66 .67 .68 69 · 71 72

Part II: ANALYSIS OF ASPECTS OF PERSONALITY IN RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND INTRODUCTION Statistical Methodology . The Two School Groups Compared

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. .

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75 -75 -75

TABLE OF CONTENTS

V. THE RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND 8l The Rorschach Method . . . . . . . 81 Description of the Group B°sed on the Rorschach Protocols . . . . . . . .82 Personality Patterns Among Very Bright Children . 8? Degree of Adjustment Among Very Bright Children . 88 Some Specific Personality Traits Among Very Bright Children 97 Summary . . . . . . . . .99 Variation Among the Seven Income Levels . . .100 Selected Patterns of Personality . . . .100 Degree of Adjustment . . . . . .103 Some Specific Personality Traits . . . .105 Summary . . . . . . . . . 107 VI. ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT Social Attitudes Attitudes Toward One's Family, Feelings of Morale and Inferiority . . . . . . . School Interests and Achievement . . . Subject Matter Preferences . . . . School Achievement . . . . . . . School Preference after Hifrh School . . Some Out-of-School Interests . . . . . . . . . . Games Liked Best Types of Books Liked Best . . . . Newspapers Read - Part Liked Best . . . Magazines Preferred . . . . . Occupational Preference . . . . . Some Activities . . . . . . . Preferred Daily Activities . . . . 0ut-of-School Pursuits in Art Leisure Time Activities . . . . . Vacation Time Activities . . . . . Summary . . . . . . . VII. WISHES, IDEAS ABOUT CHANGING THE WORLD, GREATEST PROBLEM, FEARS, AND DREAMS Wishes

109 109 113 .115 .115 117 .119 .121 .121 .1?? .12U .129 .130 .13? .133 135 .136 .lUO

lJ+5 .1^5

X

PERSONALITY Ideas

about

Fears

.

Greatest Dreams

Chardin,-·"! t h e

World.

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Summary VIII.

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Problem

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AND ECONOMIC

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.158

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. l6U

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SUMMARY AND I M P L I C A T I O N S Summary The Plan

of

the the

Conclusions Interpretation

1

6

6 169

Research

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Experiment

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.171

Problem of

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BACKGROUND

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Implications

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.APPENDIX

180

BIBLIOGRAPHY

l8l

Part I THE SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

Chapter I DEFINITION

AND

SETTING

OF

THE

PROBLEM

Human society is composed of persons, material objects, and conditions. It is baaed on the relationships between the persons composing it and those objects and conditions which have a bearing upon their lives. The more complex society is, the more important it is to understand the nature of these relationships, notably so, in a democratic society which aims to furnish "an environment in which every individual can be and ie stimulated to exert himself to develop his own unique personality, limited only by eimilar rights of others." (99)1 It is with the object of gaining some knowledge of the effect of environmental background on certain aspects of personality that the present study was undertaken. Purposes of the Study The purposes of the present study are: 1. To describe the personality characteristics and social backgrounds of a selected group of children all of high intelligence, living in the same general culture area but differing in their socio-economic backgrounds. 2. To determine whether or not socio-economic status is a significant source of variation in certain aspects of personality, that is, to compare the variation among groups of highly Intelligent children differentiated with respect to their social backgrounds. Definitions Personality In this study, personality is defined as the organization, within the individual, of some psychological and physical traits which manifest themselves in the individual's reaction 1. Numbers in parentheses refer to entries in the bibliography at the end of the book.

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PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

to his environment. The personality traite investigated, in this study are social attitudes, interests, activities, wishes, fears, dreams, and school achievement as revealed in standardized tests and questionnaires. In addition, the Rorschach Method of Personality Diagnosis was used to study such general traits of personality as introversive and extratensive tendencies, emotional control and spontaneity, and social and personal adjustments. Personality per Be is not measured in this study; it is aspects or traits of personality as revealed by the scores on tests and questionnaires that are used. Such scores serve as indicators rather than measures of certain aspects of personality. Environment In environment is included all external factors and conditions which are within the field of the individual. Since environment is so highly complex, many difficulties in appraisal arise. In the present investigation, environment is defined as the childte socio-economic statue as measured by the family's income level. Of course, the economic factor reflects as well as influences all other environmental conditions. The degree to which the economic factor is influential in this respect is discussed in Chapters III and IV. Personal!ty-in-Environment To deal with personality or environment discreetly is not fully meaningful. Environment, as revealed in socio-economic status, must be considered as the background against which personality develops and in which it emerges. Personality and environment are mutually interacting forces. The actual data of personality study, according to G. and L. B. Murphy (72, pp. 876; 883) are those reciprocal relations obtaining between the organism and the field in which the organism finds itself. Such reciprocal relationships they refer to as an "organiam-in-environment" unit. In agreement with this view, Dollard (21, p. 8) stresses that personality problems do not exist by themselves alone but that "personality problems are always culture-personality problems." Two of the seven criteria for the life-history as set forth by Dollard relate to this

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

S

point: (l) "The subject must be viewed, as a specimen in a cultural series"; and (2) "the 'social situation' must be carefully and continuously specified as a factor." Murray (73, p. 39) lists the following item as one of his general postulates for the study of an individual : Since, at every moment, an organism is within an environment which largely determines its behavior, and since the environment changes..., the conduct of an individual cannot be formulated without a characterization of each confronting situation, physical and social.... Finally, the assimilations and integrations that occur in an organism are determined to a large extent by the nature of its closely previous, as well as by its more distantly previous, environments.... Thus, much of what is now inside the organism was once outBlde. For these reasons, the organism and its milieu must be considered together.... L. B. Murphy (72) in her study of sympathetic behavior in young children points out that the personalities of these children are defined by the general culture background in which they live as well as by the specific situations in which they find themselves, admitting nevertheless the influence of constitutional differences. Interesting instances are given of how the children are influenced by the behavior patterns of the teacher; how their behavior varies according to whether they are in contact with a group of children homogeneous with respect to age, younger or older; how they react to the demands of the general culture. Sherman and Henry (90, pp. 198-99) in their study of children in the isolated environment of valley towns in a mountain region found that the personalities of these children even at the age of ten and twelve were so similar that it was difficult to differentiate them by the customary tests. These children had few ambitions, few worries, few desires, and little diversity of interests as compared with children living in a more complex and competitive environment. It is thus generally agreed that studies of personality are fully meaningful only as they consider the environmental setting. The most significant aspect of this setting is thought by many to be the way an individual earns his living, and the real wages thereby obtained. G. and L. B. Murphy and Newcomb (72,

6

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

pp. 886-87) emphasize this point when they say that "for most persons, most of the time" the way they earn their living determines for them their social values. R. and H. Lynd ( 6 3 , p. 7 ) report that "who one is, whom one knows, how one lives, what one aspires to be -- these and many other urgent realities of living are patterned for one by what one does to get a living and the amount of living this allows one to buy." Since earning a living is a dominant problem in American life, personality will be determined in part by the kind of economic possibilities open to the individual. For example, the son of a Middletown retailer will develop many qualities in his personality which will be peculiar to his economic position in contrast to the personality which is likely to be characteristic of a Negro boy in Dollard's Alabama town (22) whose economic opportunities will be limited not only by class lines but by rigid caste lines as well. It becomes important, then, for the psychologist to understand group or class differences in personality so that the significance of individual differences within each class may be more adequately analyzed. To the extent that values of social, occupational, and economic classes differ, one might expect to find modal personality patterns which are characteristic of each of these groupe. To the extent that these values are similar, one might expect uniformity in personality patterns among social classes. Personality, in large part, then, must be understood in terms of the social situation. It is only within such a frame of reference that personality differences become fully meaningful. Changeable and Stable Personality Characteristics It seems reasonable to assume that there are stable elements in the structure of one's personality. Such stable components of personality appear to be of two kinds: (l) those aspects which are closely related to bodily structure and function, and (2) those traits which have become more consistent and habitual with age. To these more stable elements of personality may be added what Plant ( 8 2 , p. 7*0 calls the "rest of the personality." This includes a wide and ever-changing assortment of wishes,

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

7

interests, and. attitudes which are determined by the general culture and by specific cultural influences. Likewise, they may be readily changed by changes in the social situation. In the present study both the more stable aspects of personality as well as the more changeable aspects are to be considered. The Concept of Variation Since the task of the present research is to account for same of the variations in personality in terms of certain variations in the environment, it is important, at this Juncture, to clarify the concept of variation in both personality and environment. Environment The tremendous variation in environmental circumstances which exists in the United States today is set forth in one of the White House Conference reports, "The Young Child in the Home" (1, Ρ- 23): The evidence for the existence of differential environments so far as the child is concerned is overwhelming. When the population is divided on the basis of socio-economic status and the practices of the resulting groups are studied in detail, a picture ìb obtained of a society composed of a series of cultures, each of which is fairly distinct from but overlaps the one immediately below and immediately above it and all of which seem to be arranged in a linear series. Personality Variability in human personality includes for the present purpose both inter-individual variability and intra-indivi dual variability. Relevant are three statements formulated by L. B. Murphy (72, pp. 27^-75) which will be used in the following discussion: First, there la the variation in personality which is a result of greatly variant cultures, or as expressed by Murphy, "the range of variability possible for individuals generally is limited by culture." There are many evidences of this kind of variation in anthropological literature. For example, the be-

8

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC

BACKGROUND

havior2 of adolescents in Samoan civilization is markedly different from the behavior of adolescents in Western civilization; the personality of a child growing up in an urban "competitivecooperative" culture of the United States today differs from the personality of a child growing up in an "hostile" Pilaga Indian culture. From these and other examples, it is apparent that the range of human behavior is undoubtedly much greater than is observed in any one culture. Second, there is the variation in personality brought about by the existence of "sub-cultures"3 within a culture, as exemplified by the characteristic personality of a lower class Negro in contrast to the characteristic personality of a higher class Negro; or the personality of a banker's son in contraet to the personality of the son of an unskilled factory hand. L. B. Murphy states this kind of variation in the following way: "The extent to which the ranges of individuals overlap one another is also a product of culture." The amount of overlapping will depend a great deal on the flexibility with which caste and class lines are drawn within a particular culture. Such variation is of particular concern in the present study. In addition to the variability in personality of the general culture and of the specific cultural kind there is a third constituent of variability in human personality attributable to

constitutional differences among individuals and to difference in specific life experiences. Admitting constitutional differences, Murphy suggests the following: "The dominant trends within this range of behavior of an individual child are the product of the particular social pressure and culture patterns which are pressed most deeply upon him." These variations, if they could be isolated and Btudied, might throw some light on the dynamics of personality differences among children in the same family, or among children living in the same "sub-culture, " 2. Behavior and personality are used synonomously in this s e c t i o n . 3. The concept "sub-cultures" is used by R. Linton (The Study of Man, p. 475) as f o l l o w s : "These environmental d i f f e r e n c e s deriving from economic status extend f a r beyond mere matters of food, clothing and housing. The members of d i f f e r e n t economic l e v e l s in a s o c i e t y usually have d i s t i n c t i v e habits and a t t i t u d e s . . . . In groups which are frankly class-organized the d i f f e r e n c e s between the classes are o f t e n so pronounced that i t is not unj u s t t o say that these classes have d i s t i n c t sub-cultures."

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

9

or of variations in the behavior of the same individual in different situations, and at different times. If the environment is composed of "sub-cultures" not rigidly bounded (in this study, income level) it may be expected that there will be considerable overlapping rather than distinct modes in personality characteristics. Differences, therefore, among the groups will have to be sought not so much in averages but more in the ranges of individual personalities. If, on the other hand, the environment is composed of rigidly defined "subcultures," the resulting personality trends may be expected to be more distinct with less overlapping among the several groups. It is, therefore, the plan in this investigation to consider two aspects of the problem: (l) the uniformity and variability in personality patterns and traits, in degree of adjustment, in interests, attitudes, wishes and echool achievement present among the sub-cultures and (2) the range of individual variation in these same aspects within each of the sub-cultures. The Concept of Uniformity Environment In analyzing a culture, two forces must be considered; one, the general influences which are common to all persons living within a single culture; second, the specific influences which are different for each individual. The latter make for diversity in personality characteristics and have been emphasized in the preceding section. This section concerns itself with the unifying forces in society which reflect themselves in similar personality patterns among the constituent members of the society. Such a unifying force in contemporary American society, for example, is the competitive spirit fostered in school and in adult life. One of the best illustrations of a unifying force (or a general cultural trend) on personality is found in L. B. Murphy's study (72, p. 252). This author found a relationship (expressed by a correlation of Ο Λ Ο ) between aggressive behavior and sympathetic behavior in her group of two to four year old children, i.e., the more sympathetic child is also likely to be the more aggressive child. Murphy suggests that these children are gener-

10

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

ally responsive children but the way they respond, i β determined by the cultural demands of their society which in this particular situation called for both cooperative and competitive behavior. Personality The above illustration of the responsiveness of individuals to their culture demonstrates that there are unifying trends or forces in a eociety which influence the constituent individuals or, looked at from another angle, that individuala confronted with the same social situation tend to react in a similar way. Even in separated and distinct cultures, human beinge reveal a certain amount of similarity in personality (69). In the general culture of the United States which may be considered to permeate all levels of society, it can be expected that the members of the society will shov some cammunality of needs, of response patterns, and of susceptibility to stimulation. According to Dollard (22), who studied the relationship between social structure and personality in a town in the deep South, all men in the β ame situation tend to develop essentially the same feelings. (Substantially the same idea was implied in Murphy's interpretati on mentioned above.) This being the case, Dollard maintains that any one individual is a good sample of his culture, that it is quite possible to obtain from one person a picture of the culture or community in which he lives because every culture leaves its imprint on the individual. In this belief, he is supported by Shaw (88) who uses an individual case to illustrate the association between delinquency and environmental conditions. Shaw believes that his single caee is typical of many such cases since the individual is "intrinsically a specimen of any group of which he is a member. " Despite the interesting hypotheses of Dollard and Shaw that one case, properly selected, would be representative of an entire culture, the present writer holds such procedure open to same question. In any event, a number of Individuai s will give a better representation of each "sub-culture."

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

11

Summary of Concepta and Assumptions Concerning the Nature of Personality The assumptions concerning the nature of personality are rarely explicitly stated by investigators. They are, at heat, implied from the nature of the materials and the methods employed. For example, if one ia attempting to construct a teat of suggéstibility, a specific trait of suggestibility is naturally assumed. On the other hand, if one is concerned with the general tendency to react in an outgoing way rather than in an ingoing way, the assumption is made that there is some consistency In the general behavior of an individual in this respect which is ε. part or function of his personality. The concepts and assumptions concerning the nature of personality which are utilized in the present study are: (1) It is neceeaary in the study of personality to consider aspects or components of personality. When these aspects or components recur consistently in an individual's behavior, they may be considered to be traits of hie personality. Further, there are many traits which are common to special groups within any culture which enable the investigator to make comparisons between groups. (2) The various aspects or componente of personality are interrelated and form patterns or configurations. (3) Traits are a function of constitutional differences, early experiences, and existing environmental situations and pressures. (It) The stability of different aspects of personality varies. (5) There is some uniformity in behavior, or congruence among personality characteristics. There ie also uniformity in behavior among persons living in the same culture. (6) Both uniformity and variability in personality, in part, reflect general and specific cultural influencée. The terra "trait" covers such concepts as "needa," "motives," "drives," which other psychologists have used to describe the essential elementa or components of personality. Rarely is the question raised nowadays as to whether personality is the product of heredity or of environment or of how much of the observed variance in personality is due to heredity and how much to environment. Nor is this of concern in the present investigation which aims to study the effects of dif-

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PERSONALITY ANO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

ferential environments, aß determined, by economic statue, on the personality of bright children, as observed at the time of this experiment. A Common Assumption Concerning the Influence of Environment Environmental influence has long been an interesting area of investigation. A variety of specific elements in the environment have been studied in relation to a variety of specific aspects of personality or kinds of behavior and the degree of relationship noted. More recently, investigators have preferred to study, vhere possible, the "total environment" and its effect on the "total personality." Having obtained the evidence, the kind of conclusion one draws seems to depend a great deal on one's bias with regard to the Importance of the hereditary factors as opposed to the environmental factors. However, the evidence obtained from some of the more recent studies indicates that the Influence of the environment is variable -- depending on what aspect of human personality Is being considered. Environmental influence appears to be least on physical characteristics, somewhat greater on mental and educational characteristics, and considerably greater on what is commonly referred to as personality characteristics (75, pp. 352-53). Season for the Study of Very Bright Children In order that the results of this study might be as unequivocal as possible, It was essential to select children whose intelligence levels cover a fairly limited range. Interest is not to be centered on the factor of intelligence as one of the determinants of personality but rather on whether children, all of approximately the same intellectual level, are subject to the same or a different set of influences because of differences in economic backgrounds. Aside from the practical reason of availability, or from the human or social interest, the use of very bright children serves a significant purpose. Sensitivity to environmental Influences varies considerably in different Individuals. It seems to be generally agreed that bright individuals are especially sensitive to their environ-

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

13

ment. According to Thorndike, brighter individuale profit more from educational experience. A similar thought is expressed b y Levin who says that a gifted child creates a favorable environment for himself. Jennings, too, has made the point that the personalities of dull people are determined relatively more b y their heredity than bright people for the latter learn to adJust with ease and great delicacy to their environments (45). Assuming, then, a greater sensitivity in bright individuals, it will be interesting to note whether or not the inferior environments or the privileged environments of these bright children will have a significant influence o n their personalities. I n a sense, these children have evidenced their ability to succeed by their success in school and b y their high ratings on intelligence tests. Will this ability also be revealed in satisfactory personality adjustment, in varied interests, in normal wishes and activities -- or, must a price be paid somewhere along the line for the deprivations or advantages of their environments? Researches Related to This Study Those investigations pertaining to the influence of environment on intelligence, mental and physical development m a y readily be set aside as only remotely bearing u p o n the main concern of this study. Somewhat more closely related are those studies dealing with the influence of environmental factors on psychopathic states (2U; M·; 6k),4 on delinquency (88; 89f and 4. P a r i s and Dunham find a d e f i n i t e relationship between types of neighborhoods in the City of Chicago and types of psychoses. For example, the highest r a t e of incidence of paranoid schizophrenia was found in the rooming house area; c a t a t o n i c schizophrenia in immigrant areas ; manic-depressive psychoses in areas of higher r e n t a l s . J a f f e and Shanas's study indicate t h a t f o r every age group from 15 years on t o 75 and over and for seven types of psychoses, the chances of a poorer p e r son being admitted to a h o s p i t a l f o r the insane are g r e a t e r . itolzberg s t a t e s : " . . . i t appears c l e a r t h a t economic f a c t o r s , whether primary or not, do a c t as i n c i t i n g and p r e c i p i t a t i n g i n f l u e n c e s i n f u n c t i o n a l mental disorders." 5. Shaw in h i s study of delinquency s t a t e s : "The f i r s t and perhaps most s t r i k i n g f i n d i n g . . . is t h a t there are marked v a r i a t i o n s in the r a t e of school t r u a n t s , j u v e n i l e d e l i n q u e n t s , and a d u l t criminals between areas in Chi-

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PERSONALITY

AND ECONOMIC

on v a r i o u s kinds of b e h a v i o r problems

BACKGROUND

(l6;

33; Ό ;

46;

9Ό·6

The researches which are summarized in this section deal specifically with aspects of personality or with personality adjustment as related to environmental conditions. For the sake of brevity and clarity, the nature and results of these inquiries are presented in five tables divided according to the major aspect of personality studied. The studies in each table are arranged in alphabetical order according to author. The findings are stated as far as possible in the author's own words. A general conclusion based on the findings of the researches ie included in the body of the text. That there is a definite and clear-cut relationship between personality adjustment and the economic statue of the family is seen in all the studies presented in Table 1, with one exception. Although there is a wide variation in the kind of data used: case histories, observation, neighborhood surveys, tests, cago." These variations r e f l e c t differences in cormunity backgrounds. High rates occur in deteriorated areas. Shaw again finds a close relationship between social background and persona l i t y formation in his intensive study of a delinquent boy's autobiography. e . Coleman states that " . . . i n a l l the twelve points of comparison, things which are usually considered as adding to the cultural advantages of the home — that is, a desirable residential location, piano, radio, v i c t r o l a , telephone,..." were found more frequently in the hones of problem children than in the homes of non-problem children. Hurlock and Sender reveal that teachers reported a loss of interest in school and friends in (32 per cent, and i n s t a b i l i t y in 75 per cent of the girls from poor neighborhoods; among those from better homes, loes of interest in school and friends was reported in only 17 per cent and instability in only 26 per cent of the g i r l s . Jersild and Markey find that children of low socio-economic status, a t tending a day nursery, exhibited more c o n f l i c t behavior than did two groups of nursery school children of high socio-economic status. The nature of the c o n f l i c t behavior also d i f f e r e d — there being more direct hitting, snatching, pushing ahead when taking turns and spanking among the poor children. Hartshorne arri May report that dishonest children had more environmental handicaps than honest children. Springer using the Haggerty-Olson-Wickman Behavior Rating Schedules concludes that "behavior adjustment is closely related to the general social status of the individual. The children who come from good, middle class hemes make better and more satisfactory adjustments, while those from a poor general social level, show more maladjustment and undesirable personal characteristics."

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

15

inventories, and questionnaires, and although the kinds of populations studied also varied greatly -- yet, the results are consistently in the same direction. Even in the one exception, (Francis and Fillmore), adjustment was more favorable in the case of the richer children hut the difference was not statistically significant and so the authors concluded that parental attitude was the more important factor in adjustment. Iif another instance, (Meitzer), the children of the middle class seemed to show better personality development than either the poorer or the richer children. Favorable scores on some of the personality traits studied in the investigations presented in Table 2, such as aggressiveness, dominance, self-sufficiency, etc., show a slight relationship to socio-economic status. The trend, however, is always in favor of the economically more privileged who are more dominant, more self-sufficient, and more sociable. In the studies dealing with psychoneurotic traits, there is unanimous agreement in the evidence indicating a marked association between socio-economic status and emotional stability -the better the socio-economic status, the greater is the emotional stability. In one study, (Carpenter and Eisenberg), there is a suggestion that intelligence may be an important determinant of the kind of behavior problem most frequently found -- emotional and personality problems being more prevalent in the case of those with high intelligence regardless of economic status. The few studies available in the area of social attitudes (Table 3) reveal varying results, although there does appear to be a slight tendency for persons of lower economic Btatus to be more radical. In one study, the middle income groups appear most radical. The results of one investigation indicate that wealthier children show more highly developed moral ideas. Wishes of children (see Table U) seem to be conditioned by vhat they can expect to obtain; those of the economically underprivileged express wishes for specific material objects whereas the wealthier children express wishes concerning general and inclusive benefits for self and others. The wishes of the underprivileged are often expressed in the subjunctive mood. Elderly people who are economically underprivileged wish for material

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I

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

21

things and benefits for self and relatives while those economically better off express a greater number of philanthropic wishes. Fears and worries seem to appear in all groups of children except that the kind of worry and the type of thing feared is often different in the well-to-do and poor groups. Dreams are more frequent among the poorer children probably due to unsatisfactory sleeping conditions and more frequent morie experience. The number of studies are too few in this area to warrant the drawing of a general conclusion concerning the relationship between economic status and fears, worries, wishes or dreams. The findings of the few studies relating to the specific factor of school achievement (Table 5) indicate some degree of association between better socio-economic circumstances and higher achievement in school, and on standard achievement tests. In one study (Hellman) the contribution made by socio-économie status to the variation in school achievement was very amali compared to the factor of intelligence. In general, the evidence from these investigations seeme to indicate that social background conditions certain aspects of personality, as social attitudes, fears, dreams, worries, school achievement, degree of adjustment, neurotlcism, and even psychopathic Btatee. However, the results cannot be taken as certain proof for diverse reasons: the number of cases employed are generally few and selected; the methods used are questionable; the Intellectual factor (so significant In personality) is rarely controlled; the results are often presented without regard for possible similarities among groups revealed in ranges rather than in means or in correlation coefficients. Further, the data on insanity and delinquency must be considered in view of the fact that the wealthy can prevent their social deviates from getting into institutions. These results, therefore, are suggestive rather than demonstrative. If the results of the present research, using improved methods of personality evaluation with a group of children whose range in I.Q.'s Is limited, are similar, this would be an

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Table 5 Previous Research Belated to School Achievement

Author and Date

Findings

Character of Sample

Cuff, Ν. B. (18)

25$ of a group of college Sims Socio-Economic freshmen who made the Score Card. highest scholarship grades and 25$ who made the lowest were compared. (About 378 students in all.)

36$ more of those in Mie highest quarter in scholarship grades have dental work done; 52$ more owned an automobile; 20$ had more books in the home; 20$ more belonged to dues-paying organizations — than did those in the lowest quarter in scholarship grades.

Engle, T. L. (23)

Three groups of high school students of 115 each representing under privileged families, "better" families and a random sample of the remaining families — in a Michigan city of 26,000.

Average grades for

"The average marks ... indicate that the under-privileged group falls below the random group, and the random group, in turn, below the privileged group in all classes of subjects. It is of special interest to note that even in vocational subjects the pupils freni privileged homes made better marks than the pupils from under-privileged homes. "

Hellman, J. D. (35)

8 2 8 10-year old children in the Denver schools.

Questionnaire filled out by parents on home conditions; Stanford Achievement tests given to children.

"Our results show that probably 50$ of the variation in educational age was due to such hereditary factors as had been measured (I.Q.); less than 1 of the variation to school training; not over 1$ to the socio-economic status of the home; and about 36$ to such hereditary and environmental factors as had not been accounted for. "

Lichtenstein, M. and Brown, A. W. (59)

All children in grades 4-6 in four schools in a deteriorated area in the city of Chicago (location is adjacent to central business district).

Modern School Achievement test.

The median educational grades for this area as compared with the established norms are: Grade

Established Norms

This Area

h

h.6

3.5

5.6

6.6 Sarbaugh, M. E. (86)

150 superior high school seniors in Buffalo, New York, selected on the basis of Regent's examinations and mental tests.

Environmental data secured by interviews with parents and students plus a student questionnaire .

k.l k.6

High school seniors who achieve successfully in school represent a high degree of selection so far as economic status Is concerned. Homes are definitely superior for these 15O seniore and all are strikingly similar so far as cultural factors are concerned.

DEFINITION AND SETTING OF THE PROBLEM

25

important demonstration in terma of social needs for education; if, on the other hand, the results are negative, no definite conclusion could be drawn for a number of possible reasons; the high intellectual ability may serre as a compensating force, the children are not old enough to have experienced the distinctions resulting from economic differences, the school has a levelling influence. Hypotheses In view of the foregoing, the following hypotheses were postulated: 1. That socio-economic statue conditions personality considered in terms of: personality pattern, degree of adjustment, some specific personality traits, attitudes, interests, activities, wishes, fears, dreams, worries, and school achievement. 2. That differences in socio-economic status react differentially upon various aspects of the personality.

Chapter II

PROCEDURE Selection of Personality Measures The personality measures selected for the purpose of testing the hypotheses proposed were: The Borschach Method of Personality Diagnosis Scale of Beliefs (PEA Tests l*.ll and ^.12) The Minnesota Scale for the Survey of Opinions Interest Index (PEA Test 8.2a) Hildreth's Personality and Interest Inventory Miscellaneous Questionnaire New Stanford Achievement Test1 Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale2 General Personality Structure The Rorschach Method of Personality Diagnosis Since the purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that variations in the personality of bright children are, in part, due to variations in socio-economic status, a personality measure was needed which would he free of items measuring differences in socio-economic status rather than the effect of such differences on personality. An example of such an item in a personality test is : "I like to spend my vacation at some quiet place."3 If answered truthfully, and if the respondents all had fairly similar experiences, this item might well "be a measure of an aspect of personality. But, on the other hand, if the respondents did not all have similar experiences in this respect, responses to this item would he meaningless with 1. Administered by the school authorities as part of the regular testing program. 2. The Binet examination was conducted by Dr. Leta S. Hollingworth for the majority of the children of Speyer School and by Dr. Gertrude Hildreth for the majority of the children of Lincoln School. 3. Prom Pintner, et al., Aspects

of Personality,

World Book Company, 1937.

PROCEDURE

27

regard to personality differenc 68 · η further serious shortcoming of the usual paper and pencil tests of personality is the fact that the experimenter haB no way of knowing whether responses are truthful, false, or possibly facetious. This point is of special significance here because the children of this experiment are not only mentally superior hut also "test-wise." Other shortcomings of personality tests and particularly the relationship between some personality tests and intelligence are summarized by Lorge ( 6 2 ) . The Rorschach Method of Personality Diagnosis was chosen because: (l) differences in social backgrounds probably do not directly influence the results, (2) subjects are not likely to suspect the nature of the task since many consider it to be a test of imagination, and (3) it is a current projective technique favorably received by psychiatrists, psychologists and educators. Detailed description of the nature of the method, the manner of procedure, and the basis of interpretation, have been outlined eleewhere (1+; 51; 8U). However, these aspects of the test which are of importance in the present study are briefly indicated below. The questions of reliability and standardization have been studied and affirmed by many students of the method (36; 38; 79; 109; 110). As an indication of the reliability of the method, data are offered on the results of two Rorschach tests given to forty-six bright children exactly one year apart.4 The records are remarkably consistent in many respects even to the phrasing of the responses. Pearson correlation coefficients between first and second tests for five of the Rorschach scoring categories (number of total responses, R; number of whole responses, W; number of large detail responses, D; number of form responses, F; number of human movement responses, M) ranged from .'yk to . 8 3 . Whatever the test ia measuring, it seems to be measuring it consistently over an interval at least as long as one year. This becomes even mare striking when one considers that these children are around eight to twelve years of age and maturing rapidly. 4. Lorge, I., and Davidson, H.H., unpublished svxiy.

28

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Its validity in the sense that it is possible to differentiate among psychopathic groups, and among neurotic, normal, and psychopathic groups has been proven in many studies (20; 78; 8j; 108). Remarkable agreement exists among Rorschach experts who attempt to interpret "blindly" the same record (39) as well as agreement between Rorschach interpretations and clinical records (5; 6). Just what is being measured also appears to be quite well established. The test gives a description of personality in terms of the following broad categories: I. What uee le being made of the subject's intellectual capacity; is he working above or below it; is he ambitious beyond his capacity; or is he lacking in ambition and falling short? II. What are the qualitative characteristics of his thinking process? a. DoeB he do better with abstract or concrete materiale? b. Is his thinking predominantly analytical or synthetic? Is it hypercritical, crude or uncritical? c. Does his thinking show originality as well as the ability to think along the lines of other people? Does he lack common sense and show little contact with reality? III. Are his interests narrow or wide? IV. What is his emotional responsiveness? How adequate is hie control? Is he constricted? Impulsive? V. Does he tend to be introverted or extra verted? VI. What is his attitude toward himself? Is he emotionally mature, or repressed, at ease with himself or hostile toward himself? VII. What is his attitude toward his surroundings? Does he feel secure or insecure in hie social relations? Is he shut-in and indifferent or very sensitive to his surroundings? VIII. In addition, it is possible from Rorschach protocole to check on such emotional traitB as aggressiveness, impulsiveness, tact, self-reliance, independence, anxiety, and so on. It should be recognized that the Rorschach does not reveal the way an individual will behave in particular situations. Two persone, as every psychologist knows, may behave similarly in the

PROCEDURE

29

same situation for entirely different reasons. For example, in a stimulating social situation involving many people and much argument, the one individual will enter the discussion because he is a generally responsive person, sensitive to his surroundings, and at home with himself, while the other will also enter the discussion, because he forces himself to do so; he may be a compulsive, rigidly controlled individual incompatible within himself and insecure in his social relatione. The behavior of two may be outwardly fairly similar but the structure upon which this behavior depende may be entirely different. The Rorschach emphasizes the underlying structure of the personality and not the manifest behavior. However, there is, for most people, an evident correspondence between structure and behavior. Valuable as the Rorschach is in interpreting personality, there are still other facets of personality, not revealed by the Rorschach, which are important for this study. With the main hypothesis in mind that economic circumstance influences one's personality, a number of tests and questionnaires were reviewed for the purpose of selecting those that would make known aspects of personality which might be modified by one's economic situation. The following tests and questionnaires were chosen. Social Attitudes Scale of Beliefs (Tests 11 and 4.12) developed and published by the Progressive Education Association, Evaluation in the Eight Year Study, Chicago, Illinois. The test consists of two parts (U. 11 and 4.12) each part containing sixty-seven questions relating to social issues centering about the democratic rights of individuals, democratic proceeeea, industrial relatione, functions of government, tolerance toward Negroes, war and peace. They are classified and scored under the six headings: Democracy, Economic Relationships, Labor and Unemployment, Race, Nationalism, and Militarism. The two parts which are administered on separate days are for the purpose of measuring consistency. Subjects are requested to respond to each question by indicating agreement, disagreement, uncertainty. All the responses are scored in terms of liberalism, conservatism, and uncertainty. For the purpose of the test, liberalism means concern for human

30

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

welfare, and. democratic processes, racial tolerance of Negroes, acceptance of democracy in industrial relations, etc. Conservatism means agreement with statements which deny certain human and democratic rights, or which affirm special privilege, autocratic procedures, racial intolerance of Negroes, etc. Examples of items in Tests U.ll and k.12 with the liberal position indicated and the area in which the item appears sire listed below. The government should provide insurance against accidents, sickness and old age. (Economic Relations) Agree Strikes do nothing tut hurt bueinees, BO they should not be allowed. (Labor and Unemployment) Disagree Communists should not be given relief.(Danocracy) Disagree Negro art and music have contributed a great deal to American culture. (Race) Agree Men in peaceful occupations have done more for our nation than have military leaders. (Militarism) Agree This test, although not completely standardized, was selected because of its adaptability for children of the age level of thie study. As far as the writer knows there are no adequately standardized attitude tests suitable for children of this particular age range (upper elementary and Junior high). Although the children are mentally superior, it was felt that the tests available for the senior high school level would be too difficult for the younger members of the group. In addition, this test is being generally used by the more progressive schools in the country. The Minnesota Scale for the Survey of Opinions developed by Rundquist and Sletto is reported by them in "Personality in the Depression" (85). The test consists of aix scales of which four were used in this study; the economic conservatism scale, the family scale, the morale scale, and the inferiority scale, omitting the law and education scales. Each scale consists of twenty-two items to which the pupil responds by underlying one of five positions: strongly agree (S.A.), agree (A), undecided (Uj, disagree (Dj, strongly disagree (S.D.) which are arbitrarily given the values of one to five; three always being the undecided position and a low score in all the scales is indicative of better adjustment according to the key.

PROCEDURE

31

Examples of items in each of the four scales and the scores assigned to the various positions will serve to give the reader a clearer idea of what the different Bcales are attempting to measure. Economic Conservatism Scale The government ehould take over all large industries S.A. A. U. D. S.D.

(5)

00

(3)

(2)

(1)

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(1)

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D.

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(3)

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(1)

(2)

(3)

(M

(5)

One becomes nervous at home S.A.

A.

U.

D.

S.D.

(5)

(«0

(3)

(2)

(1)

The Inferiority Scale It ie difficult to say the right thing at the right time S.A. A. U. D. S.D.

(5)

00

(3)

(2)

(1)

It is easy to feel as though you had a world of self-confidence S.A. A. U. D. S.D.

(1)

(2)

(3)

(b)

The Morale Scale The future looks very black S.A. A. U. D.

. (5)

00

(3)

(2)

(5)

S.D.

(1)

It does not take long to get over feeling gloomy S.A. A. U. D. S.D.

(1)

(2)

(3)

00

(5)

The scales are designed for use with young people at the adolescent level as well as with adult groups. It was standardized on a group of 1,000 representative people; its reliability is reasonable (between .?8 and .88 for all six scales) and its validity fairly well established especially for the morale, inferiority and economic conservatism scales.

32

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Theee scalee were selected as a supplement to the Scale of Beliefs because It measures In addition to one's attitude toward the present economic syetem, attitudes toward one's family, toward one's self, and toward the poaeibiliti es for the future. All these attitudes seemingly might be affected by differences in economic circumstances. Activities and Interests Interest Index (8.2a) developed and published by the Progressive Education Association, Chicago, Illinois. This questionnaire consists of 200 statements dealing with thingB which might be done in connection with classes or other school activities. The pupil is directed to indicate that he "likes," "dislikes," or is "indifferent" to the activity mentioned in each statement. He is also told that if he has had no experience with a given item, he should indicate whether he thinks he would like, be indifferent to, or dislike that activity, and that all items should be marked according to his present feelings . An example of one item in each of the twelve areas covered is given below. Social Science (2k items) To hear lectures or radio talks on political and social issues Biology (l6 items) To study how diet and exercise affect a person's complexion and weight Physical Science (l6 items) To make chemical compounds English (l6 items) To read poetry Foreign Language (16 items)

To read stories and plays in a foreign language Mathematics (l6 items) To work problems in arithmetic Business (l6 items) To typewrite business letters Home Economics

(16 items)

To decorate a room Industrial Arts (l6 items) To make things of wood, metal, etc.

PROCEDURE

33

Fine Arte (l6 items) To see art exhibits Music (l6 items) To take music lessons Sports (16 items) To play 'basketball The authors (91) of this questionnaire report that gratifying results have been obtained from its use although these results have not, as yet, been treated statistically for reliability, validity or standardization. They feel that an interest inventory of this type can be used as a projective technique in the study of personality since it offers the individual the opportunity to reveal his way of organizing experience by presenting him with a large number of activities from different areas to which he reacts emotionally. If interests are considered a result of the interaction of basic drives with environmental forces, they are fundamentally significant for the present study. Since the Interest Index (8.2a) covers only school activities, some index of other types of activities enjoyed or disliked by the children were needed. Therefore, the following inventory and a number of questions designed by the writer were included in the testing program. Personality and Interest Inventory by Gertrude Hildreth, published by the Teachers College, Columbia University, Bureau of Publications. The inventory consists of eleven sections, each section listing various activities from which the children select those they like most and those they dislike most. They are instructed that they may select as many or as few as they like or as they dislike and that they are not limited to those given in the printed lists but that they may indicate any activity at all. The eleven sections are: I. Activities Forty-five activities listed among them: sewing, going to parties, performing magic, inventing things, etc. II. Games-Sports Thirty listed: skiing, ping-pong, golf, tennis, etc. III. School Subjects Forty-three listed: history, botany, Latin, etc.

34

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

IV. Types of Books Twenty-three types listed: novels and. love stories, essays and criticisms, nonsense stories, plays, etc. V. Books Bead During the Past Two Years VI. Magazines Preferred Sixty-seven listed: Adventure, Life, New Yorker, Boy's Life, Ppetry, Saturday Evening Post, etc. VII. Newspaper Reading None listed, instead three questions asked: Do you read a newspaper often? Which one? What part do you like test? VIII. Future Occupations You Might Like Ninety-nine listed: artist, fireman, football coach, lawyer, office clerk, nurse, etc. IX. People You Like or Dislike to Be with in Free Time Twelve types listed: older boys, Mother, Father, teachers, no companions, etc. X. School Preference after High School Twenty-one types of schools listed: music school, medical school, Junior college, state university, etc. XI. Personal Characteristics, Those That Describe and Those That Do Not Describe You Seventy-one listed: self-confident, nervous, like to study, get tired easily, enjoy parties, etc. The inventory also includes four additional questions: 1. If you could have your wish for the thing you desire most, what would it be? 2. What is your greatest problem? 3- Of what are you most afraid? k. What do you dream of at night? The reliability of the results obtained from this inventory, according to the author, will depend, among other things, upon the age and morale of the pupils taking the test and the conditions under which the test is given. Miscellaneous Questions The writer added a number of questions designed to determine the spare-time activities of the children. The questions asked were :

PROCEDURE

35

1. Do you take paid lessons in nuaic, dancing, or art work of any kind outside of school? 2. What do you usually do on Saturdays ? 3. What do you usually do on Sundays and holidays? 4. What did you do last summer? 5. What are you going to do this summer? It is the conviction of many sociologists that the personality of an individual can be described in terms of his spare time activities. However, it aleo appears that economic condition, in part, may restrict some of the resources open to individuals, for example* theaters, concerts, dues-paying organizations. Wishes, Greatest Problem, Fears and Dreams The information relating to wishes, greatest problem, fears, and dreams was obtained from the four questions included in Hlldreth's Personality and Interest Inventory. The question on wishes in this inventory was supplemented by the writer with the following question: If you had only three wishes and they could come true, what would you wish? Wishes, in the Freudian sense, represent inner drives. Assuming that thia is true, they are sifey-June, 1989. Since i t was d e s i r e d t o use t e s t r e s u l t s which were a l l obtained within a limited period of time because of the age f a c t o r , the Rorschach r e s u l t s of the Speyer School group reported in t h i s study are based only upon the records obtained in 1939. The Rorschach t e s t was administered only once, however, t o the Lincoln School c h i l d r e n ; t h e r e f o r e the r e s u l t s reported in t h i s study are based on t h e i r f i r s t t e s t . The possible e f f e c t of p r a c t i c e in the case of the Speyer group seemed n e g l i g i b l e . Scale of B e l i e f s (4.11 and 4.12 1 was administered t o the Lincoln School group but only 4.11 (Scale of B e l i e f s ) was administered t o the Speyer School group.

PROCEDURE

by Rorschach and elaborated by Klopfer and hla co-workers (52) Brief explanation of the major scoring symbols used are given below:6 With reference to the location of the response: W reaction to the blot as a whole D reaction to a large and frequently selected detail d reaction to a small and rather frequently selected detail Dd reaction to a very small and rarely selected detail S reaction to the white space With reference to the determinants of the response: M movement -- reaction to figures in human-like action ÍW animal movement -- animals in animal-like action m inanimate or expressive movement k reaction to the shading used as in x-ray or topographical maps Κ reaction to the shading as diffusion like clouds, fog, etc. FK reaction to the shading to represent vista with form always present F reaction to form only; F/, form that is more accurate than usual; F-, form that is less accurate than usual Fc reaction to the shading used as surface appearance or texture, like carved bed post or animal skin c reaction to shading used as texture like fur, velvet C reaction to black, gray or white as surface color FC reaction to both form and color where both determinants are indispensable to the interpretation (definite form with bright color) CF react'on to form and color but the bright color determines the response and form is only secondary (bright color with indefinite form) C color used as a sole determinant of the response With reference to the content of the response: E whole human figures Hd parts of human figures, not anatomical e. For more complete explanation see B. Klopfer and H. H. Davidson, Record Blank fo* the Rorschach Method of Pe-sonality Diagnosis, published by World Book Company, Yonkers, N.Y., 1942.

40

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Ad. parts of living animale Content other than the above may be well-nigh infinite and therefore no additional symbols are given Miscellaneous Ρ popular responses : there aré ten popular responses currently used 0 original responses found not more than once in 100 records R total number of responses Yp ratio of F responses to the total number of responses P$¡ ratio of A plus Ad responses to the total number of responses M:sumC Rorschach's Erlebnistypu.g -- the -relation of creative experience to affective experience W:M relation of creativity to productivity Manner of App. relative emphasis on W, D, d, Dd., and. S Sum C the value of the color scores as follows : l/2 FC + 1 CF + 1¿ C 2. The Scale of Beliefs (4.11 and 4.12) is scored by totalling the number of items answered liberally, the number answered conservatively and the number to which an uncertain response was given. This is done for each of the six areas separately and. for all the six areas combined, thus giving three total scores. These numbers are then converted to percentage scores. 3. The Interest Index (8.?a) is scored similarly to Tests 4.11 and 4.12. The number of items answered by "like," "dislike" or "indifferent" are totalled for each of the twelve areas and for all the twelve areas combined. These numbers are converted to percentages so that the final scores reported are percentage scores. 4. The Minnesota Scale for the Survey of Opinions is scored by totalling the values obtained on the twenty-two items in each of the four scales. 5• The Hlldreth Personality and Interest Inventory and the miscellaneous questions are not scored at all but used qualitatively. 6. The achievement scores were converted to equivalent educational açe scores and accomplishment ratios ) for reading, arithmetic and spelling separately.

Chapter III T H E U S E OF

I N C O M E AS A

OF S O C I O - E C O N O M I C

MEASURE

STATUS

Measures of Soclo-Economic Status The hypothesis which forms the basis of this study, namely, that differences in socio-economic background account for some of the variation in personality, necessitated the selection of an adequate measure of socio-economic statue. Although many measures are available for this purpose, income was chosen as beine most satisfactory. Some other measures for the rating of socio-economic status are (60): I. Scales involving the rating of occupation only: a. THE TAUSSIG SCALE - involves five categories baaed mainly on economic difference as f o l l w s : day laborers, unskilled workers, skilled workers, lower middle class, and well-to-do. b. THE BARE SCALE - 121 representative occupations were selected and twenty Judges rated them according to the degree of intelligence demanded by the work. A scale was then constructed rating each occupation from 0 to 20, according to the distribution of the composite Judgment of the twenty experts. c. THE U.S. BUREAU OF THE CENSUS CLASSIFICATION OF OCCUPATIONS - arranged into six broad categories and a number of sub-categories. d. THE MINNESOTA SCALE FOR OCCUPATIONAL CLASSIFICATION arranged into seven classifications based on Taussig, Barr, and the U. S. Census. e. THE RULON REVISION OF THE MINNESOTA SCALE - which attempts to reduce the Minnesota Classification Scale to equal units, by which an unselected population would show a mean of 0.00 and a s.d. of 1.00. This is Just one of many variations developed for classifying occupations . II. Composite measures involving occupation in combination with other environmental factors:

42

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND a. SIMS SOCIO-ECONOMIC SCORE CARD - which is answered by the child and contains questions about possession of a telephone, education of mother and father, the number of rooms in the home, and the like. There are a number of variations of this scale such as Wrightstone's "A Social Background Data Sheet." t. McCORMICK SCALE FDR MEASURING SOCIAL ADEQUACY - designed for use by a trained social worker who rates the neighborhood, gathers information concernir^ the education of the mother and father, and the material, cultural, social statue of the home. c. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SOCIO-ECONOMIC INDEX - consists of a weighted average of family income (in logarithmic scale scores), parents' years of schooling, and a composite rating of home, living room and neighborhood. d. MINNESOTA HOME STATUS INDEX - probably one of the most carefully validated and standardized indices of home environment covering such items as facilities for children, economic, cultural and educational etatus of the home, and a sociality index. III. Measures of socio-economic status not involving an occupational criterion: a. ν/ΗΓΓΓΙΕΚ SCALE FOR GRADING HOME CONDITIONS - requires a visit to the home and an interview with parents after which the home ie rated for the following factors: necessities, neatness, size, parental conditions, parental supervision. b. CHAPIN'S LIVING ROOM SCALE or SOCIAL STATUS SCALE (revised 19*6) - requires a visit to the home when the visitor rates the naterial equipment and cultural expression of the living room and the condition of articles in the livir^ room.

These measures and variations of these measures have been used by numerous investigators to study the influence of socio-economic factors in a wide variety of problems. Of concern in the present chapter is not what is the influence of these socio-economic variables on other variables, such as Intelligence, delinquency, adjustment in school, and the like,

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

43

tut rather what has teen observed concerning the interrelationships among the several socio-economic variables themselves. Interrelations Among Measures of Socio-Economic Status Used in Previous Investigations In 1928, Chapin defined socio-economic status as consisting of four components: cultural possessions, effective income, material possessions, and participation in group community activity - all of which he attempted to measure in his "Scale for Eating the Home and Social Environment" (lH·). He found intercorrelations among these four measures, computed for thirty-eight selected Minneapolis familles, ranging from .55 to .68. With the Chapman-Sims scale, these four factors correlated between .56 and .72 and with Chapin1s living room scale score from . 5 1 to .89. Chapin concluded, therefore, that the living room scale score which is easily obtained has Just as good predictive value of what a family1 a status is likely to be as a composite scare based on the other four factors. Van Aletyne (107) studied sixty environmental factors which (omitting three) were combined to yield a composite scare. The two correlations with this composite index are of Interest: 1. Environmental composite and Minnesota Scale of SocioEconomic Level (Chapin's living room scale) .68 2. Environmental composite and mother's Intelligence rating. .70 The fairly high correlations between these variables are somewhat surprising when it is remembered that the environmental composite consists of fifty-seven factors whereas Chapin's living room scale score consiets only of the rating of the living room and mother's Intelligence is Just one item of social background. In discussing these relationships, Van Alstyne says, "The Minnesota Scale of Socio-Economlc Level (Chapin's Living Boom Scale) correlates practically as much with the child's M.A., the child's vocabulary, and the mother's intelligence as all the environmental factors together do." Leahy (57) reported uncorrected intercorrelations for six indices measured by the "Minnesota Home Status Index" ranging from Λ 7 to .73. These correlations were based on data obtained from 600 families. The factors measured by the six Indices and the correlations among them are:

44

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

IV V III VI II I. Children's Facllitiea .61 .61 .65 .5U Λ7 II. Economic Statue .66 .57 • 73 .71 III. Cultural Status .72 .67 .69 IV. Sociality Index .62 .63 V. Occupational Statue .59 VI. Educational Status The above intercorrelations are for material of this nature quite high and, therefore, each variable may he considered to he measuring aspects of socio-economic etatua that are closely related. It la interesting to note that two of the highest Intercorrelations are vith economic statua. The following set of intercorrelations among the socio-economic variables measured by the University of California Socio-Ecanamic Index were reported by Bayley and Jones (3). These were baaed on 1^5 repreaentative Berkeley families. II III TV V I. Compoaite Social Rating .79 .56 .58 .62 (based on ratings of house exterior, neighborhood, living room, and special equipment) II. Income (in logarithmic acale .50 .5^ .68 values) III. Mother's Education .75 .65 TV. Father'a Education .71 V. Occupation (Tausaig) Theae variables were combined to give a total ecore and the welghta assigned to each were as follows: Variable I 1/3 Variables III and IV 1/6 Variable II l/k Variable V I/5 Noteworthy la the fact that income received the largeat weight of any single factor and furthermore yielda a correlation of .79 with the composite social rating which is the highest In the table. In one of the White House Conference reports (l) the relationships between aocio-ecanamic etatus (as measured by father's occupation) and a number of other environmental items were pointed out in a series of interesting graphs and statements. Those

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

43

selected for inclusion here show some unusual and unexpected relationships and, at the same time, they reveal that diverse environmental factors are closely associated. "In material possessions, in cultural equipment and in permanence of residence the higher classes are definitely and consistently superior...." Facilities for children are correlated with socio-economic class. The lover the socio-economic status, the poorer is the parent s' health. Children in the upper groups sleep sli^itly longer and go to bed earlier. Many mare children in the higher groups are given an allowance . "As we move down the socio-economic scale we find more children spanked and spaakBd more often." "Children of one class are about as likely to have definite fears of dogs, the dark, storms, and strangers, as those of another.... However, the method used to remove the fears differs in the different classes. In the lower classes, onefourth and in the higher classes one-tenth of the parents do nothing to remove them. In the higher classes, two-thirds of the children have the situation explained to them, in the lower classes two-fifths do." "The motherβ of the higher classes keep in close touch with their children and know mare of what is going on in their minds...." "The proportion of parents reporting that they never agree in managing their children is much greater in the lower economic classes." "The proportion of children in the different classes who take lessons outeide of school, in music, dancing and art are strikingly different." "The likelihood is slightly greater for children in the lower socio-ecanamic classes not to have an opportunity to play with other children." The association between occupational level and the mean number of rooms per person, the median number of books in the home, the per cent of families in which the mother is living and the per

46

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

cent of families owning radios reported in the same study eure ahovn below: $ of Families $ of Mean No. in Which Families Occupational Median No. of Rooms Mother Is Owning Level per Pereon of Books Radio Living I (highest) II III IV V VI VII (lowest)

1.3 1.4 1.2 1.2 1.1

212 120

0.9 0.9

13 11

49 4o 2k

99 97 94 96 93 96 9^

63.8 79.2 65-7 50.0 57.0 37.7 26.6

In a non-psychological study, Iamg (5*0 using the 1934 census data for the City of Chicago, studied the characteristics of populations in the various census tracts. He found marked educational variation (as measured by last grade completed in school) from tract to tract. This variation vas found to be very closely associated with variation in economic status (as measured by monthly rental) to the extent of a correlation of .79 between the two indices. If income instead of monthly rental were used as an index of eoe io-economic status, the author thinks the relationship would even be higher. The results of these varied studies seem to bring out two facts: (l) that the variables used to measure socio-economic background are all interrelated to a fairly high degree and (2) that any one variable may be Just as reliable and may have greater all-round predictive value than a composite index. The latter point is emphasized by Loevinger (60) -who argues that since irrtercorrelatians between the factors of composite scales range frcm .2k to .90 with most of the correlations around .60, results based on specific factors would probably be mere concrete and meaningful. Factor Analysis of Some Soclo-Economic Variables Used in Previpub Investigations In order to substantiate the argument that there is something common to till the environmental variables used to measure socio-

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

47

economi c statila l) θ cause of the high correlations among them and therefore that any one variable is a satisfactory Index of socioeconomic status, two sets of Intercorrelations were subjected to Hotelllng's method of factor analysis (42). This method permits an answer to the question: whether, given a set of inter correlati ans, there exists a more fundamental set of factors to account for the variabilities. The factors thus obtained are orthogonal; the first factor accounts for the greatest amount of variation, the second factor, the next greatest amount, and so on. The Leahy data reported above were used for this purpose The first factor obtained by the Hotelling analysis accounted for 69$ of the variation and correlated highest with the cultural statue Index (.8967) and next highest with the economic statila index (.8599)· Its correlation with the other indices ranged from .7712 to .8393. The variability accounted for by the second factor was only 9$ and it correlated highest with the children's facilities index (.5681). The other four possible factors would necessarily account far only 22$ of the variation and each one would necessarily be less than 9%· The actual data are as follows: Factor I Factor II Boot 4.1670 .5^30 Per cent of Total Variance 69 Λ5 9Λ7 Children's Facilities Index .7712 .5681 Economic Status Index .8599 -.1216 Cultural Status Index .8967 -.0153 Sociality Index .8393 .0744 Occupational Status Index .8097 -.0205 Educational Status Index .8178 -Λ465 Although it is possible to isolate the factor that accounts far 69$ of the variation, it does not follow that we knov what It Is. It can only be assumed from inspection of the data that It is something which goes with having enough money to buy such articles as camera, piano, encyclopedia, magazines, being a member of a professional society, and the like. The second factor seems to be a social awareness for oneself and one1 s children that is not dependent upon one's statue in the social and educational scale.

48

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

The other set of correlations subjected to the same procedure was the Bayley and Jones data reported above. Just as in the previous set of intercorrelations, the first factor accounted for 71$ of the variation and correlated highest with the father's occupation (.8668); all the other correlations with the first factor were ahove .8l. The eecond factor accounted for 13$ of the variation and its highest correlation was with income (-Λ625). The nature of the first and second factors is again a matter of speculation. The first factor seems to he related to a generally high or low social, economic, and cultural level; the second a difference between income and what it can buy and social standing. The data are as follows: Root Per Cent of Total Variance Composite Social Bating Income Mother's Education Father's Education Occupational Rating

Factor I 3.5^22

70.85

Factor II 0.681*1

13.68

.81*25 .8330 .811*8

-.3802 -Λ625 Λ283

.8503 .8668

.3751 .0412

These analyses confirm the belief that any one variable of socio-economic status measures, for the main part, the samB thing that the other variables are measuring. Evaluations Concerning the Different Socio-Economic Variables Assumirg now that one variable is an adequate measure of socioeconomic background, it becomes important to decide which one to select. The choice of the one variable is not altogether assisted by the above factor analyses since the saturation coefficients for the first factor do not differ appreciably among the variables. For this purpose, then, the findings and conclusions reached by other researchers as a result of their investigations were examined. Hartshorne and May in "Studies in Deceit" found that the "quantitative ratings, the Burdick tests, and the Sims card all yield scores which are a composite of many factors constituting the cultural background of the home. It is rather surprising therefore that a single item like occupational level should prove to

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

49

be as closely associated with honest behavior as any of these other mare complex pictures of home background. Yet such Is the case " (33, p. 221) Stoke In an early study concerning the effect of social position on the mental and developmental characteristics of school children decided to use the occupation of the father as the Index of social status since It is "the most meaningful Index of social status which could be determined with a reasonable degree of accuracy. In most cases it indicates social attitudes, extent of education, the associates, the income, and the neighborhood. While there are exceptions to this general statement which occur to anyone, yet on the whole it tends to remain true, for these factors In the life of the family are almost inextricably bound together." (97, Ρ· Ό In the study by Leahy previously referred to, it was pointed out that most investigators regard occupation and income as the two best single Indices available for differentiating between hemes. For her own purpoee which was to construct a scale for measuring home environment, it was necessary to obtain a representative sample of homes. To do this, Leahy likewise decided to use father's occupation as a criterion of socio-economic status in "the belief that this "was the best single index available." (57, P. 15) Occupational status as a measure of socio-economic background was also used in the White House Conference study mentioned previously not only because of comparable census data for the United States as a whole but also because the investigator was convinced that all measures of economic, social and cultural status of the home acre "interrelated to a marked degree and that any one of a number of different features of home life may be used for indicating socio-economic status." (l, p. 7) The Begents' Inquiry, in an extensive study of pupils leaving schools in the State of New York, came to the conclusion likewise that the "best single index to the economic and cultural level of a home is found in the regular occupation of the father or the guardian." (65, p. T1*-) Data on the occupation of the father and the economic status of the family (as estimated by physicians) were available for 10,000 Michigan families which were used in a study of maternal

50

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

care. Goddard (27) compared these two items in order to find out whether occupational class could be used to differentiate families with respect to social-economic level. After an analysis of the data, she concluded: "It is evident that the classification of families according to the occupational class of the head gires definitely differentiated groups with respect to their economic status in terms of the physicians' estimate." Further, she analyzed the material collected during the National Health Surrey of families comprising a sample of the general population of Michigan. The families were classified by "the more precise measure of annual family income (1935-36) and the occupational class of the head." The same conclusion as above was drawn that "...occupational class of the head is a usable classifying item in differentiating families according to social-economic statue." The predictive value of father's occupation is emphasized by Terman (lOl) who, in a follow-up of his gifted group, found that the factor which strikingly differentiates the most successful group (in adult achievement) from the least successful is family background as measured by the father's occupation and mid-parent's education. In a theoretical paper, Lazarsfeld (56) attempted to show that the "economic influence upon certain psychological variables can "be measured "by a number of different indices of economic status and the result will be much the same irrespective of the economic status index used. In other words, for the measurement of economic influence, different indices of economic status are often interchangeable." He further claimed this this was true even though the agreement between any two indices was far from perfect. Another pertinent point brought out in this paper was that for people living in approximately the same area, the most adequate way to describe their economic status is by the actual amount of family income which, according to Lazarsfeld, ìb "by and large, the best yardstick of the economic statue of a group of people...." In six of the eight studies reviewed above, an occupational rating as the measure of socio-economic status was chosen; in one study, income was considered to be the best measure; and in another, income and occupation were shown to be closely related. When a selection of only one factor for the rating of

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

51

socio-economic background has to be made, the occupation of the head of the family* rather than, education of the parents, cultural equipment of the home, person-room ratio, or any of a dozen other factors, seemB to he definitely preferred. In a number of instances, it vas pointed out that income might he a preferable or at least Just as good a measure as is occupation (Goddard, Lang, Leahy). Income is, undoubtedly, amore precise measure than is occupation since income in any one occupational group -varies considerably.1 A government statistician (17) hae the following to say regarding income as a measure of socio-economic statue: "The best Indication of economic status must obviously be based on Income.... In the absence of data on family income, other rough Indicators of economic status have been used. The amount or class of insurance carried, the section of the city in vhlch the family resides, and the occupation of the person or of the household head are among the most commonly used rough Indicators of economic status.... Any method based on Income is, of course, superior to the other methods." Income is not so often chosen to measure socio-economic status as Is occupational rating because of the supposed difficulty in obtaining Information from families or individuals -with regard to their income. Before concluding this section, it seems necessary to clarify the concept of socio-economic status. This concept has often been used interchangeably with social status or social class, occupational class, and cultural status. This is Justifiable only if socio-economic statua Is defined as a "position in the social gradation or stratification as far ae it is determined by ability to purchase goods and services" (98, p. and further, if it is postulated that wealth is the major determinant of the class syetem. Because it is felt that socio-economic statue Is all inclusive and determines to a marked degree both 1. P. E. Davidson and H. D. Anderson (19) compared the average yearly incomes of 1242 nales representative of all occupational levels with the Bureau of the Census occupational ratings (Edwards' scale). The total range of income represented was from "less than $300 to over $10,500." They found in each income level within this total range, persons engaged in occupations occurring in each of the six occupation levels of the scale. Tte authors are of the opinion, therefore, that the Edwards' scale, although useful, is not "a refined classifying instrument representing the economic attributes of the working population."

52

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

social atatua and cultural statua, the term la used throughout thia study In its broader sense. Meaaures of Socio-Economic Status Studied A number of variables of socio-economic status was known about the children of this study. Contingent upon the foregoing facts, three were selected for analysis: 1. Occupation of the head of the family 2. Income level 3. An index of monthly rental A description of each of the three meaaures and the methoda employed to Becure them are preaently described. Occupational Rating Information concerning the father's occupation was secured from three sources: achool records, persons who intimately knew the family, and the child hlmeelf. To aerve as a check, at least two and usually three sources were used in each case, (if the father was deceased but his occupation known, his occupation was rated rather than the mother's even though the mother was working; if the father was unemployed, his former occupation was rated; if the father's occupation was unknown, the mother's occupation was then rated.) This information available and checked for each child, it was now possible to classify the occupations, according to a number of schemes. Only two methods, however, were experimented with: the U.S. Bureau of the Ceneus Classification (lOU) and the Barr Occupational Rating (2). The U.S. Bureau of the Census arranges over 500 principal occupations into six major socio-economic groups. The six groups and the distributions of the occupations, represented by the children of this study, for the entire group, and for each school separately are as follows : U.S. Census Classification I. Professionals II. Proprietors, Managers, Officiale

Lincoln School (n=53) 31+ 19

Speyer School (n-49) 16 9

Total Group (n=102) 50 28

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

III. IV. V. VI.

U.S. Census Classification (Cont'd) Clerks and kindred workers Skilled workers and foremen Semi-skilied workers Unskilled workers

Lincoln School (n=53) 0 0 0 0

Speyer School (n=49) 12 8 3

53

Total Group (n=102) 12 8 1 1 3

The distributions reveal at once that most of the children fall into the two top categories; 100$ in one school and 51$ in the other, and therefore thie method of occupational classification does not yield sharp enough divisions for the purposes of this study. The Barr Occupational Rating, on the other hand, provides more precise divisions especially for the professional category where most of the children of this study are found. Each occupation was consequently rated according to the Barr scale of values (see p. ^1). Some difficulty in rating arose in the case of those occupations not specifically listed in the scale. For these occupations, three Judges including the writer, were used for the rating. When small discrepancies occurred, a combined Judgment waB made and a rating assigned. When larger discrepancies occurred (in 14 cases out of 102), a fourth rater was called in. An average rating based on the three ratings that were most nearly alike was then assigned. As a result of these ratings, the following distributions of the 102 occupations for each school separately and for the total group were obtained.

Barr Rating 18.50 18.ΟΟ 17.50 17.00 16 .50

I6.OO

Type of Occupation" Famous Writer

Lincoln School (n=53) 1

Lawyer, Professor (high income), Publisher 8 Stockbroker 1 Physician (high income), Professor (lower income), Manufacturer (high insome) 17 Editor, Manufacturer (lower income) 6

Speyer Total School Group (n=U9) (n=102) 1

8 1

1

l8

3

9

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

54

Barr Rating (Cont'd) I5.5O I5.OO II+.50 lU.OO 13.50 13.OO 12.50 12.00 II.50 11.00 10.50 10.00 9.50 9.OO 8.50 8.00 7.50

Lincoln School (n=53 ) College Instructor, C.P.A., Plant Manager 7 High School Teacher, Musical Director 8 Type of Occupation*

Dentist Credit Supervisor Commercial Artlet, Violinist Editorial Assistant 3 Supt. of Insurance Division Painting Contractor High Class Salesman, Post Office Clerk Watchmaker, Dental Mechanic, Printer Salesman, Shipping Clerk Tailor Carpenter Tuckpointer Mason, Plasterer Stevedore

Speyer Total School Group (n=¡+9) (n=102) 3

10

U

12

1 1

1

1

5

1 2

3 1 3

6 6 1 3

6

6

6 5 1 1 1 2 1

6 5 1 1 1 2 1

1

1

7.00

6.50 6.00

Walter

a . I l l u s t r a t e d by a c t u a l occupations of the f a t h e r s of the childi-en of t h i s study (not a l l occupations l i s t e d , however).

Because of the more precise divisions of occupational ratings, as seen in these distributions, the Barr Rating rather than the Bureau of the Census Classification was adopted. Rental Index The Real Property Inventory for the City of New York (77) gives for each census tract in the city a distribution of the amounts of rentals paid in that tract. Each child's residence was then located in the proper census tract (the 102 children

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

55

were located in 60 tracts) and. the median monthly rental for each tract was calculated. In the case of two private homes (one in New Jersey and one in Riverdale, New York City) an estimate was made. In general, the median monthly rental thus calculated did not aeem to yield accurate ratings in light of what was known concerning the various neighborhoods; for one reason, because the median is a poor estimate of any particular rental, since the variation of rentals in a single tract is quite large. The rentale seemed much too Ιον for the wealthy neighborhoods and too high for the poor neighborhoods. Notwithstanding the distributions afforded quite a range and a difference between the two schools, as would be expected, waB actually found. The median for Lincoln School is $62.50; and for Speyer School, $Ό.69· The concentration of a large number of children in the neighborhood of both schools should be noted. Speyer School (n=l*9)

105 100

Lincoln School (n=53) 1 1+ 1 1

Total Group (n=102) 1 1+ 1 1

95 90 85 80

3 3 2 3

2

5 3 2 3

75 70 65 60

2 1 5 1

1 1 3

3 2 8 1

55 50 1+5 k(f

3 1

1 2 9 21

h 3 9 ko

Median Monthly Rental $160 120

19

1 35 3 30 2 3 2 25 20 1 a. Neighborhood in which the schools are located»

k 5 2 1

56

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND Income Level

Information concerning the income of the child's family was not as difficult to secure as was expected. Since it was unnecessary to know the exact amount of money earned, approximate income levels were utilized. It should te recalled, at this point, that in the opinion of S. D. Collins (17) any method based on income ia superior to other methods for the purpose of classifying according to socio-economic etatus. The Admissions Office of Lincoln School has at its disposai various Kinds of information concerning the child's family. Since it is an experimental Bchool, the authorities felt that they could divulge, for research purposes, certain information if the identity of the individual family would not he revealed thereby. They were willing, therefore, to go so far as to assign each of the fifty-three children involved in this study to the following income levels : Under $4,000 $4,000 to $5,900 $6,000 to $7,400 $7,500 to $10,000 Over $10,000 When an assignment was made on an estimate only and not on definite knowledge, this was noted. There were twenty-eight Buch instances. However, of the twenty-eight questionable placements, twenty were in the top income level (over $10,000) and the doubt came not whether they belonged in that level or the one below it but Just where they fell above that amount. The other eight were mainly children of Columbia University professors and there was some doubt in which one of two contiguous levels they belonged. A decision was made by the writer on the basis of personal knowledge and other information concerning the child. The Speyer School, being a public school, did not have this information in its records. However, an individual who was professionally known to the writer, closely connected with the school, and intimately familiar with all the children, assigned each child to one of the income levels aB given above except that the loveBt level (under $4,000) was subdivided as follows: A. Under $1,500, destitute or on home relief; B. $1,600 to $4,000. These placements were checked by two people, one an official of

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

57

Speyer School who knew all the children well and the other, a research student who visited most of the homes and Inquired specifically, when feasible, a"bout the family income. After studying the results of theBe assignments to the several income levels, it was ielt that the level, $1,600 to $4,000 required a further subdivision. There seemed to be a vast difference between families who were known to be earning around $3,500 to $4,000 and those earning around $2,000. Although all these categories are admittedly broad, there seemed to be a definite advantage in making a finer division at this point.2 Accordingly, all the children were reclassified (the Lincoln School children were not affected at all). The new classification and the number of children falling into each level are as follows : Income Level 7 6 5 3 2 1

Description Over $10,000 $7,500-10,000 6,000- 7,^00 4,000- 5>900 2,500- 3,900 1,600- 2,400 Under $1,500 destitute, home relief

Lincoln School (n=53) 21 7 6 7 12 0 0

Speyer School (n=49) 0 1 2 6 14 14 12

Total Group (n=102) 21 8 8 13 26 14 12

These are the income levels used throughout the study; the mean income level for Lincoln School is 5-34 vith a standard deviation of 1.62; for Speyer School, it is 2.49 with a standard deviation of 1.21. It will be recalled that income was also used as one of five variables for the measurement of socio-economic status in the University of California Socio-Economic Index. In order to obtain linear regression, income level was converted in this Index to a logarithmic scale. Actually the scale used in this study has the same properties as a logarithmic scale ?. Similar divisions aire used by the National Resources Conmittee and therefore valuable for comparative purposes.

58

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

aince the difference between the successive levels is not uniform and increases in amount (except in one instance) with each rise in income level. Logically, too, this is as it should be for a difference of $2,000 in the higher income brackets may be equivalent to a difference of only $200 in the lower brackets. Interrelations among the Three Measures of Soclo-Economlc StatuB: The Selection of Income Based merely on the analysis of the raw data secured from the three measures of socio-economic status: (occupational ratine, rental index and income) it was decided that rental index could be immediately discarded. In the first place, it seemed too coarse since the individual is assigned the value for his census tract and not for his home; secondly, although it yielded a fairly wide range and a difference between the two schools, it tended to concentrate all the children living in the neighborhood of the schools in the same group. This certainly was incorrect in light of the facts. The Barr Occupational Rating was preferred to the U.S. Census Classification for the reasons given previously. However, it should be remembered that the Barr rating was in some instances based on a subjective estimate because: (l) the scale itself is not complete or detailed enough with regard to the listing of occupations (only 121 are given) and, (2) the actual information concerning the father's occupation was not always sufficient to make an exact placement. Nevertheless, it seems to be a very satisfactory method of rating occupations, if occupation is to be used as the criterion of socio-economic status. Income, on the other hand, is more precise; a family is or is not on home relief; another family i_s or is not earning over $10,000 a year. The placements in the two extreme income levels are unquestionably correct. Placement in the other levels was determined also in moBt cases without any hesitation; a few cases did create Borne difficulty but they were mainly in the higher brackets. Therefore, ratings based on income seemed more accurate and precise than either of the other ratings. Since income varies markedly within a given occupational level, the question was whether income alone should be used as the measure of socio-economic status or whether both income and

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

59

Barr Occupational Rating should be considered, either separately or combined into a composite rating. This was answered by an examination of the correlation coefficients existing among them, as well as some multiple R's which were calculated for determining the accuracy with which certain personality traits could be predicted from a knowledge of income, Barr rating, and rentál index in various combinations plus C.A. and M.A. The intercorrelations among the three socio-economic variables for the two schools separately and for the total group ar-:

Lincoln School (n=>3 Speyer School (n=49) Total Group (n=102)

Income Level and Barr Rating .6177

Income Level and Rental Index .5^09

Barr Rating and Rental Index .2965

.7362

.3081

.3888

.811*6

.6001

Λ759

The correlation between income level and 3arr rating (. 81U6) for the entire group is exceptionally high; the same variables ehow fairly high correlations for each of the two schools as well. All the other correlations are decidedly lower. There is no question, then, that income level and Barr rating are measuring aspects of socio-economic status that are highly related.3 Therefore, the one or the other would be an adequate measure of socio-economic status and probably more reliable than if the two were combined into some sort of composite rating because of the unreliabilities inherent in each rating. Let us now examine the results when the relationship between actual sind predicted scores of a personality trait, like liberalism on issues dealing with economic relationships, is computed; the predicted scores bein^ obtained from various combinations of the variables: C.A., M.A., income, Barr rating, and rental index. If the resulting multiple R computed from data based on three variables (for example, C.A., M.A., and income) has as much predictive value as when it is computed from four variables (adding, for example, Barr rating) and then from five varia3 . B a r r r a t i n g i s , in the case of some occupations, based, i n p a r t , on a p prox imate ine one.

60

P E R S O N A L I T Y A N D ECONOMIC

BACKGROUND

blea (adding Barr rating and rental index) and so on, it can be definitively asserted that these added variables are not contributing to the prediction; and therefore, are not particularly useful as measures of socio-economic status when the determination of the influence of economic background on personality characteristics is the object of an investigation. Multiple correlation coefficients were computed between three personality traits (liberalism in economic relationships, interest in music, accomplishment in reading) deliberately chosen to describe different aspects of the personality and various combinations of the factors of chronological age, mental age, Barr Occupational Eating, income level, and rental index. Differences between the related coefficients were tested by the Eisenhart test,4 which indicates whether or not a real difference exists between any two multiple correlation coefficients, that is, whether the addition of a variable actually yields added control. In predicting liberalism in economic relationships, any one of the three socio-economic factors improves the prediction beyond what age and M.A. together do. The multiple R's increase from .586 to .665 when income is added; from .586 to .637 when Barr rating is added; from .586 to .602 when rental index ia added. The prediction is improved also when income is added to the three variables, age, M.A., and Barr rating (from .637 to .665). Likewise, the prediction is Improved when income is added to the four variables, age, M.A., Barr rating and rental index (from .638 to .667). On the other hand, the addition of Barr rating or rental index to any combination including income does not improve the prediction. Of the three socioeconomic factors, therefore, income provides the greatest amount of control. At least two socio-economic factors are needed to increase the prediction of scores in a test measuring interest in music beyond the variables, age and M.A. From this analysis, income and Barr rating seem to be equally effective since when either one is added to age, M.A. and rental index, there is some improvement in the estimation. (R increases from .097 to .16^ 4 . See R i d e r , P. R . , An Introduction 2 8 , 1939.

to Modern Statistical

Methods, pp.

126-

THE USE OF INCOME AS A MEASURE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS

61

when income 1B added and from .097 to .158 when Barr rating is added). It is interesting to note that all the variation in reading accomplishment scores is due to the factors of chronological age and mental age and there is no increase in the accuracy of prediction no matter what combination of socio-economic variables is attempted. It is now possible to summarize the reasons for the selection of income as the measure of socio-economic status used in this study. 1. The greater accuracy end precision of the measure itself. 2. Its high correlation with Barr occupational Hating which is in itself a fairly satisfactory meaeure of socio-economic status. 3. Income permits the prediction of a score on a personality trait more consistently and with greater control than does Barr rating or rental index alone or in combination. Eren if a combination of all three socio-economic variables be used,, there is no substantial improvement in the estimation beyond that which income alone provides. U. Finally, for the reason (implied in the first chapter) that the amount of income one has describes and delimits for him hie "way of life" so as to "make even out of homogeneous human material, definite classes of people." ( 7 1 , pp. 886-87)

Chapter IV CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP IN THIS STUDY AS RELATED TO INCOME LEVEL The children whose personalities, attitudes, interests, wishes, fears, dreams, and school achievement are recorded and interpreted in the following pages although not "statistically representative" of bright children in a large metropolitan city may he considered "phenomenologically representative" of bright children living in different sub-cultures which are defined in terms of income levels as they are found in urban society at this time. The general culture surrounding these children are in many respects similar; they all live in a big city; all go to school located near a big university; many have to commute to their respective schools (though the mode of transportation differs); all are surrounded by much the same political and social institutions . Beyond these very broad unifying forces in their environments, which no doubt make for similarities in personality characteristics, are striking differences in the forces affecting these children brought about by wide variations in income level. These economic differences create dissimilar patterns of behavior within the family group; varying parental attitudes toward child-rearing; dissimilar standards of material wellbeing; of feelings of security; of status with respect to one's fellows and of attitudes in general. Some of these similarities and differences are considered in the following chapters. For the purposes of this chapter which is to be purely descriptive, some facts are presented relating to all the children in this study divided on the basis of their father'β income level. Some Statistics Sex The number of boys and girls in each of the seven income levels, in the total group, and in the two schools, is given in Table 6.

CHARACTERISTICS

OF

THE

GROUP

AS

RELATED

TO

INCOME

LEVEL

63

Table 6 Number of Boys and Girls at Each Income Level in the Entire Group, and in Lincoln and Speyer Schools

Boys Girls Total

I η c o m e L e ν e I* k 1 2 6 3 5 7 8 8 k 9 13 3 15 k k 6 13 5 5 5 1U 12 26 8 8 . 21 13

a. Level 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Under $lfi00, home r e l i e f , $'.600 t o $2400$2500 to $3900. $4000 to $5900. $e000 to $7400. $"fi00 t o $10,000. Over $10,000.

Entire Group

Lincoln School

Speyer School

33 20 53

27 22

60 k2

102

U9

etc.

There are more hoys in the t o t a l group and the same trend is evident f o r four out of the seven income levels as well as f o r each school separately. Chronological Age The distributions of chronological age together with their means are given in Table 7 for the seven income l e v e l s , for the t o t a l group, and for each school separately. Table 7 Age Distribution of 102 Children of Lincoln and Speyer Schools, Classified According to Income Level C.A. in MOB.

I

N E O

1

2

s*

168-179 0 156-167 1 lUU-155 1 132-ΙΌ •7 120-131 ρ 108-119 1 12 Total

0 1 5 3 5 0

0 3 6 6 8 3 26

Ih

me L e v e 1 U 6 5 0 3 2 3

2 3

13

1 U 0 0 3 0 8

0 1 1 2 2

8

7 c.

2 U 1 6 6 21

Entire Group

Lincoln School

Speyer School

3 15 19 22 28 15 102

3 13 7 6 11 13 53

0 2 12 16 17 2 U9

Mean8 137.6 139-6 136.8 138.6 150.2 135.2 133.5 137.8 a. A l l means reported are calculated from raw scores.

138.6

136.9

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

M

The variation in age from income level to income level and between the two schools is very slight except for a somewhat older group at level 5Mental Age The distributions of mental age together with their means are indicated in Table 8 for the seven income levels, for the total group, and for each school separately. Table 8 Mental Age Distribution of 102 Children of Lincoln and Speyer Schools, Classified According to Income Level M.A* in Μοβ.

1

276-287 264-275 252-263 240-251 228-239 216-227 204-215 192-203 180-191 168-179 156-167 144-155 Total

1 0 0 1 2 2 0 2 2 2 0 0 12

Mean

I η co m e 2 4 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 5 1 0 2 0 14

0 0 0 1 4 3 4 4 3 3 3 1 26

0 1 0 0 2 1 1 4 1 1 0 2 13

Leve 1 6 5 0 0 0 0 1 2 3 0 0 1 1 0 8

0 0 0 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 1 8

Entire 7 Group 0 0 0 2 0 1 2 2 3 1 4 6 21

1 1 0 5 10 11 15 19 10 8 12 10 102

212.5 198.8 198.0 200.1 205-3 188.5 179.7 200.1

Lincoln School

Speyer School

0 1 0 3 7 4 6 8 4 1 9 10 53

1 0 0 2 3 7 9 11 6 7 3 0 49

191.6

201.0

a. Estimated M.A. at tire of Rorschach examination.

The mental age means range from 179-7 months to 212.5 months. This wide discrepancy is due to a school difference. The highest mean mental age occurs at the lowest income level entirely represented by Speyer School children and the lovest mean mental age occurs at the highest income level entirely represented by Lincoln School children. The latter group is also the youngest although the former is not the oldest. Between the two schools, there is a difference of 10 months in mental age; the brighter

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP AS RELATED TO INCOME LEVEL

65

children are in the Speyer School where moot of the poorer children are found. Although variations from level to level are not unduly large, nevertheless, in interpreting the results, this fact should he kept in mind -- that for this sample of bright children the correlation between income level and mental age is -.28. Intelligence Level The distributions of intelligence quotient, together with their meajas, for the seven income levels, for the total group, and for each school separately, are presented in Table 9· Table 9 I.Q. Distribution of 102 Children of Lincoln and Speyer Schools, Claeeified According to Income Level

I.Q.

1

200 plue 0 190-199 1 I8O-I89 0 170-179 2 I6O-I69 0 150-159 It IU0-IU9 3 130-159 1 120-129 1 Total 12 Mean

Iη c 0m e Leve 1 2 It 6 3 5 0 0 0 1 0 3 3 5 2 lit

1 0 1 0 1 9 9 1 26

0 0 0 2 1 0 It 6 0 13

0 0 0 0 0 1 1 6 0 8

0 0 0 0 1 1 1 It 1 8

Entire 7 Group 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 9 5 21

1 1 1 5 3 lit 27 ItO 10 102

15^.2 l*t2Λ 145.0 l W A 137.0 139.3 135.3 1^2.6

Lincoln Speyer School School 0 0 1 0 1 6 13 26 6 53 138 Λ

1 1 0 5 2 8 lit lit It 1*9 147.1

The same trend evident in the case of mental age is Been with regard to intelligence level. The correlation between income level and intelligence quotient for the entire group is - . . Some Family Characteristics Number of Children In the Home The percentage of families with specified number of children In each income level, in the total group, and in the two schools separately is given in Table 10.

66

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Table 10 Percentage of Families with Specified Number of Children in Each. Income Level, in the Entire Group and in Lincoln and Speyer Schools Separately Number Entire Lincoln Speyer I η c o m e Le τ β 1 of 1 2 k Group School Scheel 3 5 6 7 Children (n=12) (n=l4) (n=26) (n=13) (n-8) (η=8)(n=21) (n=102) (n-53) (n=l»9) 1 36* 36* 1»0* l»6* 25* 25* 2V* 25* 33* M 2 Ul 38 50 50 38 17 Ό l»8 35 39 11» 12 θ 12 12 16 18 3 19 13 U 8 0 1» 0 8 12 12 8 2 5 U 0 0 k 2 0 0 6 7 5 17 Sven in this limited sample, there appears to be a trend for low income families to have larger families; 17 per cent of the families of the lowest income level and 7 per cent of the next lowest income level have as many as five children whereas only per cent in the highest income level has as many as five children. Three-child families are most frequently found in the lowest income level; the one-child family is most popular at the third income level, while two-child families tire most popular at the highest levels. The school difference is again indicative of em economic difference; the Speyer School having more two- and three-child families and the Lincoln School more one-child families. Parental Status of the Family In Table 11 is indicated the number of families in which death of either parent, separation or divorce has occurred. The data are presented for the seven income levels, for the entire group and for Lincoln and Speyer Schools separately. In the lower incomes (levels 1, 2, 3)> there are six families in which the father ie deceased; only one in the higher income brackets (level U). Divorce occurs only once in the lower brackets (level 3)> separation three times (levels 2 and 3) while in the highest income level, there are three divorces and one separation, one of the divorcee resulting in remarriage. In this sample, death of the father appears to occur more often in underprivileged families and divorce in privileged families.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CROUP AS RELATED TO INCOME LEVEL

67

The broken home resulting from varying causee is a more frequent phenomenon at the lover income levels represented by the families of the children in this study.1 Table 11 The Number of Fami lies in Each Income Level in the Entire Group and in Lincoln and Speyer Schools in Which Death, Separation, or Divorce Has Occurred I n c o m e L e v e l S a t i r e Lincoln Parental 1 ? 3 U 5 6 7 Group School Statue (n=12) (η=ΐΌ (n=26) (n=13) (n=8) (n=8) (n=2l) (n=102) (n=53) Father

Deceaeed

2

3

1

1

0

0

0

7

1

Spejer School (n=U9) 6

MOther

0

0

0

0

0

0

2

2

Separated

0

2

1

0

1

0

0

U

Divorced

0

0

1

0

0

0

2

3

3

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

1

1

0

Deceased

2

0

2

2

DI Torced

and Remarried

Racial and Nationality Background The data on racial and nationality backgrounds are presented in Table 12 for the two schools separately rather than for each income level because of the small numbers involved in some of the categories. It should be remembered, however, that school differences are related to income differences. The children of the Speyer School represent a greater number of racial and national groupe than do the children of Lincoln School. The majority in both schools comprise what is referred to as the "American" group consisting of thoee of Irish, Scotch, English descent. In this category, there are 97 per cent of the Lincoln School families and 72 per cent of the Speyer School fami lies, making for a substantial difference between the schools.2 While only 3 per cent of the Lincoln School children 1. That higher m o r t a l i t y r a t e s occur among low inccme f a m i l i e s i s a t h e s i s supported by a c o n s i d e r a b l e body of d a t a . See E. S y d e n s t r i c k e r (9Θ, pp. 8 4 f f . ) and S. D. C o l l i n s (17). 2 . S t a t i s t i c a l l y , hcwever, not s i g n i f i c a n t .

68

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

are representative of minority groupe, 28 per cent of the children of Speyer School are. The term, "minority groups," is used deliberately here to mean not only minority groups in the school situation hut also in the population at large. Table 12 Number and Percentage of 102 Children of Lincoln and Speyer Schools Classified According to Racial or Nationality Groups Racial or „ .. ,.. Nationality Group

Lincoln School

Speyer School

Number

Per cent

Number

Per cent

51

97

35

72

Italian, GermanItalian

2

3

3

6

Negro

0

0

3

6

Polish, Austrian

0

0

2

k

Japanese-Eng1ish, Chinese-English

0

0

r>

k

Spanish, SpanishFrench

0

0

2

k

Greek, Armenian

0

0

2

k

53

100

^9

100

American (including Irish, Scotch, English, German, etc. )

Total

There is a range of income level in all racial groupa even within the Negro group but, on the vhole, the children of the minority groups in this study are also the economically less privileged. The results of the experiment reported in the following pages must be considered in view of these facts. Other Factors in the Home Differences in social status as indicated by income, occupation of the father, rental index, have already been reviewed in

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP AS RELATED TO INCOME LEVEL

69

Chapter III. The assumption underlying thia study is that variations in income create and condition to a marked degree other variations in the home such as educational backgrounds of the parents, the cultural opportunities offered the children, the interests and activities of the family, and even the psychological relationships existing between parents and between parents and children. To implement this assumption further and to illustrate the close relationship between Income and seme other factors in the home situation, Table 13 was prepared. The data in this table are for Lincoln School children only because this same information was not available for all the Speyer School children. Even in this income range (levels 3 to 7) and with the smaller number of cases involved, there is a marked and consistent relationship between income and these other miscellaneous factors. Though there is not a striking difference in the middle ranges, as in the case of father's and mother's schooling, and mother's special interests, there is always a marked discrepancy between the highest and lowest income levels. It can be taken for granted that these factors are found with less frequency, if at all, in the homes of the Speyer School children of the two lowest income levels. The School Situation In the lives of these children as for all children, the school is, next to their homes, the institution of greatest significance. To what extent, then, is the school serving the lessprivileged children alike or different from the school serving the more privileged children? In the Speyer School, 83 per cent of the children fall in the three lowest income groups (levels 1, 2, 3) while in the Lincoln School, 77 per cent of the children fall in the four highest income groups (levels 5, 6, 7). Since this chapter is purely descriptive, merely a number of outstanding facts about each school is reported. The influence of each school on the personality, attitudes, and interests of these children as a result of these differences can only be implied. 1. Speyer School was a public school set up for experimental purposes, administered Jointly by the New York City Board of

Table 13 Averagea of Some Socio-Economic Measuree for the "amilies of the Lincoln School Children Divided into Five Income Levels 3

(n=12)

I n c o m e ^ 5

L e v e l 6 7

(n=7) (n=6 ) (n=7) (n=2of

Average number of servante in the home

Λ2

Λ3

1.00

Average number of automobiles owned

.17

Λ 3

.67

1.00

.90

358

671

750

6U1

IO52

l.lU

2.00

Average number of books in the home Average number of bathrooms

1,.00

1..57

2.16

1.. 7 1

3.00

Average number of rooms

It,.33

5. •11+

7.66

6..11+

7.70

Person-room ratio

1,.29

1.. 3 7

1.56

1Λ 1

1.1+8

Per cent of families occupying a different residence in the summer

25$

1+3$

67$

86$

85$

Per cent of fathers who have had college education or more

50$

86$

83$

86$

85$

Per cent of mothers who have had college education or more

58$

1+3$

83$

86$

70$

Per cent of mothers who mentioned one or more special interests

50$

57$

50$

29$

61$

a . The i n f o r m a t i o n f o r t h i s t a b l e was obtained from a Home Information Blank f i l l e d out by Lincoln School parents u s u a l l y a t the time the c h i l d was entered at s c h o o l , and s o does not in most cases i n d i c a t e the present s t a t u s of the c h i l d ' s f a m i l y . Nevertheless, i t s e r v e s t c r e v e a l a trend. b. There was no information f o r one c h i l d at t h i s income l e v e l .

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP AS RELATED TO INCOME LEVEL

71

Education and. Teachers College, Columbia University. Lincoln School is a private school also dedicated to experimentation and affiliated with Teachers College. 2. The physical equipment of Speyer School was meager, located in an old building in a run-down neighborhood with inadequate indoor and no outdoor play facilities; Lincoln School, on the other hand, is housed in a modern building with both indoor and outdoor play facilities, opposite a park, although the neighborhood is only slightly better than is the neighborhood of Speyer School. (The two schools are only four city blocks apart.) The Lincoln School has a separate library room, attractively arranged; Speyer School, too, had a library but on a much smaller scale. Lincoln School has a pleasant lunchroom; Speyer School had none. 3. The forty-nin·? children in the Speyer School were divided into two classes which were set apart from the rest of the classes in the school, which had, in addition to the two classes for bright children, a number of classes for dullnormal children. At the Lincoln School, the fifty-three children are scattered throughout seven classes which have in them other children whose intelligence level is at least average or higher. U. The teaching in the Speyer School was done mainly by two teachers (one for each group of twenty-five) with some supplementary teaching in French, cooking, swimming, etc. The Lincoln School children, especially those in the Junior High School, are in contact with a number of different teachers -- one for each of their major subjects or activities. 5. The Dalton or contract plan of teaching was used at the Speyer School. At the Lincoln School, the project method is generally used. The curriculum of the Speyer School was more rigidly defined and closely adhered to. In both schools, the teaching aims to help the individual child. 6. While there is an easy atmosphere of give and take among the teachers and children at both schools, the atmosphere at Lincoln School is on a more sophisticated level. Outward Appearance and Manner Trying to be as objective as possible in the light of obvious differences in the quality and style of clothes worn by the chil-

72

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

dren, the writer ventures the statement that the poorer children, in general, appeared smaller in physique, leas attractive in outward appearance, and much more submissive in manner. The wealthier, in most cases, were heavier and taller and generally appeared to be well-cared for. Their attitudes were decidedly less tense and they seemed altogether happier. They appeared to be much .nore sophisticated. There were no obvious physical defects or serious behavior problems among either the wealthier or poorer children, to the writer's knowledge. There was one rather serious asthma case of a child in the highest Income level and one rather serious case of incipient tuberculosis of a child in the second insome level, loth these children had been away from school previous to the time of this experiment because of their illness. Summary 1. The factors of sex, chronological age, mental age, and intelligence level do not vary markedly among the income groups or between the two schools. Nevertheless, unlike most populations, a slight inverse relationship exists between income and mental age (r= -.28) and between income and I.Q. (r= -·3Ό> that ÌB, the poorer children in this study tend to be the brighter. 2. Number of children in the home shows some variation with income. The number of children among the poorer families is likely to be two or three while the number of children among the wealthier families is likely to be one or at most two. 3. The broken home is more frequent among the poorer families. U. Although the majority of children at all income levels may be classified as "Americans," the less privileged are more likely to be members of a racial or national minority. 5- There is a striking relationship between such factors as number of books in the home, number of rooms, number of servants, education of father and mother, and income. 6. While the two schools attended by the children of this study are progressive and experimental, the school attended by the majority of the wealthier children is a private school, with superior equipment, where the child came in contact with many teachers and with other children who were his intellectual peers or superiors. The poorer children attended a public school with meager physical equipment whose contacts with both teachers and children were more limited.

Part II ANALYSIS OF ASPECTS OF PERSONALITY IN RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

INTRODUCTION Statistical Methodology Since the major problem of this study la to determine whether a number of groups are differentiated from one another, the simplest test is analysis of variance, for it providea a basis for Judging whether or not a number of groups are more diverse from each other than could be expected of random samples out of a homogeneous population (92). When the independence of two attributes, each expressed in multiple categories is to be tested, X 2 has been used. The Two School Groups Compared The 102 children of this study attended two schools -- the Lincoln School and the Speyer School. When grouped into the seven income levels, previously described, the two lowest levels are represented only by children of the Speyer School and the highest level only by children of the Lincoln School as tabulated below: Income Group (7) (6) (5) (1+)

Over $10,000 $7,500 to 10,000 $6,000 to 7,1+00 $l+,000 to 5,900

(3) $2,500 to 3,900 (?) $1,500 to 2,1+00 (1) Under $1,500

Lincoln School

Speyer School

(n=53)

(n=U9)

21 7 6 7

0 1 2 6

12 0 0

ll+ 12

School end income, therefore, for the children of this study are associated. In order to be able to consider the variability in certain aspects of personality which could be accounted for in terms of income differences that are not conditioned by school differences, it is essential that all income levels be represented by children attending both schools. Since this condition was not met, it was necessary to ascertain whether or not the two school groups are significantly

76

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

different in some of the aspects of personality being studied for the purpose of determining whether or not the entire group of 102 children could be considered homogeneous as far as "school" is concerned. The Neyman-Johnson method (it-8) is especially suitable for this purpose. This method permits a comparison between two groups, allowing, at the same time, for discrepancies in certain background factors (in this instance, income level) which might condition the trait on which the two groups are being compared. If the results yield non-significant differences between the two school groupa, when the influence attributable to income is eliminated, combined treatment of the two groups is feasible; if, however, differences are significant, Buch treatment is not possible and the two school groups will have to be handled separately. For this analysis, only the children in income levels 3> 5, and 6 combined, were used since both schools are represented at these levels. The number of children in the two schools and in the three income classifications ia as follows: I n c o m e 3 ^ 5 Lincoln School Speyer School

1" lb

7 6

L e v e l and 6 13 3

Total 3?

Comparison between the two school groups was made for each of fifteen different test scores. These were selected on the expectation that they might be the ones which would reveal differences between the schools. The results are indicated in Table lU. Of the fifteen comparisons, thirteen indicate that the variation between school groups is not significantly large and only in two is the variation significantly large (at less than the 1'$ level). This result supports the hypothesis that the two schools are not significantly different on these scores when allowance for the inequalities in income is made. The error or intraclass variance for six of the comparisons is larger than the interclass variance indicating that the difference between the schools is even less than could have been expected in the long run on the basis of individual variability.

Table Ik Analysis of Variance of Some Test Scores Betveen Lincoln and Speyer Schools Source of Variation

df

Mean Variance

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

1536.95 348.23

Betveen Groups Within Groups

1 51

31.04

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

63.85

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

30.58

Between Groups Within Groupß

1 51

22.58

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

23.35 244.82

P$> (animal and animal detail 4 total responses Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

55.09 131.19

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

82.74

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

36.29 402.31

0.09

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

253.66 336.89

0.75

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

384.02 249.24

1.54

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

195.77 75.85

2.58

51.98 66.92

0.78

Test Score A

(total responses)

V (whole responses)

M (human movement)

Fc+c (form with texture)

FC (form with bright color) S

(form responses * total responses)

C 0

I I

s I

T Total Number of \AdJustment Signs

Attitude toward the Negro

Attitude toward Labor and Unemployment

Litorallorn in Social Attitudes

Feelings of Inferiority

Feelings of Morale

0.30

9.50

5.27

2.13

7.05

Variance Ratio (F)*

4.41

0.01

6.72

5.80

10.61

0.42

11.74 b

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

Between Groups Within Groups

51

11.42 7.17

1.59

Between Groups Within Groups

1 51

198.75 71.79

2.77

Significant Interests in School Subjects .1

Accomplishment Ratio in Reading

a. For the entire table F( and Ρ j for 1 and 51 degrees of freedom are 4.CG and 7.17 respectively. b. Significant at less than the 1% level.

78

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

This finding is extremely interesting in view of the fact that the tvo schools are in a number of respects quite different. There is no evidence, however, that such obvious school differences as physical equipment, kind of curriculum, etc., are causing a difference in the test scores used for this analysis. The two significant variance ratios for the FC score and the total signs of adjustment, are easily explained. These scores are in general indicative of social adjustment of the kind that requires conformity to the usual demands of one's environment. The Speyer School children show consistently more FC scores and a greater number of signa of adjustment at all Income levels. The differences between the tvo schools in the case of these scores may be a resultant of the kind of life or school experience which puts a premium upon social conformity. While the Speyer School children are bound by rather rigid rules, the Lincoln School children are given opportunity for a greater amount of individual expression. Three other Rorschach scores (Fc / c, R,M) are significant at the level. The Fe / c score is related to the FC score; the R and M difference between the schools can be explained by the difference in mental age. The Speyer School children are, on the average, brighter and consequently give more human movement responses (M) and also a larger number of responses (R). Comparison was also made of the regression coefficients in order to ascertain whether the two schools show a difference in the trend of the relationship between income level and certain test scores. This analysis necessitated the determination of the difference between two regression coefficients and its significance. Consequently, correlation coefficients between income and a number of test scores including the necessary regression coefficients (of test score on income) were calculated separately for the Speyer School group and for the Lincoln School group. The results are tabulated in Table 15. In this sample (df 93), t must be larger than 2.58 to be significant at the 1 per cent level. All of the above t's fall short of this value indicating again that there is no evidence to show that the two school groups are significantly different with respect to the trend of the relationship between income and these nine test scores. Therefore, the hypothesis that the two

PART II:

79

INTRODUCTION

school groups, with respect to these traits, are random samples out of a homogeneous population is tenable. Even in the case of the FC score

(form with bright color), which showed a signifi-

cant difference between the group means, the slopes of the regression lines are not significantly

different.

Table 15 Regression Coefficients of the Specified Test Scores on Income for Lincoln and Speyer Schools, the Differences between Them, and Their Significance

Teet Score

Regression (Lincoln Lincoln School)

Coefficient Difference (Speyer (b^ s - bs s ) School)

SbL s - hs s

t

Liberalism In Social -3.2591»

1.3k77

-*9

-0.3935

O.9087

-0.7118

1.6205

1.2791*

1.2666

-2.4729

0.6502

-3.1231

3-1203

-1.0009

R (total responses)

-0.1193

2.9607

-3.O80O

2.U83U

-I.2U02

W (whole responses)

-0.6U68

I.OI83

-I.665I

O.6836

-2.U358

-0.0367

0.57*t2

-0.6109

0.U093

-1Λ925

O.25I3 0.0857

-0.I303 O.3IO5

O.38I6 -O.22U8

2.2397 0.2198

0.1704 -1.0227

Attitudes General School Interest Bumber of Uncertain Scores In Test ^ .11 Educational Age in Reading Rorschach Scores

M (human movement responses) FÍ (form • R) responses FC (form with bright color)

a

· \

S

- »-s.S. =

S2 and SÍ = —ί oyx/ς c \ 0 47(S*! bles.

yx(L.S.)

- txL 5KSÍ ) 51 b2 * JOi • χ r e f e r s t o income and y t o one of the other v a r i 4*7

(From C. H. Goulden, Methods

^byx(S.S. ) "here ^

of Statistical

Analysis,

>s>

, =

p. 56, 19G9. )

80

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

In view of the foregoing analyses, it will be assumed that the two school groups' are not so different as to preclude the possibility of handling them as a single relatively homogeneous sample for the purpose of all further comparisons among income levels, with the exception of those scores (like the FC score and the eigne of adjustment) which show a significant difference . 1 . Although in the f i r s t a n a l y s i s only f i f t y - f i v e o f the ICE c h i l d r e n were used, the conclusion nay presumably be extended t o the e n t i r e group, since t h e r e was no b a s i s f o r s e l e c t i o n other than the one indicated and, t h e r e f o r e , these f i f t y - f i v e c h i l d r e n may be considered r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f the e n t i r e group.

Chapter V THE RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC B A C K G R O U N D In this chapter, an analyaia of the Rorachach protocola of the 102 children of this atudy vd.ll te made with a view to answering the following questions: 1. What are the outstanding personality patterns descriptive of this group of very bright children? 2. What is the degree of adjustment, personal and social, for this group of very bright children? 5. What personality picture, based on the Rorschach scoring categories is descriptive of the average child in this group of very bright children? U. What is the variation and the significance of the variation among the seven income levels of: a. The selected patterns of personality? b. The degree of adjustment? c. The specific Rorschach scorea? The Rorschach Method It is possible to obtain from a Rorschach protocol, results in a quantitative form, e.g., the number of responses to all ten cards, the number of these which use the whole blot or a detail for interpretation; the number of reaponaea which use only the shape of the blot aa compared with the number in which the shading or color is used for the concept formation; or the number of concepts in which movement is projected on to the blots, whether it be human, animal, or inanimate. Such numerical findings are interpreted, after a qualitative analysis of the responses has been made? for example, as to the acuity with which the forms are perceived, the degree of organization of the "whole" responses, the appropriateness of the response, the orderliness of approach, the places of particular emphases, and the like. Because of the flexibility of the Rorschach method, it is possible to construct a picture of the personality which would not be feasible otherwise.

82

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

It ia admittedly difficult to present material of this nature when dealing with groups rather than with individuals. However, by presenting the Rorschach findings in a number of different ways, comprehensive pictures of the personalities characteristic of a group may be obtained. The three approaches used can be referred to as: (l) the pattern approach, (2) the sign1 approach, and (3) the trait or score approach. Description of the Group Based on the Rorschach Protocols Personality Patterns Among Very Bright Children Certain quantitative and qualitative factors in the Rorschach measure adjustment, such as the relationship between human movement responses (M) and animal movement responses (FM), the relationship between form color (FC) and color form responses (CF), the relative emphasis on whole (w), usual detail (D and d) and unusual detail responses (Dd and S), the presence of peculiar answers, and the richness and accuracy of the concepts used. By means of these factors, the 102 children were classified into four main groupings: (i) outstandingly adjusted, (II) simply adJusted, (ill) limited adjusted, and (IV) unadjusted. Subdivisions of these groups may be made on the basis of other Rorschach factors, such as the total number of responses (R), the number of M and FC responses, the presence and degree of color and shading shock, and the number of rejections. These subdivisions resulted in nine personality patterns characterized as follows : I. Outstandingly Adjusted 1. Introverts 2. Extraverts II. Simply Adjusted

III. Limited Adjusted 6. Intellectually Aggressive 7. Constricted

3. Adjusted IV. Unadjusted Adjusted with Anxiety 8. Maladjusted 5. Childish 9. Disturbed Disposition of each child into one of the nine patterns was made by the writer in collaboration with Dr. Bruno Klopfer only after: (l) an examination of the quantitative elements in the 1. For explanation, see pages 8 8 f f .

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND 83 Rorschach protocol a n d (2) an examination of the qualitative elements in the protocol including em evaluation of the functional role of the elements for each individual personality configuration. The validity of the placements was checked by employing an independent examiner 2 who was furnished with descriptions of the nine personality patterns. 3 In making the placements, the independent examiner used the quantitative results of each Rorschach record together with brief indications ae to: (l) whether there were any peculiar answers in the record, (2) whether there was evidence of anxiety, (3) of color shock, (H) of shading shock, and (5) whether the first answer to Cards III and VTII were the popular ones (the men in III and the animals in VIII). She did not read the actual responses but operated primarily o n the basis of the quantitative results. The results of the independent examination agreed with the original placements in eighty-seven of the 102 cases. Of the fifteen discrepancies, eleven involved a placement only one step removed from the original one such as interchange of "childish" and "adjusted" or of "maladjusted" and "disturbed." The remaining four cases were clearly borderline and might conceivably have b e e n classified in one or the other pattern. The contingency coefficient between the two sets of classifications is O . 9 2 . The highest possible when there are nine categories is 0.9^· The assignment of individuals to these classifications m a y therefore be considered valid. The Rorschach factors characteristic of the nine personality patterns are shown in Table l6. Although the children had been classified into these patterns on the basis of their complete Rorschach protocols, the factors distinguishing one pattern from another were exactly those which have been alleged to be 2. Mrs. Ruth Wolfson, PeHow of the Rorschach I n s t i t u t e , New York City, an expert in the use of the Rorschach technique. 3. A sample d e s c r i p t i o n : Adjusted P a t t e r n : The c h i l d r e n who shew a s a t i s f a c t o r y amount of adjustment but. nothing o u t standing. They get along well in t h e i r group a c t i v i t i e s and have no inner c o n f l i c t s . They have developed an inner l i f e on a simple level (M g r e a t e r than FM or vice v e r s a ) and are responsive t o e x t e r n a l s t i m u l a t i o n in an a d j u s t e d way (PC u s u a l l y greater than CF). They show adequate control (Pt around 40), a normal amount of productiveness (Vfl6 about 2C or higher, and t o t a l number of responses around 30). No anxiety or neurotic tendencies are p r e s e n t .

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

85

symptomatic of introversiveness or extrateneiveness, of constriction or adjustment. A single Borschach factor, however, cannot he used to describe the personality; nevertheless, in combination with other congruent factors, it may serve to differentiate one personality pattern from the other. It should be pointed out here that thebe patterns are based on the reported practice of Borschach analysts and may fail in bo far as they lack complete validation. Some outstanding differences among the patterns may be pointed out. For example, the introverted and extraverted groups differ in the number of total responses and in the sum color Bcore. The three simply adjusted groups differ in such factors as the quality of the CF and M responses, the emphasis on whole and detail responses, the presence or absence of neurotic signs. Likewise, the constricted and intellectually aggressive groups vary mainly in the total number of responses, in the M and sum color Table IT Number of Cases in Each of the Nine Personality Patterns, the Number of Boys and Girls, and the Average C.A., I.Q. and Income Level for Each Pattern

Personality Pattern

Frequency Ν

%

Boys Η *

Girle Ν *

151.0

3.5

11 .9

138.0

11*1.7

k.2

il*

33 .1*

135 .5

11*5.9

3-8

18 Λ

3

7 .1

11*3 .1*

158.7

ι*.ι

5

8.3

6

li*• 3

15? .8

11*2.1

3-8

3.8

3

5-0

1

2Λ

151.• 5

11*1.0

U.7

7

6.9

1*

6.7

3

7 .1

156..1

135.1

1* .7

9

8.8

5

8.5

ι*

9.• 5

11*2..9

11*2.3

5.2

11

10.8

9

15.0

2

ι*,.8

11*3.,0

11*0.0

1* .7

102

100.0

60

100.0

1*2 100.0

137.8

11*2.6

5.97

11*

13.8

10

16.7

1*

6

5.9

1

1.6

5

(Adjusted ( (Adjusted with (Anxiety

26

25.1*

IP

20.0

lU

15.8

11

(Childish

11

10.8

(Intellectually (Aggressive

u

(Constricted (Maladjusted

( (

(Disturbed Total

Average Income Level

138.1

(Introverted ( (Ext reverted

(

Average. Average C.A. I.Q.

9•5

86

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

score -- the constricted group being outstanding among all the groups in the low sum color score. The maladjusted and disturbed groups differ principally in the degree of disturbance ae evidenced by such Rorschach factors as the presence of peculiar answers, of color and shading shock, and the repetition of unusual concepts. Frequency of the Personality Patterns In Table 17 are given the frequencies with which these patterns are found in this sample of bright children, for the total group, and for boys and girls separately, along with the average C.A., the average I.Q., and the average income level. The largest percentage of cases falls in the "adjusted" group as might be expected; the smallest in the group designated ae the "intellectually aggressive." More children are found in the "introverted" than in the "extraverted" group. Approximately 70 per cent of the children fall in the five adjusted categories, while only l8 per cent can be considered maladjusted to some degree and in only two or three cases is it likely that the maladjustment will become serious. Personality Pattern in Relation to Chronological Age The average C.A. ranges from I3I months (10 years, 11 months) to 1U3 months (11 years, 11 months). The youngest children are found in the "childish" and "intellectually aggressive" groups; the oldest in the two unsatisfactorily adjusted groups and in the "adjusted with anxiety" group. The X2 test applied to these data, however, provide no evidence for indicating the existence of a relationship between age and personality pattern. Age, therefore, for this group, at this age period, nine to fourteen years, is probably unrelated to personality pattern as classified in this study. Personality Pattern in Relation to Intelligence Rating It is most interesting to find, as would be expected, that the most intelligent children fall in the "introverted adjusted" group having an average I.Q. of I5I which 1b nine points above the average for the entire group. Also, as has already been

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

87

anticipated, the "constricted" group has the lowest mean I.Q. (135) which may be a contributing factor for their place in this claeaification. The range of I.Q.'β for the other seven personality patterns is very narrow, extending from 138 to 143. The 2 results of the X test reveals, likewise, that intelligence rating, at this high level, is probably independent of personality pattern as classified. Personality Pattern in Relation to Income Level The income factor will receive further attention in the latter part of this chapter. At this Juncture, it will suffice merely to point out that the range in average income level among the patterns is from 3.2 to 4.7 with a mean for the total group of approximately 4.0. Of interest is the fact that the lowest income level occurs in the "maladjusted" group and the highest in the "disturbed," "intellectually aggressive" and "constricted" groups. Personality Pattern in Relation to Sex Almost 17% of the boys are in the "introverted adjusted" group and only 9$ of the girls, whereas almost 12$ of the girls are in the "extraverted adjusted" group and less than 2$ of the boys. Hertz (40) has noted that the tendency toward introversion Increases with age in both boys and girls and therefore the difference Just observed may be due to the fact that the boys in this sample are on the average seven months older than the girls. The fact, however, that girls are age for age physically and mentally more mature than boys should be kept in mind. As in most child populations, there is a greater percentage of boys in the two unadjusted groups — 23$ as compared to 14$ for the girls. This is true even for the group "adjusted with anxiety" where l8# of the boys are found and only 17$ of the girls. In summary, the data seem to indicate these findings: 1. In spite of uniformly high intelligence ratings, the group reveals nevertheless a wide disparity in personality patterns, as probably would any random group of children. In the main, they are an adjusted group with the likelihood

88

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND of only a very email percentage becoming serious personality problema. 2. In thie sample of bright children, more boya than girls fall in the personality patterns displaying unsatisfactory adjustment. In contrast to the girls, more of the boys tend toward the introverted in their personality structure. 3. Income level does not appear to be associated with personality pattern. U. Among these bright children, intelligence is probably not associated with personality pattern.

Degree of Adjustment Among Very Bright Children The next step in the Rorschach analysis of the 102 protocols was to consider the quantitative signs of adjustment. The patterns Just described were determined not only on the basis of the quantitative features but also on a number of qualitative features of each Rorschach protocol, so that some of the same syndromes used In the broad classifications are now used to yield a finer scaling. A number of investigations using Rorschach signs for the purpose of diagnosis have been made. Piotrowski (80; 8l) has used and validated a series of ten signs for diagnosing organic disturbances of the central nervous system. Miale and HarrowerErickson (67) have used other Rorschach signs to detect peychoneuroees in mental patients. Kelley and Klopfer (50) have reviewed the use of signs by Rorschach and others and have suggested a list of twenty signs that appear frequently in protocols of schizophrenic patients. These investigators have found the use of signs in this fashion both reliable and useful. Signs can also be used in detecting normal personality adjustment. Again, emphasis must be made that, in common with all single Rorschach scoring categories, the meaning of a specific Rorschach sign depends on the setting in which it occurs. However, a number of signs considered in combination will have more validity than any one single sign. On the basis of the previous use of signs, the experience of Rorschach investigators, and available norms for healthy, normal adults and children, twenty-three signs were selected as indicative of adjustment. In order to validate these twenty-

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

89

three signs of adjustment, bi-serial correlation coefficients were computed between each sign and the total number of signs.4 Fourteen signe yielded correlations over Λ θ and four between .23 and Λθ. All these correlations are significantly different from zero. One of the signs having a correlation of Λ 5 with the total was discarded because it was present in 95$ of the cases. The seventeen signs finally used are listed below with their definitions. The first six signs refer more specifically to personal adjustment while the eleven signs which follow refer more specifically to social adjustment. Personal adjustment can be thought of as including feelings with regard to oneself, the presence or absence of conflicting tendencies and anxieties, the state of emotional development, the richness of imaginative activity and so on. Social adjustment can be thought of as including one's sensitivity to his surroundings, tactfulness in relationships to other people, the state of emotional responsiveness and control, and so on. This division is, of course, artificial. Rather the two ars interrelated and include somewhat different aspects of emotional adjustment to the environment . 1. M > FM or M = EM means that the number of M responses (human movement) is at least equal to or greater than the FM responses (animal movement). Normal, intelligent, well-adjusted individuals usually have more M than FM responses. 2. M, 3 or more (including additional M responses) means that the number of M responses, including those given additionally should be at least three. Three or more M responses are expected from a normal intelligent adult. 3. sum C > Fc / c / C means that the value of the responses to the bright colors (¿ number of FC / number of CF / number of C) is larger than the number of responses to the achromatic colors (gray, black, and white) plus responses using shading as texture. An individual adjusted to his surroundings will have more bright color responses than texture and achromatic color responses; those fearful of external situa4. The writer is indebted to Mr. J. Maurice Rogers for the computation of the bi-serial r's. The bi-serial r's are given in Table A in the Appendix.

90

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

tione will want to play Bafe and retreat to the achromatic colore and ehadlng. Theee people may appear outwardly adjusted but have Inner conflicts as a result. h. F$, 50 or less means that the number of responses in which only the outline of the blot is used comprises half the entire number of responses or less. An individual with a satisfactory degree of rational control and, at the same time, a sufficient degree of spontaneity gives about 20 to 50$ F responses of the total number of responses. 5. Dd / S, 10$ or less means that the number of responses in which a rare detail or white apace is used is lese than 10$ of the total number of responses. More than 10$ rare detail answers may represent anxiety, or inability to see the things most people attend to. 6. P, h or more (and less than 30$). It is expected that normal, healthy individuals give at least four popular responses but not more than 30$ of his total responses. Ρ responses indicate the ability to think along the lines of other people which is essential even of very intelligent individuals if they are to be considered adjusted. 7. R, more than 20 means that the total number of responses is more than twenty. Normal, intelligent adults rarely give fewer than twenty responses. 8. FC > CF or FC = CF means that the number of FC responses (form with bright color) is either equal to or greater than the number of CF responses (bright color with indefinite form). A well-adjusted individual usually has more FC than CF responses. 9. FC, 2 or more indicates Borne capacity to make adequate social adjustments. From a normal individual at least two FC responses are expected. 10. Wo pure C means that a normal adjusted individual does not usually give color responses which disregard form and context completely. 11. Percent of responses to last three cards, 40$ or over means that the number of responses to the last three cards is approximately 1+0$ or more (up to 60$) of the total number of responses. A socially well-adjusted individual is stimulated as much by the three colored cardB aB he is by the other cards and, therefore, should give approximately one-third of his responses to these cards. However, U0$ instead of 30$ is

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

12.

13.

lU.

15.

16. 17.

91

used, because the possibility of seeing details in the last three cards is greater. FK + Fc, 2 or more means that a healthy, intelligent individual gives at least two responses which use shading in a differentiated way. These responses represent social awareness and ability to introspect. W:M = 2:1 means that the optimum relation between whole responses and human movement responses is two to one. This is an index of productivity in relation to creative ability. A 5 0 or less means that the number of animal responses (A + Ad) does not exceed 50% of the total number of responses. Too many animal responses indicate stereotypy in thinking. No color shock means that there are no signs in the Rorschach of color shock which may indicate an emotional disturbance . No shading shock means that there are no eigne of disturbance due to shading. No refusals means that at least one response is given to each of the ten cards during the performance. Normal individuals are expected to see something in each of the cards. Table l8 Distribution, Mean, and Standard Deviation of the Total Number of Adjustment Signs

Total Number of Signs of Adjustment 17 16 15 13 12 11 10

Total Number of Children

Total Number of Signs of Adjustment

1 2

9

8

6 6 8 15 17

8 Total Number Mean S.D.

7 6 5 U 3 102 IO.3I 2.99

Number of Children 7 10 10 7 1* 0 1

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

92

Tables 18 and. 19 give the distribution of the number of children having the specified total number of adjustment signe, the number of signs Indicative of personal adjustment, and the number indicative of social adjustment. TabIs 19 Distribution, Mean, and Standard Deviation of the Signs of Social and Personal Adjustment Number Having Nunber Social

Number of Signa

of Children Specified of Signs of Adjustment

Number of Children Having Specified Number of Signs of Personal Adjustment

11 10 9 8 7 6 5

k 8 11+ 9 23 12

6 23

It

10

25

3 2 1

5 3

26 13 9

Total Number Mean S.D.

0 102 6.75 2.20

102 3-57 1.35

The distribution of the total number of adjustment signs reveals that although the group is variable in degree of adjustment, no severe cases of maladjustment exist. The group, as a whole, can be said to be fairly well adjusted, having a mean of approximately ten signs. This agrees well with the previous analysis based on patterns of personality where only a small portion of the group showed maladjustment of a relatively severe kind. The relationship between adjustment in the personal area and in the social area may readily be seen by the correlation table (Table 20) presented herewith. The correlation between the

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

93

eigne of personal and social adjustment is .35» which is significantly different from zero. Adjustment, therefore, in one area ie likely to be associated with adjustment in the other. Table 20 The Correlation between the Signs of Personal and Social Adjustment as Determined by the Rorschach r = .35 Number of Signs of Personal Adjustment

6 5 1+ 3 2 1

1 1+ 2

k

3 1 1

1 1 2

k

1 5 2 2 1

2

3

1

? 3

¿L

1

1

2

3 5 5

6 9 2 2 2

3 3

1 2

5 1 1 1

k 10 6 8 5 7 9 3 Number of Signs of Social Adjustment

1

11

The relationship between the signs of adjustment and the factors of age, I.Q., and income level is shown by the following correlation coefficients: Age

I.Q.

Income Level

.03

,2k

-.Ok

Adjustment

.01

.lS

-.02

Signs of Personal Adjuetment

.01*

.22

-.07

Total Signa of Adjustment Signs of Social

Only two of the above r's are significantly different from zero -- the correlation between total signs of adjustment and I.Q. (.2k) and the one between signs of personal adjustment and I.Q. (.22). The relationship between I.Q. and adjustment, therefore, is a true one and can be expected to be greater than zero in other eimilar populations. Intelligence, even at t h i B high range, seems to play some role in adjustment but a very minor role. The average number of adjustment signs for boys and girls and the significance of the differences between them are as follows:

94

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Boys Total Signa of Adjustment

Mean Girls

Diff.

S.E. diff

Diff. S.E. diff.

Ρ

10.18

10.50

0.32

0.6l

0.52

.60

Signs of Social Adjustment

6.57

7.00

0.U3

0.1+5

0.96

.5k

Signs of Personal Adjustment

3.62

3.50

0.1?

0.26

0Λ6

.64

There le no significant difference in the adjustment scores of boys and girls. Ρ would have to be less than . 05 to make for a significant difference. The relationship between the signs of adjustment and the nine personality patterns previously described might be of interest. The distribution of the adjustment scores for each personality pattern together with the mean score are presented in three tables (Tables 21, 22, 23). The relationship between the signs of adjustment and personality pattern is indicated in terms of correlation eta. The data are presented separately for total signs of adjustment (Table 21) and for signs of social adjustment (Table 22) and of personal adjustment (Table 23). Most conspicuous is the "extraverted adjusted" group which has the highest average number of total signs of adjustment.5 Tliis may be a reflection of a culture which is geared to the outgoing type of personality therefore making it easier for these individuals to find the necessary social and personal adjustment. Four of the adjusted groups (omitting the 'childish") reveal higher than the average number of signs of adjustment; the "constricted" group shows the lowest number of signs while the "disturbed" and 'childish" groups are next to the lowest. The "maladjusted" group, peculiarly enough, has a higher number of adjustment signs than either the "childish" or "constricted" groups. 5. In describing these findings, it should be kept in mind that some of the scores used in placing the children in one of the personality pattern classifications were the same as those used in the analysis of the signs of adjustment. The "sign" method, being almost completely quantitative, may be considered a check on the "pattern" method which involved the ase of qualitative judgments as well.

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

9S

The relationship between the total number of adjustment aic^ie and personality pattern is significantly high - correlation eta being .79· While the two approaches yield somewhat similar results, the personality pattern approach furnishes information of a more differentiating nature. Table 21 Frequency Distribution and Mean of the Total Number of Adjustment Signs for the Nine Personality Patterns Total Number of AdJuetment Signs

Introvert

Extrarert

AdJuaied

Adjusted iflth Anxiety

Chlldiah

Intellectually AggreeBlve

Conatrieted

MaladJueted

Dieturned

Entire Group

(Correlation eta .79) 17 16

1

1

2

2 *

5

1U

1

2

3

15

2

1

3

15

12

5

11

2

θ

10

2

2

6 6 2 2

5

9 e 7

lj 5 1 1

6

;

8 1

2 2

1

15

1

17

1 1

ύ

1

1

8

1

1

7

5

1

10 10

h

2

3

2

2

*

2

1

τ

9

6.0

8.3

11 7.6

1

7 u

h

5

1 lk

6

26

lit

11

IS.It

It. 3

11.9

11.s

7.6

1» 10.3

1 102 10.51

The "introverted adjusted" group has the highest number of signs of personal adjustment while the "extraverted adjusted" group has the highest number of signs of social adjustment, as might be expected. Four of the five adjusted groups show better them average adjustment in both the personal and social areas. With the exception of the "intellectually aggressive" group, the four remaining groups show poorer than average adjustment in the two areas. Interesting is the discrepancy in the degree of adjustment in the case of the "intellectually aggressive"

96

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

group which shows better than average adjustment in the social area and poorer than average adjustment in the personal area. Table 22 Frequency Distribution and Mean of the Number of Signe of Social Adjustment for the Nine Personality Patterns Siena of Social AdJuatment

Introvert

Extravert

2

1

AdJuated

Adjusted with Anxiety

Childiah

Intelleetually Aggresalve

Conatricted

HaladJuated

Diaturhed

Entire Group

(Correlation eta .73) 11 io 9

3

1

3

3

g

2

6

1

8

2

4

2

7

^

8

4

6

2

3

5

1

2

1» 8 2

11» 1

1

3

1

1

1

3

1

1

4

1

3

3

2

1

2

2

η

2

14 1

1

2 Mean

23

3

4

9

2 1

2

4

10

1

3

2

5

14

6

26

14

11

4

7

9

11

102

7.9

9.8

7.7

7.6

4.6

7.8

4.1

5.3

4.8

6.75

Table 23 Frequency Distribution and Mean of the Number of Signs of Personal Adjustment for the Nine Personality Patterns Signa of Personal Adjuatnent

Introvert

6

2

5

6

4 3

Extravert

Adjusted

Adjueted with Anxiety

Childish

Intelleetually Aggreaalve

Constricted

ItaladJuated

Dlaturhed

Entire Group

(Correlation eta .49) 2 4

9

4

1

10

5

2

2

1

2

4

5

2

2

4

3

3

2

2

2

1

3

1

4

9 102

2

1

1 η Mean

6

2 3 3

1

83 25

4

26 13

14

6

26

14

11

4

7

9

11

4.6

It .5

4.2

3.6

3.0

2.5

1.9

3.0

2.8

3.57

The correlation eta between the signs of personal adjustment and personality pattern is Λ 9 and between signs of social adjustment and personality pattern, .73· Both social adjustment and personal adjustment measured by these seventeen signs are related to personality pattern as classified.

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

97

Some Specific Personality Traits Among Very Bright Children (Based, on the Separate Rorschach Scoring Categories) Thus far, broad personality patterns have been described and the degree and kind of adjustment noted for this group of very bright children. Now, a personality picture, characteristic of the average child in this group of bright children will be presented, in terms of the personality traits which can be determined from the single Rorschach scoring categories plus a knowledge of the quality of the responses generally given by this group of children. For this purpose, the averages of the main Rorschach scoring categories will be used Just as single scores are used In interpreting a record of an individual child. Table 2k Mean Scores for Some Rorschach Scoring Categories for This Group and for a Randomly Selected Group of Adolescents Mean® This Group

Mean 300 Adolescents

R

27.28

27.05

W D/d Dd S

9.32 15.61+ 1.69 0.61+

6.78 II+.08 2.89 1.73

M ïM

3.16

Rorschach Scoring Category

2.62b

3.55

F5f F/r

1+1.9!+

A*

1+6.81+

5^.13

H o*

19-5Í+ 12.93

25.55 6.78

2.53

I.3I+

sum C

88.80

a. See Table 28 for averages of the ether Rorschach scores for this group. b. Probably includes FM. c

.

_ Total Number F's. R '

_ F / (accurately seen F's) Total Number F's

98

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

These average scorea, as in the case of all averages, cannot he considered typical for any child in this group, especially since the group has already been shown to be variable in their personality structures. They may be useful, however, for purposes of further research. The averages for a number of separate scoring categories are given in Table 2k for this group and for a randomly selected group of adolescents6 for the purpose of comparison, even though the administration and scoring procedures are somewhat different. However, the object here is to show the similarities and differences between thle young bright group and an older average group in some of the scoring categories. A few concise statements will serve to describe the personality structure of the average child in this group of bright children, keeping in mind the average scores of a typical group of adolescents. Any further interpretation would not be meaningful since only the quantitative scores were used while the quality of the responses, as a whole, could only be generalized. 1. His personality configuration tends toward the introverted, that is, he is more easily stimulated by his own imaginative life than by his surroundings (M greater than sum C, ïw/m greater than Fc/c/C, per cent to last three cards under Uo). His inner life is probably richer and better developed than the average normal adult or adolescent (number of M responses more than 3). ?. He has sufficient control over his emotional and intellectual reactions (F per cent in average range), maintaining, at the same time, a desirable degree of spontaneity. 3. He can be tactful in his social relationships (Fc close to 2) as well as able to recognize his own problems (FK over l). k. He is responsive to outside stimuli but not always able to make satisfactory adjustments to them. He may more often be egotistical and impulsive than social (number of CF plus C responses greater than FC responses). Θ. M. R. Hertz (37) selected 300 junior high school students, 150 boys and 150 girls, as representative of average American-born white children. They were chosen at random as to chronological age, class standing and school grade. Their ages ranged from 12-β to 1Θ-5 with an average of 14 years, their I.e.'s from 70 to 139, with an average of 107. Statistics on otter adolescent groups are available but they deal with European children.

RORSCHACH FINDINGS AND THEIR RELATION TO ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

5. He la able to do abstract thinking as well as concrete with no particular emphasis on either one (adequate distribution of W, D, d, Dd/S responses). He tends to be intellectually ambitious (W more than twice the number of M responses) but not too critical (H/A almost twice the number of Hd/Ad). He can think along the lines of other people (number of popular responses larger than U and lesa than 30 per cent) while having more than average capacity to do original thinking (large number of original responses). 6. Evidences of childishness or lack of maturity exist but they are not marked (PW greater than M, A per cent rather high, CF responses greater than FC). 7. Generally, this picture is one of a healthy, very intelligent child with substantial potentialities for promising development. Summary In view of the foregoing, it appears that very bright children as a group reveal the types of personality patterns, degree of adjustment, and characteristics of any randomly selected group of healthy children of the same age level. Once more, the conclusion of other investigators is borne out by these data. Among themselves bright children are not similar in personality pattern, in degree of adjustment or maladjustment, or even in their manner of thinking and approach to problems. On the contrary, they show a variety of ways of adJusting to themselves and to their environments; they display a variety of personality patterns only a few of which are unusual, and they possess only a small number of personality characteristics or traits which indicate superiority. This must not be construed to mean that as individuals, these children show nothing exceptional in their Rorschach protocols. Their individual Rorschach protocols are, for the majority of the children, rich in the variety of content, in clarity of concepts, in degree of organization, and in acuity of form perception. These are decidedly superior to the usual Rorschach protocol. Viewed as a group, however, they vary as would any other group of normal, healthy children.

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

100

The next section considere the variation in the patterns of personality, in the signs of adjustment, and in the single scoring categories among the seven income levels. Variation Among the Seven Income Levels Selected Patterns of Personality The frequency with which the nine selected patterns of personality are found in each of the seven income levels, and for income levels 1 and 2 combined, for levels 3, *+, 5 combined, and for levels 6 and 7 combined are presented in Tables 25 and 26. Table 25 Frequency of the Nine Personality Patterns in the Seven Income Levels Ν (Introverted (Adjusted ( (Extreverted (Adjusted

1

%

If

1

8.3

2

0

0.0

0

2

*

1Ό 0.0

Η

3


O) - ι >-J

ΙΑ ·

Ά

t— -d·

o ·

j -

cu

J-

ρ tí o 0 Ρ m 2 "-J

OJ

OJ CO » A NO fA lA · · · -3· l A · -3• · ON Cu i - l · · O · j - c o h h a \ o œ H \ o

O tí M

m

tí o Ή

pi Φ ^ ΐ iJ -d κλ < Φ §

I—CO J· Ό

Cv O

ON [ K"N r H O J

*7)

62.79 (1*7)

62.01 (46)

57.77 (1*2)

57.13 (1*1)

62.00 (1*6)

63.1*3 (47)

61.57 (1*5)

Scale

Inferiority

6 (n=8)

Total Group 7 (n=21 ) (n=10?)

a . The l e v e r t h e s c o r e t h e b e t t e r t h e a d j u s t m e n t . b . E q u i v a l e n t s t a n d a r d s c o r e w i t h a mean o f 50 and a s . d . of 10, o b t a i n e d on a group of 1 , 0 0 0 young p e o p l e , ages 16 t o 25.

In terms of the standard scores which need to he used in inter-scale comparisons, this group is most satisfactorily adJusted in attitudes toward themselves, that is, as a group they show a lesser degree of inferiority than do the young people on whom the test was standardized. In fact, 69 per cent of the standard group exceed this population in possessing a greater amount of inferiority feeling. It Bhould he recalled, at this point, that on the Borschach this group also showed satisfactory personal adjustment. Bright children should certainly have less reason for developing feelings of inferiority than a group of children of average or less than average intelligence. Attitudes toward the family and feelings of morale also reveal slightly better adjustment for this group on the average than the standard group hut the differences are small. The results of the analysis of variance procedure applied to these data indicate no significant variation among the income levels with respect to one's attitude toward his family, one's attitude of morale, or one'β feelings of inferiority (the three variance ratios were not significant at the 5 Pe*" cent point).

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

115

School Interests and. Achievement Subject Matter Preference The findings based on the Interest Index (P.E.A. Test 8.2a) are presented in Table 32. The means for each of the twelve areas of interest measured by this test are shown for the seven income levels and for the total group. The means indicate the degree of preference for the several school subjects expressed by this group of children. Table 32 Mean Scores on Interest Index Twelve School Subject Matter Likes in All Areas Combined Levels and for School Subject Social Studies Biology Physical Science English F o r e i g n Language Mathematics Business Home Economics I n d u s t r i a l Arts Fine Arts Music Sports T o t a l p e r cent Likes

1 (n 30 • 58 a 45 .00 56 .00 43 .08 4? • 50 26 .00 3? .83 38 .08

(8.2a) Measuring Interest in Areas and the Total Per Cent for Each of the Seven Income the Total Group

I η c o m θ L e ν e 1 I1» 6 3 5 (η = 1 4 ) (n=26) (η = 1 3 ) (η =8) (n=8)

?

55 • 33

39 .00 44 • 57 53 .00 1*6 . 2 1 34 .36 ?8 .11+ 3 ? .86 38 .11+ 6 1 .86 5 ? • 50 37 .00 64 . 2 1

31.35 1*5-58 52.77 57.65 58.65 1+8.85 56.19

44 • 92

1+1+..00

47.31

65 • 9? 64 .33 5 1 .83

38.96 45.85 1+8.51+ 51.01+ 39.62

3 1 .23 30 .77 1*3 .00 1+1 .54 30 • 92 33 . 1 5 3 1 .9? 3 7 , .92 1*1*,.08 1*0,.38 3 5 , .92

33 .75 1*7 .88 1*1 .62 57 . 1 2 38 . 3 8 28 .3 8 50 .88

2I* .88 36.6? 1*3.00

Total Group 7 (η = 2 1 ) ( n = 1 0 2 ) 28 .67 28 . 7 1 43 .67 38 .76 20 .62 36 . 1 2 3 1 • 90 3 1 .6?

33.36 59.56 47.34 45.29

45 .29 45, • 57 44,.24

33.54 32.37 37.72 41.03 53.01 51.44 43.41

5 2 . .23

ι*7 .75 1*3 . 7 5 1+7 . 7 5 • 50 59 .50

39-75 32.25 45.50 39.50 35.38 1*7.1? 43.88 39.25 60.88

5 3 , .67

56.79

3 8 . ,1*6

1*3,.75

1+0.38

3 6 . .38

42.47

a. The higher the score, the greater tlie interest.

Sports is the most preferred school subject or activity, mathematics is the one least preferred. The arts rank high in preference; foreign languages and social studies rank low. The mean total per cent likes is 42.47 which is evidence of only a modest interest in the school subjects.

116

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC

BACKGROUND

Some tentative norms are offered for comparative purposes: for four groups of ninth grade students, the median per cent like scores for the total test ranged from 39 to U9; for twentyone groups of tenth grade students, the range was from 33 to 67. This group shows about the same amount of preference as do these other groups on the average. Sporte, too, is the subject most preferred by the ninth graders and mathematics least preferred while the twenty-one groups of tenth graders reveal very extensive ranges for all the subjects. The authors of this questionnaire suggest that the scores can further be used to analyze "significant" likes and dislikes. They claim that liking 70 per cent or more of the items in any one area and disliking 50 per cent or more of the items in any one area is significant for one's personality. Therefore, the number of areas in which "significant" likes and dislikes existed was calculated for each child. The average number of these areas for each of the seven income levels and for the total group is presented in Table 33· Table 33 Average Number of School Subject Areas for Which There Were Significant Likes and Dislikes for the Income Levels and the Total Group I n c o m e 1 2 (n=12 ) ( n - l M Significant L i k e s (7Op o r more of t h e items)

L e v e l

3 ^ (n=26) ( n = l * )

5 (n=8)

6 (n=8)

7 (n--2l)

Total (n=10?)

3.58

2.57

2.77

I.92

2.2?

2.?8

1.52

2 Λθ

I.08

0.93

I.81

2.69

0.63

3.00

1.95

1.75

Significant Dislikes

(50Î

o r more o f the items)

This group of bright children shows "significant" likes on the average for only two school subjects. "Significant" dislikes are also shown on the average for approximately two school subjects. It appears, therefore, that while there is no great amount of liking for the various subjects of the school

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

117

curriculum, neither is there a serious amount of dlalike for them. Is interest in the school subjects a function of the Income level? To determine whether the differences among the means of the income levels, in the degree of preference for the various school eubjects and in the number of "significant" likes and dislikes, eire significant, the analysis of variance procedure was used. The fifteen variance ratios thus obtained fell short of significance (at the 5 per cent point) disclosing thereby that still another personality trait is not conditioned by income. Interest in the various school subjects is not related to income level nor is the tendency to have well-defined likes or dislikes associated with differences in income. Although the differences among the income levels are not statistically significant, there is a trend which appears to be worth noting. For instance, the low and middle income groups seem to prefer more of the subjects than do the high income groups. They also show more "significant" likes and fewer "significant" dislikes than do the higher income groups. It might prove valuable to investigate this point further. The marking of many items by Like, or by Dislike, or by Indifferent appears to be a personality trait (6l; 103) uninfluenced by a genuine interest in a subject matter area. The question is raised: Is liking many things or disliking many things, or being indifferent, a trait of personality associated with income? To determine whether there is a significant association the X 2 test was used which provided no evidence to indicate an association between income and the trait of liking or disliking things in general. School Achievement Inasmuch as the manifestation of a moderate interest in school work ani an indifferent attitude toward the various school subjects is apparent from the foregoing analysis, it seemed worth while to examine the school achievement of these bright children especially in relation to their superior capacity for achievement. The results of three achievement tests: reading, arithmetic, spelling are shown in Table 34 and Table 35 in terms of aver-

PERSONALITY A N D E C O N O M I C

118

BACKGROUND

age educational ages (E.A.) and average accomplishment ratios E .A (A.B. = ) for each of the seven income levels, for the two schools separately, and for the total group. Tatle Average Educational Age in Reading, Arithmetic, and Spelling for the Seven Income Levels, for Lincoln and Speyer Schools and for the Total Group I n c o m e L e v e l 3 4 5 (n=26) (n=13) (n=8)

6 (n=8)

7 (n=2l)

Lincoln School (n=53)

Speyer School (n=l»9)

Total Group (n=102)

200.25

183.25

17^Λ8

l8o.91

201.00

190.56

176.40

178.13

167.13

153.85

161.73

185.57

173.19

177-25

179.25

160.63

148.48

155-72

195. Ά

17^-8]

School Subject

1 (n=12 )

2 (n=lll·)

Reading

201.10

197.86

195-27

188.17

Arithmetic

187Λ3

185.79

174.23

Spelline

195.77

195.86

176.89

Table 35 Average Accomplishment Ratio in Reading, Arithmetic, and Spelling for the Seven Income Levels, for Lincoln and Speyer Schools and for the Total Group I n c o m e L e v e l 3 4 5 6 (11=26) (n=13 ) (n=8)

School Subject

1 (n=12 )

2 (n=l4)

Beading

96.09

100.57

101.71

100.78

rnetic

89.17

-57

90.60

Spelling

93.09

99-57

91.83

(n=21)

Lincoln School (n=53)

Speyer School (n=49)

Total Group (n=102)

103.00

101.53

101. 14

101.34

90.51

93.29

91.84

87.36

98.20

92.57

7 (n=8)

104.63

102.75

93-78

92.75

92.50

91.31*

g1».^

93-75

89.88

87.95

Arith-

The average E.A. for the group is approximately 191 months in reading, 173 months in arithmetic, and 175 months in spelling. With respect to the average C.A. (138 months), these children as a group are certainly achieving beyond what can he expected of children of this age level hut with respect to their average M.A. (2OO months), they are not reaching capacity achievement except in reading which is approximately at par. That capacity achievement was not reached in all three subjects may in part result from the situation that some of these superior children reached the ceiling of the test and were not measured adequately.

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

119

Ir. actual achievement, there are aome differences "between the schools. In all three subjects, the Speyer School shows higher educational ages which is partly explained "by the fact that it also has the higher average M.A. -- 201 months as compared to 192 months for the Lincoln School. On the other hand, the two. schools considered with respect to their average M.A.'s have approximately the same accomplishment ratios in reading and arithmetic but not in spelline; in which subject the more traditionally schooled have the higher achievement. Is school achievement a function of the Income level? The results of the analysis of variance procedure applied to the accomplishment ratio data for reading, arithmetic and spelling reveal that variation among the income levels is not significant (at the 5 psr cent point). Likewise, when the educational &ße data are analyzed separately for the two schools, there is no variation among the income levels. Achievement, therefore, in the tool subjects or broadly considered, the drive to achieve in school, is a personality trait not associated with differences in income. Bright, poor children do not tend to drive themeelvea in school in order to compensate for their deprivations outside, nor do bright, wealthy children neglect their school work because of their advantages outside. School Preference After High School In answer to the question, "Do you intend to continue school after you finish high school?", ninety of the 102 children replied ''Yes," two replied "No," and ten answered with a question mark. The two children who replied "No" are from the lowest income level; the ten who were uncertain are Lincoln School children and, in the main, the younger of the group. A list of twenty-one different types of schools were suggested to the children who, however, had the opportunity to write in whatever they chose. The kind of school the children expected to attend and the number checking each are given below for the two schools separately and for the total group.1 1. The l a t a which follow will be presented for each school separately rather than for the seven income l e v e l s , since there are so many categories involved. School d i f f é r e n c e s , i f any, r e f l e c t in part d i f f e r e n c e s in income.

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

120

Table 36 Number of Children in the Lincoln and. Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Indicating Preferencea for the Type of School Specified Type of School Preferred Medical School Engineering Law A Teachers College College Art School Aviation Army, Navy ?

Lincoln School

Speyer School

(n=53)

(n=l»9)

0 2 0 0

6 2 1 2

33 2 1 ρ

27 it

Total Group (n=102) 6 1 2 60 6 k 2

3 0 It

13

17

A great majority of the group plan to go to college sind about 10 per cent have still further hopes for graduate work. There is practically no difference between the schools except in the two categories, "medical school" and "uncertain." All the children indicating medical school ere from the Speyer School and thirteen of the seventeen children uncertain of what kind of school they prefer, if any, are from Lincoln School. Is school preference a function of the Income level? To determine the relation between school preference and income, the X 2 test was used. The computation of X 2 and the results are indicated: School Preference

1,2

3Λ>5

6,7

17 9 26

35 12

21 8

1+7

29

College, Medical School, Law, Teachers College, Engineering All others Total X

2

0.69^

if 2

Ρ

Total

73 29 102

between 50 and 95

The small X 2 leads directly to the conclusion that school

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS. ACTIVITIES. AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

121

preference is independent of income level since such a distribution as this one might arise by chance in more than fifty out of one hundred times. Some Out-of-School Interests Most of the material presented in this and the following section are based on the responses to the Hildreth questionnaire ("Personality and Interest Inventory") where the children were permitted to give three or more preferences or choices relating to the information requested. However, only first choices are analyzed in the results which follow. Games Liked Best The games and sports checked as first choice are given in Table 37 for the two schools separately and for the total group. These were chosen from a list of thirty. Table 37 Number of Children in Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Checking as First Preference the Game or Sport Specified Game - Sport

Lincoln School (n=53)

Speyer School (n=U9)

16 6 7 3 0 0 0 1 It 0 1 5 0 1 0 1 3 0 0 5

13 3 It 2 1 1 3 0 1 2 1 1 1 0 1 11 1 2 1 0

Baseball Basketball Bicycle riding Boating, yachting, etc. Bowling Boxing, wrestling Fencing Folk dancing Football Handball Hiking Horseback riding Marbles Ping-pong Ice skating Swimming Tennis Boiler skating Skiing Miscellaneous

Total Group (n=102) 29 9 11 5 1 1 3 1 5 2 2 6 1 1 1 12 U 2 1 5

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

122

Again school differences are observed in a few categories -the largest difference being in the case of swimming which was checked by eleven Speyer School children and only one Lincoln School child. Other differences occur in such sports as horseback riding, bicycle riding, etc., which is probably directly due to financial costs. The range of games and sports preferred is extensive although overwhelming concentration is evident in one -- baseball. Certainly this is a reflection of the culture which seems to be impinging on all the children regardless of income. Classifying the sports on the basis of approximately how much money and equipment is required of one in order to indulge in them resulted in three divisions: (A) Sports costing a substantial outlay of money, such as horseback riding, tennis, skiing, boating; (b) those requiring limited equipment, as ice Bkating, basketball, baseball; and (C) those requiring very little money or none at all, as roller skating, hiking, handball, etc. The X 2 test was used to determine the relationship between these categories and income level. The results are: Classification of Sport

1,2

A Β C Total

4 13 9 26 X*

13.642

12 13 22 df 4

6,7

Total

12 14 3 29

40 34 102

28

Ρ < 1

The kind of game or Bport preferred by this group of children can be definitively asserted to be related to income level. Therefore, it appears that out-of-school interests, at least in recreational activities, is conditioned by economic circumstance, whereas school interests are not. Types of Books Liked Best From a list of twenty-three different types of books, eighteen were checked by the children and a further category added (fairy tales, and fantasies). In Table 38 is given a list of the various types of books along with the number of children in the two schools and in the total group checking each type.

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

123

Table 38 Number of Children in Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Checking the Various Types of Books Type of Book Directions for doing things Encyclopedias, etc. Stories of home and school life Nature and animal stories Novels and love stories Folk tales and legende Historical novels Adventure stories Mystery stories Short stories Philosophy History Science Travel Sports Humor Plays Arts Fairy stories and fantasies

Lincoln School

Speyer School

Total Group

(n=53)

(n=*9)

(n=102

k

6 2 1 2 0 6 3 8 13 1 0 2 1 0 2 0 1 1 0

10 U 3 7 3 13 8 14 18 1 1 3 3 1 It 3 1 1 k

?

5 3 7 5 6 5 0 1 1 0 c. 1 c.

0 0 u

Choices are varied with a slight preponderance of Lincoln School children showing a preference for folk tales and legends and a large preponderance of Speyer School children showing a preference for mystery and adventure stories, which may reflect a possible need for escape from the exigencies of everyday life. In a study by Witty and Kopel (113 )> however, adventure, mystery, and detective stories were also preferred by the children. To determine the relationship between types of books preferred and income, X 2 was computed as follows:

124

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Type of Book Preferred

I n c o m e L e v e l 1,2 3,1+,5 6,7

Directions Encyclopedias (A) Historical Novels Philosophy History, Science

Total

8

12

9

29

6

15

10

31

12

20

10

1+2

26

1+7

29

102

Home and School Life Animal Stories Novels (B) Folk Tales Short Stories Fantasy and Fairy Tales Adventure, Travel Mystery (C) Sports Humor Plays, Arts Total X2

1 .U02

df

1+

Ρ between 50 and 95

Such a distribution as this one might be due to chance factors. There is no evidence, therefore, that type of book preferred is related to income. Newspapers Read - Part Liked Beat In response to the question, "Do you read a newspaper often?", seventy-five children replied, "Yes," six replied, "No," twentyone replied, "Occasionally." The newspapers mentioned and the number of children reading each are shown in Table 39 for the two schools separately and for the total group. The moBt popular paper is the "New York Times" which is read by 36 per cent of the children, the next in popularity is the "News" which is read by 17 per cent of the children. The remainder of the children (1+7 per cent) read seven other papera. Interesting is the distribution according to school where you find twenty-five Lincoln School children reading the "New York Times" while only twelve Speyer School children do. Considering

ATTITUDES. INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

125

that the Speyer School children are brighter, this fact is surprising. Perhaps this difference is due to the disparity in the cultural level of the homes of the two groups. Table 39 Number of Children in Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Indicating the Reading of the Newspaper Specified Newspaper Read Times Tribune Sun Telegram Post American Journal News Mirror Sporting News None Mentioned

Lincoln School (n=53)

Speyer School

Total Group (n=102)

25 9 3 1+ 2 o

12 1 1

37 10

k

8 12 6 17 1 1 6

(n=U9)

h

10 1; 16 0 0 1

1 1 1 5

The X 2 between newspaper read and income was computed as follows : Newspaper Preferred

L e v e l

I n c o m e 1,2

Times Tribune I Sun Telegram Post American News II Mirror Sporting News None Read Total Χ2

3Λ,5

6,7

Total

12

37

22

71

1U

10

7

31

26

1*7

29

102

9.1Ό

df

2

Ρ between 1 and 5

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

126

Such a distribution would arise by chance less than five times in one hundred, so that it can be said with a confidence of over .95 that the type of newspaper read is related to income. The part of the newspaper liked best showed some interesting results. The number of children indicating preference for the parts listed in Table Uo is shown for the two schools separately and for the total group. Table 1+0 Number of Children in the Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Indicating Preference for the Part of the Newspaper Specified Part of Newspaper Preferred News Headlines Front Page Foreign News Nothing Special Drama, Movie Editorial Business Stories Funnies Sports Fashion Second Section None Mentioned

Lincoln School

Speyer School

(n=53)

(n=U9)

8 1 8

15

3 2 2 1

12 9 1 6

Total Group (n=102) 23 1 8

1 3 5 1 1 17 3 2 1

5 2 6 1 1 29 12 1 2 7

For the group aa a whole, the most popular section of the newspaper is the "funnies," next in popularity, the "news," followed by the "sports" section and "front page." The two schools show practically the same trend although proportionately more Speyer School children prefer the "news" section and "funnies" than do the Lincoln School children. While eight Lincoln School children mention the "front page," no Speyer School child Indicates such a preference. Many more Lincoln School children indicate no specific preferences than do the children of the Speyer School.

ATTITUDES. INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

127

Witty and Kopel, in the atucLy previously mentioned, also found that children of all grades (l - 8) read the local newspapers . The rankings by these children of the most popular sections of the newspaper were in the order: comics, sports, photographic section, news. In the upper grades, only about one-fourth of the children prefer the news section of the newspaper. The findings of this investigation, although based on bright children, older than Witty's and Kopel's group, are very much alike -- in order of preference for the various sections of the newspaper and in the number of children liking to read the news. X 2 between part of the newspaper liked best and income was computed as follows : Part of Newspaper Preferred

I n c o m e 1,2

News, Foreign News Front Page Headlines Nothing Special

L e v e l

6,7

23

10

Drama, Movie Editorial II Business Fashion Stories

1+1

11

Funnies Sports III Second Section None Mentioned Total

Total

26 a

9.396

17

19

50

47

29

102

df

I

Ρ between 5 and 10

a. Spuriously high because of the zero frequency but still not significant.

While the newspaper read is related to one's income level, the part of the newspaper liked beet is probably not. This finding seems to warrant consideration by educational and

Table Iti Number of Children in Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Checking as Firat Choice the Magazine Specified Magazine Preferred

Values of 6,7,8

Values of

Values of 2

Reader's Digest New Yorker Literary Digest

Lincoln School (n=53)

Speyer School (n=U9)

5 1 1 1 2 1 1 1

MuBical America

National Geographic Scientific American Natural History Good Housekeeping Life Story Parade Popular Science Popular Aviation Popular Photography Fun, Fish and Game Saturday Evening Post Collier's iAdies' Home Journal Liberty McCall's American Boy American Girl Boye' Life Child Life Girl Scoutβ Adventure Stories Detective Stories Baseball Magazine Mickey Mouse Funny Doc Savage None

Total Group (n=102)

15 2

12 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 1

1 u 3 3

3 3

27 1 3 3 1 1 I41 1 1 1 7 3

6 k 2

2 2 3 1 2

1 3 2 1 1 1

3 5 5 1 2 1 1+

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS. ACTIVITIES. AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

129

social planners, for it appears that although what is enjoyed or preferred is a personality trait not directly influenced by economic level, the vehicles by which these preferences are expressed and developed is influenced by economic level and therefore, something which can be controlled. While admitting that interests are basic in the educational growth process, educators have done little to canalize these interests in the direction that is "best" for society and for the individual. The schools can readily guide the canalization of already existing interests by furnishing the necessary concrete materials, adequate stimuli, and congenial atmosphere. Magazines Freferred The magazines listed in Table Ul were checked as first choice by the children, shown for each school separately, and for the total group. The magazines are arranged in order of cultural value from good to poor based on a weighting schcme proposed by Morgan and Leahy (70). The cultural weight of a few magazines, mainly those for children, had to be estimated. Just as in the choice of newspapers, the majority of this group of bright children prefer magazines of reputedly high cultural value. Again, more of the Lincoln School children choose those of higher cultural value than do the children of the Speyer School. Although the group studied by Witty and Kopel showed a good deal of similarity to the children of this study in their newspaper reading, this is not so with regard to their magazine reading. While this group showed a decided preference for "Life" magazine and generally for magazines read by adults, Witty's and Kopel's group preferred "Child Life" and "Popular Mechanics." Probably the mental age and chronological age factors determine to a greater degree one's magazine reading than one's newspaper reading. To determine whether there is a significant relationship between income and preference for certain magazines, divided into three groups on the basis of cultural value, as shown in the preceding table, the X 3 test was used. The computation and results are shown:

130

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC

Cultural Value of Magazine Preferred (high to low)

I n c o m e 1,2 3Λ,5

Cultural Value of 6,7,8 Cultural Value of Cultural Value of 2 Total X2

8.0U9

BACKGROUND

5 13

8

26 df

^

L e v e l 6,7

22 15 18 8 7 6 k-7 29 Ρ between 5 ancl 10

Total k2 39 21 102

Such a distribution as this may arise by chance somewhat more than five but less than ten times in one hundred in other similar populations. Although statistically this is not significant, the trend both for newspaper preference and magazine preference is in the same direction and therefore it can be said with some degree of confidence that the cultural quality of one's newspaper and periodical reading is in part conditioned by income even for a group of very bright children. This condition reflects no doubt the influence of the accessibility of reading matter. It becomes the task of the school, therefore, to provide materials appropriate to the children's interests and abilities. Occupational Preference Twenty-nine different occupations were preferred by this group, chosen from a list of ninety-nine. In comparison with the number they might have chosen, they appear to be quite discriminating but, in view of their high intellectual ability, their choices cover an extensive range, all the way from baseball player to scientific research worker. In reviewing these data, the age range for the children should be kept in mind, for in many cases, the choices indicated are probably only temporary. The twenty-nine occupations are listed in Table h2 in four broad categories and the number is given of the children in the two schools and in the total group checking each occupation. A substantial majority of these bright children are interested in pursuing creative and artistic work (Category I) while surprisingly enough, only a small percentage are interested in scientific work (Category II). It appears that too many are looking forward to vocations not in keeping with their superior

Table k2 Number of Children in Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Checking the Occupations Specified Occupational Preference

I

II

Lincoln School (n=53)

Author, Editor, Reporter Artist, Musician and Costune Designer Architect Actor, Dancer

9

Chemist Physicist Research Worker .Archeologi st

S 1

Medicine Law III Engineer Diplomat Aviator Nurse Accountant Baseball Player Detective Electrician IV Forest Ranger Teacher Hostess, Secretary Physical Ed. Director Army, Navy Officer Uncertain

Speyer School (n=U9)

Total Group (n=102) 10

6 2 16

7

6

1 3 3 1

5 7 1

1 5 1 2 1 3 1 1 2 1 3 2

3 1

5 5 1 3 1 3 1 1 2 1

6 3

132

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

mental capacity (eee Category IV). The two schools show the same trend., except for the larger number of Lincoln School children choosing occupations in the fourth category. According to these data, the Lincoln School children are not aspiring to occupations in keeping with their social backgrounds, or with their mental capacity, while the Speyer School children are aspiring to occupations much higher in the social scale than those in which their fathers are engaged. Comparing these results with the findings of another study (k7, pp. 33-^1) in which a similar question, "What do you want to be when you get big?" was poeod to UOO children, 5 to 12 years of age, the replies were as follows: Almost half the children (^7.1 per cent) chose occupations in the professions, or as business executives, as artists, writers, musicians, etc.; the next largest group of children (33 - 2 per cent) chose the occupations of nursing, aviation, clerical work, skilled labor and petty trades; 6.8 per cent chose semiskilled and unskilled labor; 5 per cent were undecided; the remaining choices were scattered among other categories. Approximately the same percentages were found for the children of this study with the exception of the semiskilled and unskilled labor category in which category no choice was indicated. Jereild also made comparisons between the preferences of bright children (over 120 I.Q.) from low and high economic status. For this purpose, he used twenty-seven pairs of children, matched for sex, age, and I.Q., one set attending a public school who were all of relatively low economic status, the other set attending a private school who were all of relatively high economic status. Except for the younger age level of Jersild's group, they are in other respects comparable to the children used in this investigation. It is interesting that the children studied by Jersild of the lower economic status were more modest in their occupational choices than were the children of the higher economic status, though they were of the same intellectual level. While 77-8 per cent of the private school children chose professions, business, or artistic careers, only 38.2 per cent of the public school children chose occupations in these fields. In contradistinction, 37 per cent of the public school children chose clerical, skilled labor, petty trades and unskilled

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

133

labor while only 11 per cent of the private school children chose these occupations. The private and public school children of this study, on the other hand, do not show these differences at all in their occupational choices. Selected, as they were, for attendance at a special school, has probably made the public school children of this study more ambitious than they otherwise might have been. To test the relationship between income and the occupation preferred, the X J test was used: Occupational Category

Ine

Le γ Q ? 6,7 3,^5

one

1,2

I II and III IV Total

21 12

9 9

8 26 X2

I.17I+

II+

hi df

It

12

Total 1+2

28

7

10 29

32

102

Ρ between 50 and 95

On the basis of the X 2 test, choice of occupation is independent of income. Although Jersild also found that children, especially of low economic status, aspire to occupations higher than those engaged in by their fathers, a number of other studies (7; 87) indicate the similarity between children's choice of occupations and father's occupation, the latter, of course, being closely related to income. It may be that bright children of this age range are not yet fully aware of the reality situation, or for the reason already indicated that the children in this study of lower economic status have become more ambitious because of the special school advantages given them. Some Activities Preferred Dally Activities From a list of forty-five activities, the children checked thirty. These thirty activities were grouped into the six categories listed in Table 1+3 · The number of children in both schools and in the total group checking each activity is indicated.

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

134

Table 4 3 Number of Children in Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Checking the Activity Specified Daily Activity Preferred

I Study, Reading, Scientific Work

II Creative Work, Artistic

III Work about House and Garden

Lincoln School (n==53)

Speyer Total School Group (n=U9) (n=102

Looking up information, etc. Study Reading Doing Science Experiments Electricity Visiting Museums Thinking About Things

1 1 5 1 2 1

1

Playing the Piano Composing Music Drawing, Painting Acting, Singing, Dancing Writing Inventing Things

7

3 1 8 6

Taking Care of Children Taking Cnre of Animals Housework Sewing, Weaving Working with Tools Gardening Selling Things

Attending Movies Dancing, Having Dates IV Recreation, Outdoor Sports, Athletics Funny Papers Sports Taking Pictures

2 8

^

7 1 1

1

1 b

1 o

1 5

1 1 1

1

10 1 15 6 1 . 2 2 6 1 2 5 1 1

1 9

2 k Ik

1

3 1

?

3 5 3

3 1 13 3 2 2 1

The same trend evidenced in the occupational choices of these children is observed with respect to their preferred daily activities. A majority are interested in creative and artistic work; activities relating to recreation and to study vie for second place, while work about the house and garden is pre-

ATTITUDES. INTERESTS. ACTIVITIES. AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

135

ferred by comparatively few children. The two schools show the same trend as to preferences. The relationship between preferred daily activities and income was computed by the X 2 test: Category of Preferred Daily Activity I II III IV Total 5^09

e ν e 1

I n c o m e 1,2

5Λ.5

5 12 2 7 26 df

11

6,7

Total

9 25 8 15 35 11 18 5 1 24 10 ( 102 47 29 Ρ between 30 and 50

6

There is no indication of a relationship between income and activities carried out every day for this group of bright children. Out-of-School Pursuits in Art The answers of the children to the question, "Do you take paid lessons in music (or in dancing, or in art of any kind) outside of school?" are shown in Table UU for each school separately and for the total group. Table 1+4 Number and Percentage of Children in the Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Taking or Not Taking Lessons in Art Outside of School Status of Art Instruction

Taking lessons now Planning to take lessons Have taken lessons Not taking lessons

Lincoln School (n==53) Ν %

Speyer School (n==49) Ν

Total Group (n=102) Ν %

29 2

21*' 1+3 1» 2 2 1

50 1+

η c.

20 53

a. IVo scholarships.

55 4 k 37 100%

%

25 49

51 100%

3 1+5 102

49 1+ 3 1+4 100%

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

136

In spite of a real manifeatation of interests in artistic pursuits, fewer than half the group (1+9 per cent) is taking lessons in some art form. There are various types of art forms represented. -- ballet, dancing, singing, piano, the latter being the most popular. Once again the economic disparity between the schools is reflected in the difference between the number of children taking art lessons and in the number not taking art lessons outside of school. The percentage of children at each income level taking lessons in art outside of school is graphically shown in Figure 1 for each school separately and for the total group. For a more direct determination of wnei-iier the taking of lesBons in art outside of school is related to income, X 2 was computed : I n c o m e L e v e l Status of Art Instruction 1,? 3,!+,5 6,7 Total I II

Taking lessons Planning to Have taken Not taking lessons Total X

2

9.1+66

9

?6

22

17

21

7

?6

1+7

29

df

2

57

102

Ρ less than 1

The taking of paid lessons in art outside of school is probably related to income according to the foregoing analyses. That such a condition exists is unfortunate, especially in view of the high intellectual ability of the children. As a result of this situation, there can be no doubt that a considerable amount of talent is not being developed. Leisure Time Activities - Saturdays, Sundays, and Holidays Two questions, "What do you usually do on Saturdays?" and "What do you usually do on Sundays or holidays?" were asked the children. Some of the children listed Just one activity in reply to each question, the majority listed two or more. For the latter cases, only the first one mentioned was used for this analysis. If the same list of activities was given for both Saturdays and Sundays, the first activity mentioned was used for the Satur-

j

Z,

J

4·

J-

Lincoln School Speyer School · · · »κ Total Group

é

Income Level

Figure 1 Percentage of Children at Each Income Level Taking Art Lessons Outside of School

γ

138

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

day activity and the second ons mentioned was used for the Sunday activity. The list of activities, classified as far as possible, ie shown in Table U5, together with the number of children in each school and in the total group checking the epecified activity. Table Number of Children in the Lincoln and Speyer Schools and in the Total Group Indicating the Specified Activities Engaged in on Saturdays and Sundays S A T U R D A Y S Lincoln Speyer Total School School Group

Leisure Time Activities œ

§ w 5

(n=53)

S U N D A Y S Lincoln Speyer School School

(n=l*9) (n=10?) (n=53)

Total Group

(n=i»9) (11=102)

Do various things, construct models, read, study, play piano, listen to radio Go to movies, concerts, museums

9

16

10

Í

16

11

31

32

6

u

10

Go visiting, have a date, have a guest

9

3

12

8

7

15

Play outdoors, watch ball games

7

6

13

3

10

13

0

7

7

^

9

13

Go to own country place

8

0

8

9

0

9

Taking dancing, music lessons

3

2

5

Whatever I feel like doing

6

3

9

8

3

11

5

10

15

Go to country

Hiking Walking Picnic

Go to church or Sunday School

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES. AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

139

Going to the movies is by far the most popular Saturday activity while there is no one popular activity on Sunday but rather an almost even division of the children among all the classifications. Surprisingly enough, church going is Just as popular as visiting or staying at home. Even by this group of bright children, reading or studying including doing homework is mentioned Just thirteen times. The daily activities, Saturday and Sunday activities, engaged in by these bright children appear to be representative of any group of children of this age level. As evidence for this statement, Witty1s and Kopel's study, previously mentioned, may be cited. The 900 children he studied listed as their preferred daily activities: listening to radio, attendance at clubs, reading, in this order. Homework was also infrequently mentioned. Preferred Saturday activities were movies first, then outdoor play; goin? to Sunday School or church, visiting and reading were most popular Sunday activities. Some difference is evident in the choice of daily activities which is due no doubt to the different methods used in collecting the information in addition to the difference in the intellectual level of the two groups. The two schools show differences which reflect the economic disparity between them. For example, many more Speyer School children go to the movies on Saturday while more Lincoln School children go to their own home in the country or go visiting. Jersild, likewise, found that children of low economic status attend the movies much more frequently than do children of higher economic status. On Sunday, a large number of Speyer School children go to church and play outdoors whereas comparatively few Lincoln School children indulge in these activities. Rather, a large number of Lincoln School children stay at home, or do as they please, or go to their homes in the country. To determine the relationship between income and Saturday and Sunday activities, the J? test was used. The computations and results for Saturday and Sunday activities separately are presented herewith:

140

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND I n c o m e L e v e l 6,7 i,; 3Λ,5

Saturday Activities

Total

Visiting, have a guest, stay home, play outdoors, whatever I feel like doing

12

30

16

58

Movies, concerts, museums, take music lessons

10

13

6

29

k

7

15

Go to country, go to own place in the country Total 5.5CA

26 df

I n c o m e L e v e l 1,2 6,7 3 A,5

Sunday Activities Visiting, have a guest, stay home, play outdoors, go to church, whatever I feel like doing

21

Movies, concerts, museums, go to country, go to own place in the country Total X2

102 29 M Ρ between 20 and 30

k.21b

26 df

Total

33

16

70

lb

13

32

102 29 Ρ between 10 and 20

In neither case is the X 3 large enough for statistical significance, but nevertheless, there is evidence for stating that at least some activities, such as going to the country, going to church, or to the movies may be related to one's income level. Vacation Time Activities - Summer Holidays The children were asked to respond to the question, "What did you do last summer?" The activities mentioned and the number of children checking the specified activity in each school and for the total group are shown in Table b6.

ATTITUDES. INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT 141 Table 46 Number of Children In the Lincoln and. Speyer Schools and In the Total Group Indicating the Activity Specified Speyer School (n=U9)

Lincoln School (n=53)

Vacation Time Activities Went to camp Went to camp (for two weeks) Went to country, farm, beach (time not specified) Went to own country place Travelled Stayed home

21 0

8

18 3 5

15 0

29 5

5

33 3 11 21

6

6

Total Group (n=102)

15

A great majority of the children spent all or part of the summer in the country or at camp. About 10 per cent did some travelling — most of it, however, being confined to visiting relatives outside of New York City -- while about 20 per cent of the children stayed at home. The schools again reveal the economic difference between them. About 40 per cent of the Lincoln School children went to camp for the entire summer while only 16 per cent of the Speyer School children went to camp for the entire summer. On the other hand, 31 per cent of the Speyer School children stayed at home all summer while only 11 per cent of the Lincoln School children stayed at home during the summer. The computation of X 2 between income and summer time activities, grouped into three categories is as follows: Vacation Time Activities j

Total

11

21

21

38

Stayed home Went on hikes Went to day camp Took music lessons

Camp for limited time II Farm, country, beach (time not specified) III

I n c o m e L e v e l 1,2 3,^,5 6,7

11

Travel, own place in country, camp Total

X2

26 21.032

15 47 df 4

22

43

29 102 Ρ less than 1

142

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

As might be expected, there is a high dependence of the kind of activity engaged in during the summer on income. There is lees than one chance in one hundred that auch a distribution as the above would occur by chance. Summary This group of children, although all of high intelligence, reveal as much variability in their attitudes, interests, and activities as would any group of children of a similar age level and living under similar conditions. As a group, the children show only a moderate degree of liberalism in their social attitudes. In general, they are most liberal on issues of "democracy" and "economic relationships," least liberal on the issues of "nationalism," "labor and unemployment," and "militarism." In attitudes toward themselves, they are comparatively best adjusted as well as showing slightly better adjustment in attitudes toward the family and in feelings of morale than do a representative sample of young people. In school work, only a moderate amount of interest is displayed with no indication of very strong likes or dislikes for the various subjects of the curriculum. Like any other group of children, sports is the most preferred subject and mathematics, the least preferred. Their achievement in the tool subjects are beyond what can be expected of children of their chronological age but falls somewhat short of their capacity to achieve with the exception of reading, in which subject, they are accomplishing exactly what can be expected of children of their mental capacity. Most of the children exprees a preference for continuing school after high school, choosing college or higher professional school. Less than 30$ elect to go to schools other than college or signify indecision as to what they want to do. Their out-of-school interests in games, books, newspapers, and magazines are exteneive, expressing preferences which reflect the general culture in which they are living and the more specific cultural factors characteristic of their particular economic backgrounds. Baseball is the game liked best; adventure and mystery stories are the types of books liked best; newspapers and magazines are read by practically all the

ATTITUDES, INTERESTS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT

143

children -- all of which Indicates the influence of the general culture. However, the newspaper read, the quality of the magazines read, and the kind of games played are reflections of their own particular sub-cultureB. Their choices of future occupations are many ranging all the way from basehall player to scientific research worker. Probably contrary to popular notion, a large number of this group of bright children are at least temporarily interested in pursuing artistic or creative careers rather than scientific, medical, or legal careers. Many of the children show interests in vocational pursuits not in keeping with their high intellectual capacity. In their daily activities also, a great many prefer artistic and creative pursuits while scientific and recreational activities assume second place. Although they evidence interest in carrying on artistic work both in their daily lives and for their future occupations, approximately only one-half of this group of children are taking lessons in art outside of school. The moat preferred leisure and vacation time activities also reflect the influence of the general culture. Movie-going is the most popular activity on Saturdays, going to church or Just staying home is the most popular activity on Sundays. Going to camp for part or all of the summer is the moBt frequent leisure time activity. Not in accordance with popular belief, sedentary pursuits, such as reading, study, or homework, were mentioned by only thirteen children as the activities they engage in on Saturdays and Sundays. The income factor is not a significant source of variation for most of the personality traits Btudied when compared to sheer individual variability. The latter has already been mentioned in noting the diversity and extent of the attitudes

held, the preferences expressed, the interests mentioned, and the activities enjoyed. Income is, however, a significant source of variation in social attitudes, -- the middle and low income children being the most liberal; in the types of gameB preferred -- games requiring little or no money being preferred by the poorer children; in the newspaper read -- the "News" being most often read by the poorer children and the "New York Times" by the wealthier. Out of school pursuits in art and vacation time activities are also definitely related to income.

144

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

The influence of the specific cultural factors, a result of income differences, is manifested, in a few of the traits considered. Underlying all these findings, one point seeme to emerge which should he of significance to educators. While interests, preferences, certain attitudes are personality traits not directly conditioned hy income, other characteristics of the personality through which these traits are expressed and developed are related to factors associated with differences in income. These vehicles of expression are the newspapers, the magazines, the movies, the summer camps, teaching materials, which can, at least in part, be manipulated and thus controlled by the educator .

Chapter VII WISHES, IDEAS ABOUT CHANGING THE WORLD, GREATEST PROBLEM, FEARS, AND DREAMS Against the 'background, of the general and specific cultural factors surrounding these children and with a knowledge of their dominant personality patterns and characteristics, their attitudes, interests, and activities, the next step is to etudy the traits of personality which are revealed through wishes, ideas, fears, dreams, and worries -- the inner drives and struggles of these children. Wishes Information concerning wishes was obtained from the responses to two questions: (l) "If you had only three wishes and they could come true, what would you wish?" and (?) "If you could have your wish for the thing you desire most, what would it be?", the second question appearing in Hildreth's "Personality and Interest Inventory." The wishes expressed by this group of children were classified in fourteen categories similar to those used by Jersild (^7)· These fourteen categories were grouped further into three main classifications: the first (Group A) dealing primarily with material desires, the second (Group B) dealing primarily with personal accomplishments, and the third (Group C) dealing primarily with general benefits for others and miscellaneous wishes. The fourteen categories and the three major groupings are presented below with a number of examples of actual wishes classified in each of the categories. Group A Material Objects To have a bicycle, or trains, or more trains, or a bigger bicycle To have an astronomy set, typewriter, books, pencils, Jewelry

146

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Money To be rich To have security To have enough money, to have enough to carry on research Living Quarters To have my own bedroom To have a house in the country Educational Opportunities To have a good education To go to a college, I'd like to Croup Β Prestige and Popularity To be liked To become a great person, to have, fame To be the greatest dancer in the world Accomplishments To be smart, to have good marks in school To be able to swim, dance, drive a car Vocational Success To do well in my profession To be a good doctor To have a good position Benefits for Self To be happy To have health, to live forever To be a boy Activities, Sports, Diversions To travel To have a good time To go horseback riding Group C General Benefits To end wars To eliminate slums To improve the intelligence of the human race Benefits for Relatives Mother to get well, to have my brother's eyes fixed Mother and Esther to live long and to be well cared for

WISHES, IDEAS, GREATEST PROBLEM, FEARS, AND DREAMS

147

Marry, Have a Sibling To marry and have children To have a Bister or brother Nothing, Have More Wishes, Have These Wishes Come True To have more wishes To have all my wishes come true Supernatural To fly, to be magic The number of children in the seven income levels and in the total group expressing wishes in these categories are tabulated in Table kj, separately for first, second, and third wish and the wish signified on the Hildreth inventory. The percentage of children is also included for the combined income levels 1 and 2; 3, and 5; 6 and 7 and for the total group for each of the fourteen wish categories. These percentages are underlined in the table. In common with their other characteristics, the children express a variety of wishes — the greatest preponderance of wishes being found in the category "General Benefits for Self," followed by the category "Material Objects." "Benefits for Others" and wishes involving "Money" are next in frequency. The wishes showing the least frequency are those relating to "Getting Married, Having a Sibling," "Personal Accomplishments" and "Improved Living Quarters." First, second, and third wishes show similar trends. An analysis of the wishes of 400 children, 5 to 12 years of age, studied by Jersild (47, pp. 21-23) reveals trends similar to those found in this study: the largest group of replies (48.3 per cent) consisted of wishes for specific material objects and possessions (including money); the second largest (11Λ per cent) included wishes dealing with family relationships and companionship; 10.6 per cent of the wishes dealt with personal self-aggrandizement or self-improvement; 9-3 per cent of the wishes dealt with Improvement in socio-economic conditiôns; 7.3 per cent dealt with wishes for amusements; 5 per cent for specific benefits for parents; the remaining 8 per cent of the wishes covered a variety of other categories. It appears that children are primarily interested in gaining something for themselves and secondarily in improving the conditions of others.

Table li γ Frequency of the Wleh Specified Among the Seven Income Levels and In the Total Group (First, Second, and Third Wleh and Wish Expreeaed on the Hildreth Inventory) 1

I n c o m e 3 u 5

%

2

142 (n=26)

(Material Objects (Money (Living Quarters (Educational Opportunities (Prestige, ropu(larity (Accomplishments (Vocational Success (Benefits for Self (Activities, Sports, (Diversions (Benefits for Others (Benefits for Relatives (Marry, Have a Sibiline (Nothing, Have More (Wishes, Have Wishes (Come True, etc. (Supernatural Power

3Λ,5

2 2 1

7.7 15 Λ 3-9

2 U 1

2 0 1

0 0 0

?

?

15 Λ

2

0

0

Ρ 0

1 0 0

11.6 0.0

Ρ 0 1

ρ 1 0 2

0 0 1 1

12.8

1

?

7.7 15 Λ

3

8.5 8.5 ÌL·! M

2.1

*

Total Group

6&7 (n=29)

0 2 0

r-

7

-t II

First Wleh

L e v e l 6

$ Total Group (n=102 )

2 1 0

5 1 0

gU.2

0

0

0.0

6

0 0

1 1 0 6

3-5 IA 0.0 gU.2

8 ?

υ 2.0

17

3.9 16.7

0

6^9 0.0

13 10 3

12.7 9J 2.9

0

0

0.0

5

0

0

10.6

0

1

3-5

5

2i2

1

1

7.7

1

Γ

2

10.6

1

3

13.8

11

10.8

0

1

3-9

2

1

2

10.6

1

0

1Λ

7

63

0

0

0.0

0

0

0

0.0

1

Λ

3-5

1

0.98

0

1 1

3-9 7.7

2 1

1 1

1 1

0

6.U

1

2 1

6.9

1

7 7

6.9 6^9

0

u

Ρ 2 1* 1

1 1

1 1

0

3

0

0 .

0

0

3-5 0.Ό

13 13 1*

12.7 12.7

0

10.6 12.8 6Λ

13.8

3

15·** "3-1 3-9

}

5 1 0

0

0.0

0

0

0

2J>

0

0

0.0

0

0.0

0

0

1

0

0

2.1

0

0

0.0

3.9 7.7 11.6

1

0

0

1

0

1 1

6^9

5 h

ρ

2

2.1 12.8 17.0

1

1 ρ

1 1 1

1 k

0.98

0

3-5 27.6

9 19

0

ρ

7.7

1

0

0

2.1

0

1

3j_5

c

0

7-7

?

c; 2 s

1

g

10 Λ

1

0

3-9

0

1

1

II!

0

o

0

0

0.0

0

1

0

2.1

1

0

0

1

0

1

*.

7 J

c

0

P. 1 6.U

1

1

3-9 11.6

0

2

1

1

Second Wish (Material Objects (Money (Living Quarters (Educational Opportunities (Prestige, Popularity (Accomplishments (Vocational Success (Benefits for Self (Activities, Sports, (Diversione (Benefits for Others (Benefits for Relatives (Marry, Have a Sib(llng (Nothing, Have More (Wishes (Supernatural Pover

0.0

19-g

0 %

4

lit

3-9

3.9 8.8 18.6 3.9 13.7

5 3-5

2

2.0

13.8

6 8

5-9 7J

Table 1*7 (Cont'd)

1

c.

Third Wish (Material Objects (Money A (Living Quarters (Educational Opportunities (Prestige, Popularity (Accomplishments Β (Vocational Success (Benefits for Self (Activities, Sports, (Diversions

I ηc 0m e 3 It 5 1&2 (n=26)

%

Leve 1 6 3,^,5 (n=lt7)

7

%

Total Group

6&7 (n=29)

Í Total Group (n=102

It 1 2 1 0 0

1 0 0

12.8 6Λ 0.0

2 0 0

3 0 0

17.3 0.0 0.0

lit It 1

13-7 3-9 0.98

0.0

1

0

0

2.1

0

0

0.0

1

0.98

11.6 7.7 3-9 3-9

2 1 1 6

1 0 2 It

0 0 0 1

6Λ 2.1 6Λ 23 Λ

0 2 0 0

It 1 1 2

13.8 10.lt

10 6 5 lit

0 0 0

3 1 1

11.6 3-9 3-9

0

0

3 1 1 0

0 1 0 1

3.5 6^9

9.8 5-9 K3 13-7

1

7-7

3

1

1

10.6

0

0

0.0

7

§j9

0

11.6

2

1

2

10.6

3

1

13.8

12

11.8

1

7-7

2

0

0

ΪΛ

1

0

3-5

5

ÍL2

0

3-9

1

1

1

6Λ

0

0

0.0

It

3-9

5 0

19.3

1 0

1 0

1 1

6Λ 2.1

0 0

7 2

2lt.2 63

15 It

Ht.7 3-9

0 1 0

3 3 1

11.6 15Λ

2 It It 4 0 0 1 1 0

21.3 8.5 ίΛ

3 0 0

It 0 0

24.2 0.0 0.0

20 8 3

19.6 7^8 2.9

2

2

15 Λ

3

0

0

6 Α

0

1

3-5

8

TA

1 0 It 2

1 0 0 0

7-7 0.0 15 Λ 7-7

2 1 1

1 0 1 2

0 0 1 1

6Λ 2.1 6Λ 14.9

1 0 0 0

1 0 0 5.

M 0.0 0.0 17-3

7 1 7 lit

hi 13-7

1

0

3-9

3

0

1

8.5

0

1

3-5

6

5.9

1

0

3-9

1

2

0

6.it

0

1

3-5

5

ÍL2

0

1

3-9

0

0

0

0.0

0

0

0.0

1

0.98

0

0

0.0

0

1

0

g.l

1

0

3-5

2

2.0

0 0

3 0

11.6 0.0

2 2

1 0

0 1

6.1t 6.it

3 0

7 1

34.5 3.5

16 It

15-7 3.9

1

(Benefits for Others 3 (Benefits for. Relatives 1 (Marry, Have a Sib1 fling (Nothing, Have More (Wishes 0 (Supernatural Pover ' 1

là

Wish (fiildreth) (Material Objects (Money A (Living Quarters (Educational Opportunities (Prestige, Popularity (Accomplishments Β (Vocational Success (Benefits for Self (Activities, Sports, (Diversions (Benefits for Others (Benefits for Relatives (Marry, Have a SibC (ling (Nothing, Have More (Wishes (Supernatural Pover

L2

0.98

150

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

Are wishes a function of the income level? There are some marked differences among the various income levels, although for the majority of the wish categories, the proportion of children in each income level is very much the same. For the first wish, the following differences are evident: wishes for educational opportunity, for vocational success, and for Improvement in living quarters are mentioned only by children in the low and middle Income brackets and not at all by children in the high income brackets. Likewise, on the Hildreth questionnaire, wishes for money, Improvement in living quarters, personal accomplishment, vocational success and benefits for relatives are not mentioned at all by children in the high income brackets. Contrary to what might be expected, proportionately more children of the high than of the low income levels wish for material objects although many of these wishes are not for a bicycle or a toy, but for a better bicycle or more and bigger trains or for such things as a Packard car, a sailing boat or an airplane. On the Hildreth questionnaire, 3*+-5 per cent of the children of the high income levels Indicate satisfaction with their present status inasmuch as they wish for "nothing" while only 11.6 per cent of the children in the low income levels reply in that fashion. Similarly, many more children in the high income levels than children of the low income levels are unable to think of anything special for a third wish. The desire for money shows a consistent decrease with rise in income level: CO per cent of the children of the low income levels, 10 per cent of the children of the middle income levels and 5 per cent of the children of the high income levels mentioned money either as their first or second wish. Of the 1+00 children studied by Jerslld, he analyzed further the wishes of twenty-seven pairs, matched for age, sex, and I.Q. One set attended a public school and were all of relatively low economic status, the other set attended a private school and were all of relatively high economic statue. Their I.Q.'s were 120 and over. Except for the somewhat younger age level of Jersild's group, In other respects (income and I.Q.), they are comparable to the children of this study, so that comparisons can be made with regard to income differences. In Jersild's study, 18.5 per cent of the public school children and only 7 Λ per cent of the private school children

WISHES. IDEAS. GREATEST PROBLEM. FEARS. AND DREAMS

151

wished for money; in this study (considering first wishes only), 15.4 psr cent of the children in the low income group, 8 . 5 per cent in the middle income group, and 6.9 per cent in the high income group wished for money. In Jersild's study, 3-7 per cent of the public school children wished for good living quarters, none of the private school children did; exactly the same figures are found in -this study; approximately 4 per cent of the children in the low and middle income groups expressed wishes dealing with living quarters while none of the children in the high income groups did. Jersild reports that 3-7 per cent of the public school children expressed wishes relating to benefits for others, while 1 4 . 8 per cent of the private school children expressed such wishes; in this group, 7·7 per cent of the low income children, 10.7 per cent of the middle income children, and 1 3 . 8 per cent of the high income children expressed these wishes, showing again a trend in the same direction. The wish for material objects, however, shows a reversal between the two studies. In this study, more children of the high income groups expressed a desire for material objects as compared to Jersild's group in which more children of the low income group (the public school children) expressed a desire for material objects. The figures are: in this study, 24.2 per cent of the high income children, 8 . 5 per cent of the middle income children, and 7-7 per cent of the low income children as compared to 2 9 . 6 per cent of the public school children and 14.8 per cent of the private school children in Jersild's study. Teat of Significance. X J was computed between the combined income levels (l and 2; and 5; 6 and 7) and the three categories of wishes combined in the manner indicated in the preceding table. The results are tabulated herewith separately for first, second, and third wishes and the wish signified on the Hildreth questionnaire. .2 X First Wish Second Wish Third Wish Wish (Hildreth)

df

Ρ

2.544

1+

50 and 95

4.191 3.420 6.431

4 4 4

20 and 30 30 and 50 5 and 10

152

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

While certain trends are obvious and certain relationships between the quality of the wish, if not the type of wish, and income level doubtlessly exist, the X 1 results provide no evidence against the hypothesis set up that income level and type of wishes, as classified in this analysis, are independent of each other. A real relationship most likely exists, however, between income and wishes which is not disclosed by this kind of analysis. In Chapter I, Table U, a study by Lazarsfeld was reported in which children of an "unemployed" village were asked to make a list of the things they would like for Christmas which, translated into money cost, amounted to very little when compared with a list compiled by children in a neighboring village where the extent of unemployment was not so great. The findings of this study are essentially similar, modified somewhat by the superior mental capacity of this group of children. For example, in this group, eight children of the three lowest income levels expressed as their firet wish a desire for money while only two children in the four highest income levels signified this wish. At the same time, while only four children in the three lowest levels wished for some material object, nine children in the four highest levels wished for some material object. The Hildreth figures for the same wish categories are 8, 0; and 5> 15 respectively. When these are combined as they were in determining X 2 , the differences are obscured. Consequently, a number of additional testa were made keeping the wish categories separate. Differences were tested for significance between percentages of the children in the three lowest income groups (N=52) and in the four highest income groups (N=50), thus dividing the group in half. Only first wishes were considered. The results are ehown in Table U8. Two of the differences, "wish for money" and the "wish for educational opportunity" are significant; that is, the data permit the statement, made with a confidence of .95 or better that differences of such a size are not likely to occur by chance or through errors of sampling, but that the influence of the income factor is operative in the case of these two wishes. It is interesting that the wishes for prestige and for vocational success are completely independent of the income factor.

WISHES. IDEAS, GREATEST PROBLEM, FEARS, AND DREAMS

153

Tat le 1+8 Differences Betveen the Percentage of Low and High Incame Income Children for the Six Wishes Specified and Their Significance Income

Levels

Ν

1,2,3 1-00) may be worth observing: the fear of "poverty" between income levela 1, 2 and 3, 5 and between levels 1, 2 and 6, 7; the fear of "being hated, etc." between levels 1, 2 and 3, 5; the fear of "teacher and school marks" between levels 1, 2 and 6, 7; the fear of "bad dreams, etc." between levels 1, 2 and 6, 7; the fear of "animals, etc." between levelB 1, 2 and 3, 5 and between levela 3, 5 and 6, 7. Greatest Problem The following question was asked of the children: "What is your greatest problem?" in order to discover if they do have problems, what theae problems are about. The responses to this question showed the least variability -approximately only twenty-one different problems were mentioned, while ten of these twenty-one had to do with personal inadequacies. Theee problems were classified in eight categories. The number of children specifying problems in the eight categories for the seven income levels and for the total group are given in Table 51. The percentage is also included of children in the

162

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

combined income levels 1 and 2; 3, and 5; 6 and 7 and for the total group. These are underlined in the table. Table 51 Frequency of the Problem Specified Among the Seven Income Levels and in the Total Group Ine 1

?

i

Leve o m e * 5 k 5

142 (n=2Ô)

Greatest Problem: 5

¿til

11

t> 4

School Work of All Kinds, Piano Lessons

5

3U.7

5

5

10

kh .9

k2

kl.2

ρ

21.?

1

2

10 Λ

22

21.6

gl-3

3

9

Ul.U

26

g?-5

0

0

0.0

2

2.0

2

2

15 Λ

5

2

Girls and Women

0

0.0

1 1

0

0.0

2

0

0

0

0

0

1 1

0

0

1

0

0

0

1

0

L·ϊ

The Future, Being a Professional Person

1

1

7-7

Miscellaneous

0

1

là.

$

Total Group (n=102!

5

0

Money

647 (n=29 ]1

Total Group

ki.6

Personal Characteristics, Health

My Family

*

7

(n=U7)

None, Not Mentioned, u I Don't Know

1»

1 6

1

0

2Λ

3

2.9

0

0

0.0

1

0.98

2.1

0

0

0.0

3

2.9

!L2

0

0

0.0

j

2-9

ÍJ. 0.0

A large number of children in the group (kl.2 per cent) report that either they have no problem which disturbs them, or they do not know of any or Just do not mention any. The problems of those children who do worry seem to center almost entirely around two conditions: personal problems and school work. Only very few children indicate problems in the other five categories. The findings of a study by Zeligs (116) of 233, 12 year old children are somewhat similar. 26 per cent of her group indicate that they have no worries while the most frequent worries reported relate to the safety and health of members of the family and to their school work. Is one's "greatest problem" a function of the Income level? Although a majority of the children (over 50 per cent) in all the income levels report that they worry about some problem, proportionately more children in the low income brackets than in either the middle or high income brackets do so.

WISHES, IDEAS. GREATEST PROBLEM, FEARS, AND DREAMS

163

The kind of problem worried about likewise shows some variation among the income levels. While almost 35 per cent of the children in the low income groups worry about school, only 10 per cent of the children of the high income groups report such worries. On the other hand, per cent of the children in the high income groups worry about personal inadequacies while only 15 per cent of the children of the low income groups do. The children of the middle income groups fall in between with respect to school and personal worries. "Money" problema and "the future" are mentioned only by the poor children and one child of the middle income group while problems of the "family," "girls and women" are mentioned only by children of the middle and high income groups. Test of Significance. The Σ 2 test was computed between the combined income levels (l and 2; 3> and 5; 6 and 7) and problems divided into the two categories: (l) No Problems, None Mentioned, and (2) All Others. The result is: X 2 0.661 df 2 Ρ between 50 and 95 Worrying about one's problems is independent of income since the distribution between the possession and non-possession of worries and income level could very likely occur by chance. While there is no significant relationship between the possession of problems and income, differences between the income levels and the kind of problem reported are manifest. Consequently, some of the marked differences were tested for significance. Two of them, that between the two lowest and two higheet income levels for "School Work" and "Personal Characteristics," are significant. Differences of the size observed are likely to occur only five times or fewer in random samplings of the population. Other differences,that between levels 3, 5 and 6, 7 for "Personal Characteristics"; between levels 1, 2 and 3, l·, 5 and between levels 3, 5 and 6, 7 for "School Work"; between levels 1, 2 and 6, 7 for "The Future, etc." border on signifiDlf f cance ( — - — : — j> 1.22 ). Some of these differences are no doubt S.E. Difj / reflections of differences between the two schools rather than of differences between income but consistent trends are observed in the percentage of children occurring at each income level.

164

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND Pre ama

Responses to the question, "What do you dream of at night?" are tabulated in Table 52 separately for the seven income levels and for the total group. For the combined income levels 1 and 2j 3, and 5; 6 and 1, and for the total group percentages are shown. These are underlined in the table. Table 52 Frequency of the Dream Specified among the Seven Income Levels and in the Total Group I n c o m e * 3 U 142 (n=26)

Dream Do Not Dream, Seldom Dream, Forget What I Dream

5

L e ν e 1 * 6

%

3,U,5 (n=V7)

6&7 (n=29)

Total Group

* Total Group (n=102)

9

5

53-9

11

5

U0.5

38.0

UU

1*3-1

All Different Thinge 1

2

11.6

5

5

21.3

27-6

21

20.6

Friends, Family, School, Nice Things, Eating, Flying In Airplane, Previous Thoughts 1

U

19-3

6

3

23-^

1

U

17-3

21

20.6

Funny, Crazy Dreams, Adventure, Mystery, Fire, Hold-ups, Murder, Nightmares, Feare 0

2

7.7

2

2

1

10.6

2

3

12

11.θ

Imaginary Lande, Being Very Elch, Fairies, Being a Famous Star

1

7.7

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0

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3^9

About k-3 per cent of this group of children say that they never dream, dream only occasionally, or forget what they dream. Approximately the same percentage (41.2 per cent) report dreame that «ire apparently of a pleasant nature. Almost 12 per cent have unpleasant dreams or very exciting dreamη while 4 per cent report imaginary and wish fulfillment variety of dream. In a more extensive study of the dreams of approximately 2500 boys and girls, Witty and Kopel (114) found that 16 per cent of them "never" dream and 63 per cent dream, "sometimes," leaving 21 per cent of them who eay they dream "often." A great diver-

WISHES. IDEAS, GREATEST PROBLEM, FEARS, AND DREAMS

165

slty of dreams was indicated by these children: the largest percentage of dreams (11.6 per cent) was found in the category "travel, adventure, amusement," the next largest (9.7 per cent) in the category, "being chased or threatened, " followed by the category, "movies and stories" (8.9 per cent). The other categories contained 5 per cent or less of the dreams reported. In general, there was a preponderance of unpleasant dreams over pleasant ones while very few wish-fulfillment dreams were reported . Jersild also reported the dreams of the kOO children he studied (k7, p. 129). As in Witty's and Kopel's study, the dreams reported by the children cover a wide range of conditions with no single topic occupying the majority. Likewise, wish fulfillment dreams are comparatively infrequent and a preponderance of unpleasant over pleasant dreams is evident. Among the groups of dreams occurring frequently are dreams about finding or possessing objects, clothes, money (7·^ per cent), dreams about play, amusements, and adventure (9·5 per cent), general daily activities of a pleasant nature (9.5 per cent), dreams of strange places, being alone in the dark (7.3 per cent), dreams of physical injury or accidents (8.7 per cent), dreams of being independent, and occupying an important position in life C+.7 per cent). Dreams involving mention of mystery, supernatural creatures, crime, unpleasant sights, nightmares, noises, and the like, all·combined include 16.7 per cent of the dreams. In contrast to the k3 per cent of the children in this study who report that they do not dream or seldom dream or forget what they dream, only 3·^ per cent of the children in Jersild's study report that they do not dream or cannot remember what they dream. Are dreams a function of the Income level? Proportionately more children of the low income groups report that they never or seldom dream than do either the children of the middle or high income groups. Consequently, proportionately more children of the high and middle income groups are found indicating dreams In the other categories with the exception, interestingly enough, of the one category which Includes imaginary and wish fulfillment variety of dream. Differences were also found between the dreams reported by the bright public and private school children studied by Jersild (kf,

166

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

pp. 130-31). Contrary to the findings of thie study, more private school children reported that they had no dreams or could not remember any, 71 per cent as against 3-8 per cent of the public school children. Sizeable differences were evident in only three other categories: private school children more frequently reported dreams of everyday events, objects, and persons (23.5 per cent as compared to 8.9 per cent of the public school children), aleo dreams of strange people and places, the dark, etc., (9Λ per cent as compared to 5.1 per cent). More public school children reported dreams relating to travel, diversions, amusements and play (12.7 per cent as compared to 8.2 per cent). The results of this study are not in accord with Jersild's findings. These discrepancies may be explained by the fact that different methods, both in obtaining the data and in handling the results, were used in each of the studies. Test of Significance. The X 2 test, computed between the combined income levels (l and 2; 3> and 5; 6 and 7) and dreams divided into the two categories: (l) Do Not Dream, Seldom Dream, Forget What I Dream, and (?) All Others, gives the result: X 2 I.672 df 2 Ρ between 30 and 50. It can be concluded, therefore, that dreams are not related to income level but rather that the two distributions are independent . Likewise, differences in the percentage of children between the income levels for the specific dream categories are not significant. Bordering on significance (. 1.00), however, are the differences for the dream category all different things" between income levels 1, 2 and 3> 5 and between levels 1, 2 and 6, 7; for "funny, crazy dreams, etc." between income levels 1, 2 and 6, 7; for "imaginary lands, etc." between levels 1, 2 and 6, 7· Summary Although dealing with what might be considered the more individual and inner aspects of one's personality, the data of this chapter generally show less variability than do those aspects of personality revealed by one's attitudes, interests, and activities .

WISHES,

IDEAS,

GREATEST PROBLEM,

FEARS,

AND DREAMS

167

The majority of thie group of bright children express ae their first wish, wishes relating to general benefits for one's self, such as having prestige or popularity, vocational success, haying a good time, followed by Wiehes relating to the acquiring of material objects or money, and lastly wishes dealing with general benefits for others. Their second and third wishes are in the same direction. Living in a competitive-cooperative society is apparently reflected in these trends. In contrast to their wishes, a great majority of the children express ideas about needed changes in the world which are concerned with the general welfare, such as abolishing war and poverty, improving living conditions while comparatively few show concern for problems that would directly benefit one's self. In their ideas, these children disclose mature, progressive, socially constructive attitudes - - a t times, bordering on the Utopian. They fail, however, in being able to envision how the proposed changes are to be brought about. This mature attitude toward social problems coupled with the inability to state how these changes are to be brought about seems to be an indictment of an idealistic but impractical school training. In this group of children, a substantial majority indicate that they have no fears, no great problems, and that they never or seldom dream. The rest of the group specify fears dealing mainly with disease, death, and accidents; problems dealing mainly with personal inadequacies, health and school work; dreams dealing generally with a variety of pleasant events. When compared with sheer individual variability for the personality traits considered in this chapter, income is not a significant source of variation except in the case of the possession or absence of fear, in the case of two wishes (wish for money and for educational opportunity), in the case of two ideas about changing the world (ideas involving the supernatural and the abolition of money) and in the case of two problems (school work and personal characteristics). Some relationship between income and some of the other traits is, however, evident, although the children of all income levels express wishes for material objects, the difference among the income levels can be detected in the quality of the wish expressed and in the object wished for. Wishes for money, for educational opportunity, for vocational success, and for

168

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

improvement in living conditions are mentioned only by the poor children while proportionately more of the wealthy than poor children are unable to think of anything at all that they want to wish for. More uniformity is evident among the income levels in ideas about changing the world although some differences are seen, especially in the proposed second and third changes. More of the poor children feel that changes with regard to living conditions need consideration while more wealthy children feel that the welfare of the individual and world problems require consideration. The possession of fears and problems show opposite trends. Although significantly more poor children than wealthy indicate that they have no fears, more of the wealthy children than the poor indicate that they have no great problems. A great variety of fears is manifested with extreme differences among the income levels, such as fear of "poverty" on the one hand, and "going to public school" on the other. Generally, however, the kind of fear held is not related to income. Problems, too, show differences among the income levels; only the poor children exprees worries about "money" and "the future"; only the wealthy children about "women and girls" and "the family." Dreams as well as fears are more frequent among the wealthy children. Nevertheless, a good deal of similarity is seen in the dreams expressed by the children regardless of income except for the wieh-fulfillment and imaginary type of dream which is not reported at all by the very wealthy children. It is noteworthy that the poor children have comparatively few fears and many problems while the wealthy children have comparatively more fears and fewer problems. Logically this is what might be expected to result from living in a society characterized by widely divergent economic circumstances. Apparently, exposure to poor economic circumstances with all its vicissitudes results in creating a comparatively fearless individual but em anxious one, while living in favored economic circumstances results in creating a comparatively fearful individual but a carefree one. Further research is necessary to confirm these tentative hypotheses.

Chapter V i l i SUMMARY AND

IMPLICATIONS

Summary of the Research The Problem The purpose of this research ia twofold: (l) to describe the salient personality characteristics of a selected group of bright children and (2) to determine how m u c h of the variation in these personality traits can be attributed to conditioning b y economic circumstance. Plan of the Experiment Subjects: The group consisted of 102 children, sixty boys and forty-two girls, 9 to lk years of age, having l.Q.'s of 120 to 200, attending two schools, a public school a n d a private school, but coming from diverse environmental backgrounds. Intelligence was intentionally limited to a comparatively narrow range Bince it is a n aspect of personality especially significant in the adjustive process and therefore had to be controlled. Bright children were selected on the assumption that they are particularly sensitive.to their environmental situation. Income as the Measure of Environmental Background: Income level was used as the measure of socio-economic status since it is concise a n d quantifiable, highly related to other factors used to measure differences in environmental backgrounds. The 102 children of this study were classified into seven income groups. Twelve families were on home relief or living in poverty, while twenty-one families earned more than $10,000 a year. Personality Traits: In this study, traits, symptomatic of personality, rather than personality per se were studied. The traits or aspects of personality considered can be classified into two groups: (l) those relatively more basic traits which comprise the structure of the personality, such as responsive-

170

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

ness to outer Btimuli or inner stimuli; creativeness and maturity in relationship to oneself or inhibition and hostility toward oneself; spontaneity and freedom in emotional reactions or overcontrol and rigidity; security in social relationships or Bhyness and insecurity, and (2) those relatively more changeable and specific traits of personality which are revealed through attitudes, interests, activities, achievement in school, as well as through wishes, fears, ideas, worries and dreams. Materials: To obtain a description of the personality structure of each individual, the Rorschach method was chosen. This is a projective technique which permits the individual to react in his own personal way to a semletructured field. Information as to attitudes, interests, activities, and so on, were obtained through the use of the following tests and questionnaires : Scale of Beliefs (P.E.A. Tests 4.11 and 4.12) The Minnesota Scale for the Survey of Opinions Interest Index (P.E.A. Test 8.2a) Hildreth Personality and Interest Inventory Miscellaneous Questionnaire New Stanford Achievement Test Conclusions The two major conclusions of this study are: 1. Despite their uniformly high intellectual capacity, this group of very bright children show as wide a variation in their personality characteristics as probably would be found in any group of children. 2. There is-very little relationship between socio-economic background as measured by income and certain aspects of personality. In general, the argument would be that in this small population of bright children, no significant differences are found among the income levels in such traits as attitudes toward one's family, feelings of morale and inferiority, interest and accomplishment in the school subjects, preference for certain daily activities, or for certain types of books, or in choice of college and future occupation. Similarly, there is no evidence to indicate a relationship between income and such patterns of personality as introversion or extraversion, constriction

SUMMARY AND IMPLICATIONS

171

or childishness nor in degree of adjustment, either social or personal, nor in such traits as the capacity to do original thinking, to develop a satisfactory inner life, or to possess adequate control in emotional situations. This is also true of certain of their wishes, fears, worries as well as their ideas of desirable social changes. There are exceptions, however, to this general conclusion since variation among the income levels Is significant for some of the traits studied. These traits are: responsiveness to outside stimuli, ability to think along the lines of other people, liberalism in social lssuee, preference for certain kinds of games or sports, choice of newspaper and magazine, the possession of fears, as well as certain wishes, worries, and ideas of desirable Bocial changes. The taking of lessons in art outside of school and summer time activities are likewise related to income. For these traite the hypothesis that the children of the several Income groups are random samples out of a homogeneous population cannot be substantiated. Interpretation and Implications The conclusion which has been reached in this study, namely, that variation In personality traits is probably not associated with difference In income, requires some consideration since it is difficult to comprehend why so potent a factor as economic status has seemingly such a negligible effect on personality. Previous investigations on less selective groups have shown an Influence of the environment on personality. It is, therefore, quite reasonable to expect that with larger, unselected populations, some significant differences might be found. The selectivity of the group employed in this research may be examined from four points of view: (l) how selected is the group in the economic sense; that is, are they representative of income groups as they exist in New York City? (2) how significant is the assumption that intellectually superior children are particularly sensitive to their environments, when as a result of this sensitivity, they tend to create a favorable environment for themselves? (3) what is the significance of this age level -- 9 to U years -- in a study of environmental influence? Are developmental trends during this age period so domi-

172

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

nant that differences among groups are obscured, by the wide range In Individual variation, or, from another point of view, Is the general culture so Bimilar and Its Influence so pervasive for these children, still attending elementary and Junior high school, as to minimize the effect of the specific environmental factor of economic circumstance? and (k) how valid are the results obtained from teste standardized on an unselected population when applied to a selected population? These questions are discussed in order: (l) The children of this study although varying greatly in economic circumstances are, nevertheless, representative of the higher income levels as they exist in New York City. This is clearly seen when the percentage of the families of the children In this study at each Income level is compared with the percentage of families in the general population. Inocœ Label

Income Level

This Group

Income Level

New York City and Chicago Families"

Under 1500 I5OO-25OO 2500-1+000 UOOO-5OOO 5ΟΟΟ-75ΟΟ 7500-10,000 Over 10,000

1*0.1 3b. 2 16.1 2.6 2.1 1.6 3.3

(*) Under 1500 I6OO-2UOO 2?00- J.900 1*000-5900 6000-7^00 7500-10,000 Over 10,000 a. York b. 103Θ

11.8 I3.7 25-5 12.7 7.8 7-8 20.6

«)

New York City City Income Level Familieeb W Under 1000 1000-2000 2000-3000 07er 3OOO

33.0 33.0 20.0 11*.0

These figures are based on a sample of representative families in New and Chicago (106). These figures are based on incomes received by New York City families in (106).

In this group, only about 25 per cent of the families of these children fall in the Income groups under $2500, whereas in the general population, close to 75 per cent of the families receive less than $2500. In the study dealing with New York City families only, approximately half the families have incomes less than $15^0; in this study, about 88 per cent of the families have incarnes above $1500. Since so many of the children in this group have comparatively high incomes In contrast to the general urban population, It may be argued that the existing differences among the income

SUMMARY AND IMPLICATIONS

173

levels were actually not large enough to have affected personality especially since the extreme incomes were represented, by children who attended two different schools. It is possible that very extreme differences must exist within a group before the effect of income on personality becomes evident. It is not so much the absolute level of one's income as a disparity between it and the income of one's fellows which causes conflict. The effect of income position within a group can be readily seen from some of the data of this study. For example, the middle income groups in the two schools are different, in many of the traits studied, from each other as well as from either the low or high income groups in their respective schools. The children in the middle income groups in each school seem to take a middle-of-the-road position which is most always the desirable one according to accepted Judgment. This becomes more striking when it is realized that the middle income group in the Speyer School is at the same Income level as the lowest income group at the Lincoln School. The consistency with which the middle income groups assume this middle-of-the-road position is seen in the graphs presented herewith for each of seven personality test scores. On the three Borschach scoreB - total responses (R), human movement responses (M), and definite form with bright color responses (FC) - the middle income groups are higher than either the low or high income groups, that is, they give more responses to the test; of these, they give more M and FC responses which, other things being equal, is desirable. Likewise in social attitudes (of nationalism and social attitudes in general) they tend to be more liberal than either the low or high income groups while in attitudes of morale and inferiority, they show better adjustment than either the high or low income groups. Further research using larger more representative groups is necessary to confirm this point. (2) What is the actual influence of environmental factors on the personality of bright children who are sensitive to their surroundings but who also tend to do something about them? The underprivileged bright child who has no books at home will go to the library to get them and stay there to read them if the atmosphere is more conducive to reading than at home. The underprivileged bright child who hae few friends to his liking in his

•

« Lincoln School Speyer School

Human Movement Sesponeee (M)

Total Responses (R)

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Income Level

Form vith Bright Color Responses (FC)

P.

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Income Level

Figure la Relationship between Income and Seme Rorschach Scoree

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Lincoln School Speyer School

Total Attitude Score

Ζ

Feelings of Morale*

i 4 JIncome Level

X

J

4

s-

7

Feelings of Inferiority*

?

7°

/

é

¿

7

/

X

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Figure It Relationship "between Income and Some Attitude Scores

s~

é

γ

176

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

own neighborhood, vili easily make friends outside of hie neighborhood for it ie no problem for him to find his way about. Certainly, instances of this sort could be multiplied. It is likewise conceivable that the favored bright child, while enJoying the luxury of economic security, may find it necessary sometimes to modify his situation in a way that is more pleasing to him. Further, it should be kept in mind that the children in this study of the lower income levels, many of whom attend the Speyer School, are in a more favored school situation than are other bright children of similar economic backgrounds. Not only are they in a privileged school situation, but they are keenly aware of it because of the realization that they, among many, were selected. These are all conjectures which need to be verified by further research. In this connection, case histories of bright children might prove to be particularly useful as well as studies of children of all levels of intelligence. It would be extremely interesting to determine whether children of average or below average intelligence are more or less affected than are bright children by their environmental situations. (3) The span from 9 to 14 years of age is one which has received little attention. The importance of the early childhood years has been emphasized; the period of adolescence has been studied extensively, as has the period beyond adolescence, while the pre-adolescent child or the child Just entering upon adolescence has been neglected. During this age period — 9 to lU -- at least three developmental stages may be represented. Some of the younger children may be in the phase characterized by a good deal of spontaneity and creativity as evidenced in increased interest in creative art and literature; some children may be in the prepuberty stage experiencing the repression and constriction occurring at this time while others may be experiencing the overemotionaliam characteristic of the puberty phase of development. It is quite possible that these developmental trends are so overwhelming and so significant to the children themselves as to obscure or to place temporarily in the background the effect on the personality of economic circumstance. It is conceivable that differences among groups may replace or become more signif-

SUMMARY AND IMPLICATIONS

177

leant than individual differences only after the individual becomes stabilized in his development. Similarly, from a sociological point of view, the argument may be that differences among Income groups for children at this age period are blurred because of the similarity in the societal forces affecting them. All the children are etili at school, all may see the same movies, all may listen to the same radio program^ while last but not least all live in the atmosphere of a big city going to schools located In approximately the same neighborhood. Are these children, therefore, old enough to be aware of the great differences in income and to have experienced the consequent differences in family patterns of living? Are they old enough to sense the distinctions between "classes" of people? What is the effect of superior mental capacity on such experiences? More specifically, what is the influence of the school? Does the school hare such a levelling influence upon these children as to make them feel that they are members of a society consisting of groups much like the ones with which they are famillar? The school, especially in the grades before the senior high school, is undoubtedly one of the most important agencies in the community which Imposes uniform demands upon individuals and consequently creates similar personalities. Certainly, it would be worth while to carry out a research of this kind with individuals older and more settled who have experienced the importance of economic statue when making plans for securing a higher education, or seeking entrance to a desired college, or later, in looking for a Job. (Ό Lastly, the personality measures used may not have been discriminating enough to bring out differences among a group of children who are concentrated in intellectual capacity at one end of the scale. Tests are usually constructed to reveal differences existing In a random population and not in a selected one. It may be, therefore, that the tests themselves did not allow for the appearance of larger differences. Nevertheless, in view of the validity and diversity of the methods of personality appraisal employed and the control of the intellectual factor, certain implications for education and for society aa a whole may be drawn:

178

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

1. As far ae bright children are concerned, their personality characteristics are so varied that no unique or fixed personality pattern can he ascribed to them. They, like all other children, must he considered as individuals requiring individual attention for optimum development. 2. It appears that personality in the case of these bright children is almost independent of both intelligence and income. There needs to be a re-examination of the problem of intelligence as a factor in personality adjustment. 3. Educators, guidance counselors, and employers should appreciate not only that the low income groups contribute numerically more bright children to society than the wealthier groups, but also that belonging to the "underprivileged." class does not in and of itself make for disturbances or peculiarities in the personality at least in the case of bright children under fifteen years of age. Likewise, belonging to the "privileged" class does not in and of itself preclude unsatisfactory personality characteristics. U. Bright children of the more privileged groups in society may require guidance in developing the ability to think along usually accepted lines. While showing superior capacity to do original thinking, they are sometimes inclined to overlook the things most people are thinking about. 5· In attempting to influence social attitudes of individuals or groups, educators and social planners need to consider not only mental level but economic background as well. Furthermore, techniques used to influence attitudes relating to the issue of democracy may have to be different from those used with attitudes relating to labor and unemployment. These findings may be of significance in a society such as ours. 6. The school should continue in their efforts to increase interest in the school subjects. While engaging the Interests of many and assuming importance in so many new lines of endeavor, mathematics remains even for these bright children the least preferred of all school subjects. 7· If the Bchool is interested in practical outcomes, the teaching of social problems requires more than mere theorizing and discussion. The bright children of this study

SUMMARY AND IMPLICATIONS

179

seemed well aware of existing social problems but they were not able to suggest ways of dealing with them. The school must not ignore the teaching of those remedies which have already been tried ae well as other remedies which have been suggested in the solution of social problems. Moreover, the school is in a position to serve as a laboratory for the practical working out of same of these problems. 8. The school needs to extend its sphere of influence in other directions as well. On the basis of the results of this study, its influence appears to be required in: a. Offering to all children the opportunity to experience different kinds of games and sports. b. Furnishing to all children the better newspapers and magazines. c. Providing for instruction in the various arts. d. Providing for summer vacations. The school can be a powerful force in extending such services either by setting up its own agencies or by using existing agencies of the community. 9. The possibility of securing a "good" education is apparently troubling the minds of the poor children. It should be the task of the school and the community to make them feel secure in this matter. Lectures on the opportunities for higher education at little or no cost to the individual might alleviate whatever tension exists with regard to this problem as well as provide the necessary information. Though these boys and girls came from disparate economic groups, the characteristics of their different backgrounds are not reflected prominently in their pers'öfaalities. ThiB finding suggests the vital role an enriched school curriculum functioning in a truly democratic society can play in the lives of children.

APPENDIX

Table A Bi-eerial Correlation Coefficients between Total Number of Adjustment Signe ae Evidenced in the Rorschach and Score on Each of Twenty-Three Single Signe of Adjustment Rorschach Sign8 1. M > IH or M = IM 2. M, 3 or more (incl. add'l M's) 3. sum C > Fc+c+C' 50 or less 5. Dd+S$, 10 or less 6. P, 1+ or more (less than 30$ of R) 7 . R, more than 20

8. 9. 10. 11.

FC > CF or FC = CF FC, 2 or more No pure C Per cent Β to last three cards, 1+0 or over (but less than 60) 12. FK+Fc, 2 or more 13. W:M = 2:1 (approximately) 11». P$, 50 or less 15. No color shock 16. No shading shock 1 7 . No refusals 18. M+îW>m (incl. add'l m's) 19. m < 3 (incl. add'l m's) 20. K+k, 2 or less 21. S, 2 or less 22. Anatomy, not more than 1 23. H+A : Hd+Ad=2 : 1 (approximately)

r

Dil.

$ possessing

.788 .61+0 .1+1+8 .298 .551

^9 53 37 72 79 67

Λ15

.635

58

.1+96 .313 .228 ^

3^ 8l ^

Λ84 .565 .1+1+8 .523 .31^ .7^1 Λ50 -.157 .000 -.011+ .101 .201

6l 22 67 8l 91 88 95 66 95 89 92 20

a. The first seventeen are those included in the final selection.

BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Anderson, John E. The Young Child In the Home, (in White House Conference on Child Health and Protection.) New York, D. Appleton-Century Co., 1936. 2. Barr, F. E. "A Scale for Measuring Mental Ability in Vocations and Some of Its Applications." (Described in Terman, Stanford L. M., Genetic Studies of Genius, Vol. I, Chap, University Press, Stanford University, Calif., 1926.) 3. Bayley, N., and Jones, H. E. "Environmental Correlates of Mental and Motor Development: A Cumulative Study from Infancy to Six Years," Child Development 8.-329-M, 1937lt. Beck, Samuel J. Introduction to the Rorschach Method. Menasha, Wis., American Orthopsychiatry Association, 1937· 5. Beck, Samuel J. Personality Structure in Schizophrenia. Nervous and Mental Disease Monographs, 61+ West 56th Street, New York, 1938. 6. Benjamin, J. D., and Ebaugh, F. G. "The Diagnostic Validity of the Rorschach Test," American Journal of Psychiatry 9^:1163-78, 1938. 7- Blair, Glenn M. Mentally Superior and Inferior Children In the Junior and Senior High School. Contributions to Education, No. 766, Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, 1938. 8. Boggess, V. "Some Factors Accounting for the Variation in the Social Adjustment of Children Living in a Tenement Area," Smith College Studies In Social Work 6:32^-59> 1936. 9- Brown, Fred. "A Comparative Study of the Influence of Pace and Locale upon Emotional Stability of Children," Pedagogical Seminary and Journal Genetic Psychology h-9:325-^l> 1936. 10. Brown, Fred. "Neuroticism of Institution vs. Non-Institution Children," Journal of Applied Psychology 21:379-83, 193711. Burgess, E. W. (Ch.) The Adolescent in the Family: A Study of Personality Development In the Home Environment, (in the White House Conference on Child Health and Protection.) New York, D. Appleton-Century Co., 193^·

183

PERSONALITY AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUND

12. Carpenter, Jane, and Eisenberg, Philip. "Some Relations between Family Background and Personality," Journal of Psychology 6:115-36, 1938. 13· Cavan, Ruth S. "The Relation of Home Background and Social Relatione to Personality Adjustment," American Journal of Sociology 40:143-54, 1934. 14. Chepin, F. S. "A Quantitative Scale for Rating the Home and Social Environment of Middle Class Fami lies in an Urban Community: A First Approximation to the Measurement of Socio-Economic Statue," Journal of Educational Psychology 19:99-111, 1928. 15. Cohen, B. M., Tietze, C., Greene, E. "Statistical Contributions from the Mental Hygiene Study of the Eastern Health District of Baltimore; III: Personality Disorders in the Eastern Health District in 1933/' Human Biology 11:112-29, 1939. 16. Coleman, C. T. "The Cultural Advantages of Disciplinary Problem Pupile in the High School," School and Society 32:160-62, 1930. IT. Collins, S. D. "Economic Status and Health," U.S. Public Health Service Bulletin, No. I65, 19?7. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. 18. Cuff, N. B. "The Vectors of Socio-Economic Status," Peabody Journal of Education 12:114-17, 1934. 19. Davidson, P. E., and Anderson, H.D. "Are Edwards' SocioEconomic Levels Economic?" School and Society 48:153-56, 1938. 20. Dimmick, G. B. "An Application of the Rorschach Ink-Blot Test to Three Clinical Types of Dementia Praecox," Journal of Psychology 1:61-74, 1935-36. 21. Dollard, John. Criteria for the Life History. New Haven, Yale University Press, 193522. Dollard, John. Caste and Class in a Southern Town. New Haven, Yale University Press, 1937. 23. Engle, T. L. "Home Environments and School Records," School Review 42:590-98, 1934. 24. Farle, R. E. L., and Dunham, H. W. Mental Disorders in Urban Areas. Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1939· 25. Francis, K. V., and Fillmore, E. A. "The Influence of Environment upon the Personality of Children," University of Iowa Studies 9:No.2, 1934.

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