Vocational Guidance Toward the Higher Professions with Special Reference to its Psychological Bases
The Psychological Clinic Copyright, 1933, by Lightner Witmer, Editor Vol. XXI, No. 4 December, 1932-February, 1933 :Author: Leon Walther
Institut Jean Jacques Bousseau, Geneva, Switzerland Although vocational guidance with reference to the trades has made marked progress during recent years, vocational guidance toward the higher professions has not progressed so rapidly. Vocational guidance toward the professions involves two questions: (1) Is the individual capable of entering on a professional career? (2) Which one of these is he capable of pursuing? As early as the end of the 18th century certain German pedagogues reached the conviction that to succeed in the higher careers it was necessary to possess more intelligence than would be required in industrial occupations; that, in the latter, a man’s tasks are largely routine and are generally determined for him, but in the former, he is more nearly free to select the means for realizing his ambition, and that this freedom exacts a higher degree of intelligence.
But the proof of this assumption is lacking. In order to be able to prove it, we should need to have grouped all the human activities according to the degrees of intelligence concerned in their accomplishment. We already possess certain tentative facts bearing on this: the Alpha Tests of the American Army,1 the table * An address given before the Vocational Guidance Association of Philadelphia. Translated by H. D. Kitson, Teachers College, Columbia University. This address is a compressed statement of the contents of the author’s new book, Orientation Professionnelle a L’Universite et Ses Bases Psychologiques, now being published under the auspices of the Institut J. J. Eousseau. i Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences. Vol. 25. Psychological Examining in the United States Army. Washington, 1921.
of occupations arranged by Fryer,2 and so on; but we need many more. As a means of determining the general intelligence, or mental level, the Binet-Terman test is generally used. (For academic orientation, Toops and Edgerton’s,3 or Zyve’s4 S. A. T. tests.) “We have followed this procedure for more than ten years in giving vocational guidance at the Institut Jean Jacques Rousseau. Each time a person comes to the Bureau aspiring to a higher profession, we ask, “What is his mental level?” and according to his mental development we direct him toward one of three occupational groups: (a) industrialized work?the separate parts of a trade; (5) the trades considered in their entirety; or (c) the higher professions. If the candidate possesses a mental development below his chronological age (I.Q. below 90), we direct him toward industrial work carried on as part of some trade, the operations of which are largely automatic and limited in scope.
If the subject possesses an average amount of intelligence (I.Q. 90 to 110), we direct him toward a trade or an occupation the fundamentals of which he can learn in a vocational school. If his mental development exceeds the average (I.Q. above 110), we encourage him toward higher studies in polytechnic schools or universities.
We are conscious all the time that this procedure embodies an easy-going hypothesis regarding work, which can be justified only after we have determined with precision the degree of intelligence required by each of the occupational activities.
Thus, a certain degree of intelligence seems to be indispensable for embracing a higher profession. And, to the first question stated at the opening of my remarks, we can respond that a person who possesses a superior type of intelligence will have greater chances of succeeding in the higher professions; the higher the intelligence, the greater will be the chances of success. While it is general intelligence, as we are coming to see, that determines one’s chances for success in a higher occupation, it is clear that this trait cannot be decisive in determining the choice of any given profession. We could not determine the difference between the fields of engineering, medicine and law merely by say2 Fryer, D. Vocational Self-guidance. Philadelphia, 1925. s Toops, H., and Edgerton, G. Manuscript, Ohio State University. * Zyve, D. H. Stanford Scientific Aptitude Test. Stanford University Press, 1929.
ing that a person with a high degree of intelligence will be able to become an engineer, one with a lower intelligence can become a physician, and one still lower a lawyer. That which differentiates these professions will not be the same psychic trait in varying degrees, but probably another trait, entirely different from general intelligence. And we must search for it in the domain of special aptitudes. At least, it is thus that we reason with reference to the trades. May we expect similar conditions in the higher professions? On first thought, our experiments would indicate that the higher professions and the mental traits which they require appear to be incommensurate with each other, and not overlapping. But are these differences of an intellectual nature, or otherwise? In order to obtain a clearer view, let us pause a moment and consider the special aptitudes.
As opposed to general intelligence, or general aptitude, we may place integral intelligence, which exhibits itself in empirical manifestations as a special aptitude. To know how to apply one’s intelligence in the abstract rather than in the concrete is indeed an aptitude?whether one applies it to the invention of a machine or to the creation of a drama. Now, intelligence, no matter to what field it is applied, possesses a quid proprium that does not vary. Its essential nature is that of an activity involving three chief operations: a question, an hypothesis, and a verification. An act of intelligence is a mental process aroused by a need for adjustment and directed toward adapting the subject through resolving the difficulty which he faces. The question is the awareness of the need for adjustment; the hypothesis is the search for means of adjustment; the verification is the control of the hypothesis?that is to say, the subjection to proof of the imagined means. These three mental operations are common to all acts of integral intelligence. But there are certain elements by which these acts differentiate themselves; above all are comprehension and invention?two general forms of intelligence. These two elements are always present in every act that is an act of intelligence. But it is no less true that in the case of an individual one of these forms may predominate. One person may be of the “inventive” type, and another may belong to the “comprehension” type. Comprehension and invention are important complex operations, each one a series of more simple operations of a sort that Claparede has designated “the internal technique” of intelligence. To formulate a question
it is necessary to know how to observe. The formulation of an hypothesis presupposes also observation, memory, imagination, and an aptitude for ‘’ putting two and two together.’’ Then, the verification of an hypothesis necessitates reason, deduction, and criticism of the solution found. While these diverse operations are all found in every intelligent activity, one is tempted to explore each separately when he investigates the special aptitudes of an individual. Is it these forms of integral intelligence?comprehension and invention?that differentiate the profession of engineering, for example, from that of law? We do not assert this as a positive fact. While the work of an engineer often involves invention, it does not always do so. And while it may seem that the work of a lawyer involves chiefly the act of comprehension, it might under certain circumstances require some inventive activity. There are many kinds of engineers. Some must exert inventive effort to a high degree, as, for example, the chemical engineer; others perform primarily acts of comprehension, as, for example, the commercial engineer. Among the lawyers are those who apply the law and those who frame new laws and formulate judicial doctrines. Is it necessary, then, to seek the differences among higher professions in the auxiliary operations of integral intelligence, rather than in its fundamental forms? Is it marked by the presence or absence of imagination, of memory, or some other isolated mental function rather than one of the intellectual activities? Or are the higher occupations differentiated by the degree to which each one of these isolated functions is implicated?
In examining the existing monographs on the higher professions one is forced to the conclusion that the aptitudes which the authors of these monographs claim necessary are almost always the same. For example, good judgment is demanded of a minister as often as of a lawyer or a naturalist. As to the degree to which a mental aptitude is necessary, no one specifies.
This brings us to the conclusion that success in a given higher profession is conditioned only in part by integral intelligence, and by the preponderance of certain mental elements which compose it. But, at the present time, we know very few of these elements. Furthermore, investigation in this domain is rendered exceedingly difficult by a fact that we have already pointed out: the great variety of outlets which any given field offers. This hinders us in finding criteria for evaluating success in the field. Besides, the substitution or the compensation of one aptitude for another occurs frequently in these professions.
Accordingly, although the degree of general intelligence may determine the choice of a general field of work, it cannot help one in narrowing down his choice among the ramifications of a given profession. Integral intelligence and its different forms are not sufficiently striking to differentiate these divergent social activities. But if it is not in the purely intellectual domain that one should seek this differentiation, to what sphere shall one go? Alongside of the aptitudes that characterize the mentality of an individual, we find the attitudes which he adopts toward the external world, and these are perhaps more powerful in determining his vocational activity than are the aptitudes. These attitudes may represent specifically intellectual bonds in which affectivity enters only slightly. These attitudes have been designated by Claparede5 as psychotropic or nootropic: mental orientation.
But the attitudes can be strongly impregnated with affectivity which bears upon the intellect. In this case we are in the presence of a bent, an inclination. “All the tendencies,” says Ribot, “express the needs of the individual, whether they be physical or mental: the basis, the root of the affective life is in all.” Although the intellectual and the affective attitudes are closely intertwined, we shall need to distinguish between them when we carry on vocational guidance. The former present a specific cast of mind, the latter stand for conscious or unconscious tendencies of our affective life. To the former we apply the term psychotropic; to the second, penchant or inclination. These attitudes play a very important role in the choice of an occupation, especially in the choice of the higher professions. With respect to our understanding of psychotropic, scientists have made progress during recent years. This attitude represents two diametrically opposed motives which lead an individual to choose one activity rather than another; or, if his choice falls on a certain occupation, lead him to behave toward it in a manner quite different?even diametrically opposite. And these attitudes are characterized by the inclusion of a factor above all intellectual. It should not be confounded with those of the domain of sentiments (such as egoism or sympathy), or of the will (such as authority or docility).
s Claparede, E. Comment diagnostiquer les Aptitudes chez les Ecoliera. Paris, 1927.
Thus Ostwald,6 thinking of the rapidity with which the human mind reacts toward certain diverse problems which are imposed by the various conditions of life, distinguishes two distinct types of individuals: the romantic and the classic. The romantic is the rapid type?productive, excitable. The classic is the one that goes to the bottom of things and who, by reason of this fact, is slow, phlegmatic. The first type will lean toward activities where he can use his specific tendencies; he will become the man of action?a teacher, for example. The second will seek the activities of an investigator or philosopher.
But individuals of opposite nature can react in opposite ways even in the same occupational situation. Thus Poincare7 finds among mathematicians two kinds of mentality. Those in one group are exclusively concerned with logic; others permit themselves to be guided by intuition. The former are analysts, the latter geometricians. The former remain analysts even while they perform geometric computations; while the latter are geometricians even when they engage in pure analysis. The former are incapable of “seeing in space”; the latter permit themselves to carry on long, involved calculations. And it is not education that has brought into existence the one or the other of these tendencies. “One is a born mathematician,” says Poincare, “one does not become so, and it seems also as if one is a born geometrician or a born analyst.” Piorkowski8 discovered these two types among the 750 school children whom he tested for aptitude for making combinations. In asking them to make sentences containing 3 given words, he found that some invented short and concise sentences (they are the “analytics”), while the others composed long sentences full of reflections and thoughts (the “intuitives”). Binet9 also distinguishes two types similar to these, which he calls the “objective” and the “subjective.” “By our original nature, we are astraddle two worlds:” he says, ‘’ the external world, composed of material objects and physical happenings, and the internal world, composed of thoughts and feelings. According to the occasions and the needs we behave more exclusively introspectively or extrospectively. So far as we need to take cognizance of things about us, we seek to withdraw within ourselves and reflect. Certain 6 Ostwald, W. Grosse Manner. Leipzig, 1909. 7 Poincare, H. La valeur de science. Paris, 1908. 8 Piorkowski, C. Beitrage zur psychologischen Methodologie der wirtschaftlichen Berufseignung. Leipzig, 1915. 9 Binet, A. Les idees modernes sur les enfants. Paris, 1927.
of us are inclined toward the external world, others toward the internal. It is this which constitutes in the sciences, for example, the two great families of observers and theoreticians.” Jung10 also distinguishes two opposite types with respect to their attitudes toward the world?the extravert and the introvert. Lipmann,11 who introduced the distinction between the gnostic type and the technical type akin to the classic and romantic of Ostwald, holds the thesis that each one of these types involves different aptitudes. The gnostic will be apt for a scientific career or that of official, he will be capable especially of recognizing, comparing, making distinctions and classifying. The technician, on the contrary, will succeed in the active careers: inventor, teacher, lawyer, etc.
But it is not only the intellectual attitudes which play an important part in the choice of a vocation for the individual. The affective element also exerts its influence. The affective attitudes, which we call penchants or inclinations, push the individual toward occupations through which he can satisfy them. These attitudes take the form of spontaneous efforts in a given direction; they correspond to an impulsion and are nothing more than the exercise of this impulsion in the vocational field. We can distinguish different kinds of interests characterized by a preponderance of affectivity. First, let us note the interests which are characterized by the satisfaction which the individual experiences in manipulating certain objects. This kind of interest conditions vocational success to a high degree. Contact with certain substances arouses within the individual a feeling of pleasure. Thus, certain persons can use their energies only in work with wood, not with iron, paper, or fabrics. They feel an attraction for certain material and an insurmountable aversion toward any other. There are persons who experience a thrill amounting almost to ecstasy in touching the soil; these men succeed in agriculture. The sensation of humidity which accompanies water running through the fingers attracts some persons toward the occupation of launderer or chemical dyer. While these examples illustrate inclinations conditioned by the sense of touch, there are other instances which show how the individual seeks to satisfy his sensations of a visual, auditory or gustatory nature. It is a well-known fact that not only artists but also 10 Jung, C. Psychologisclie Typen. Zurich, 1921. 11 Lipmann, W. Psyehologie der Berufe. Berlin, 1922. house-painters, sign-painters, and workers in dyeing establishments find particular pleasure in being surrounded with all sorts of colors. In the field of sound, it is not only the performing musicians who enjoy tonality; some persons are impelled toward an occupation in instrument factories by the insatiable desire to satisfy their ear. Among the workers in perfumeries may be found a number to whom the olfactory sensations aroused in their daily work bring the keenest pleasure.
Another category of vocational inclinations is determined by the sexual instinct. According to Freud, the different human occupations are only manifestations of this instinctive activity. Though somewhat exaggerated, this point of view can be defended, at least in part. This instinct shows itself clearly in the desire to be in contact with persons of the opposite sex. Gynecologists, hospital attendants, masseurs, are examples. Some indirect ways by which this instinct satisfies itself through the vocations are those of fetichism. The occupations of certain salesmen and makers of clothes, lingerie, gloves; also manicurists, chiropodists, barbers, hairdressers?these are all unconscious examples of fetichism. If we should follow the line of psychoanalysis, we would find other tendencies determining vocational choice. Stekel,12 in analyzing vocational interests, distinguishes five principal forms of motivation. The first is the identification of one’s self with one’s father. The son of a physician wishes to become a physician. But sometimes this identification consists in surpassing the father in the profession. Alexander the Great was afraid that his father, Philip, would not leave him any worlds to conquer. The second motive is the desire to differentiate one’s self from the father. Children sometimes show a tendency to choose a vocation diametrically opposed to that of their father. The son of a merchant, of a man of materialistic tendencies, becomes a poet or philosopher. The son of a conservative politician becomes a socialist. Stekel thinks that the periodic change of political ideas among a people is explained by the desire among children to be different from their parents. (Whigs and Tories in England.) The third group is represented by the tendencies that have for their purpose the sublimation of erotic or criminal impulses. This is accomplished by a sort of narrowing down of antisocial instincts in the direction of activities socially useful. The pharmacist and i2 Stekel, W. Arch, f. Kriminal-Anthropologic und Kriminalistik. Leipzig, 1911. the surgeon are sometimes examples of these tendencies. Stekel12 thinks that some men choose these professions in order to obtain satisfaction for their criminal impulses.
The fourth group illustrates the fetichism which we discussed above.
The fifth consists of men whose vocations constitute a form of protection against their eriminal tendencies. Thus a man with a strong bent toward crime becomes a detective or a judge, in the effort to protect himself from the possibility of committing crime. Baumgarten 13 mentions another group of special leanings which she designates “social inclinations.” There are some persons who flee from society and wish only to be alone. Such are dressmakers, embroiderers, etc.?who remain quiet for long periods or think a hundred times about the same thing. (Mental rumination.) There are some persons, on the contrary, who never wish to be alone, who like company, and who choose the occupations which permit them to live in contact with others. Among these sociable persons one group, such as actors and politicians, incline toward an occupation where they can ‘’ shine.’’ There are also some with a pronounced leaning toward domination (born leaders) ; others incline toward submissiveness (underlings and servants). Among other inclinations might be cited that of continually running risks, curiosity, a bent toward organizing, which we find in politicians and industrial leaders.
This enumeration of tendencies is not complete, but it has served as a classification of important attitudes which must be taken into consideration in giving vocational guidance, though they have been only meagerly investigated and although their application in the case of any individual entails great difficulties.
Just as intellectual attitudes influence the behavior of the individual toward his environment, so do the inclinations. It is in activity that they seek and find their satisfaction regardless of the occupation in which this activity occurs. The activity factor is primary, the occupation is secondary. This is why it is incorrect to affirm that an individual has, for example, an interest in the occupation of surgeon. All that one can say is that he has an inclination toward an activity, or a collection of activities, which find their crystallization in the occupation of surgeon. Suppose for the moment that a person manifests a tendency toward cruelty? sadism; although he suppresses the external manifestation of it, he 13 Baumgarten, C. Les inclinations professionnelles. Milan, 1922. finds satisfaction in it. In consequence, it is necessary that lie should engage in an activity that will give scope for this desire. Opportunity exists in a number of occupations, such as those of butcher, hunter, surgeon, school teacher, prison warden, policeman, etc. We do not mean to imply that the characteristic element in these occupations is cruelty. Far from that. Our only point is that the inclination toward cruelty can find satisfaction in these occupations more readily than in others. The choice of one of these occupations will depend largely on external conditions. If the individual is fortunate enough to belong to an exclusive social circle, he will select the profession of surgeon rather than that of butcher. But if he is obliged, for one reason or another, to select a different occupation among those we enumerated, he will find in it, other things being equal, the same satisfaction.
In order to examine thoroughly the problem of vocational inclinations, it will be necessary not only to establish a list of existing inclinations, but also to discover to what extent certain bents can realize themselves in different occupations. That is to say, to study not only the inclinations in relation to the occupations, but also the occupations in relation to the inclinations.
It is thus that Watts14 in subscribing to the theories of MacDougall thinks that “for many occupations an emotional accommodation having its roots in instinctive impulsions is a greater need than any other.” He designates three principal occupations: shepherd, hunter and grower. The gardener, the herder, the physician, the nurse, the professor, the religious worker, the statesman, constitute merely variations of the bent toward shepherding which manifests itself “in a compassionate love for cultivating and caring for life under all its multiple forms.” The activities of the primitive hunter are found in the occupations of explorer, pirate, army commander, boxer. The crossing between the hunter type and the shepherd type gives us the missionary, the judge, etc. Likewise, some economists like Schmoller15 have held that the occupations have not arisen solely from economic reasons, but in certain measure with a psychological purpose?to satisfy certain tendencies of our psyche. Even in prehistoric times, men had divers qualities which impelled them toward different occupations. Both the intellectual and affective attitudes are strong enough to resist external obstacles. Sometimes, it is true, the inner im14 Watts, F. Die Psychologischen Probleme der Industrie. Berlin, 1919. is Schmoller, F. Grundriss der allgemeine Volkswirtscliaft. 1919. pulsions do not seem clear even to the individual himself, or he may misinterpret them, so that he stumbles into an occupation in which his earnings are insufficient and from which he makes frequent changes without finding the satisfaction he craves. Sometimes the individual fastens his interest successively on a series of occupations, one after the other. Psychoanalysis has revealed striking examples of this. Thus, Kramer 16 reports that according to the investigation which he made among pupils from 12 to 15 years old, the boys changed their occupational choice between six and nine times during their childhood. But in most of these cases the change was purely external. The basis of their occupational drive remained the same.
Some persons deceive themselves when they speak of their desire for a given occupation. They should rather speak of the specific activity that will give them satisfaction. It is incorrect, in giving vocational guidance, to ask the question: “What occupation would you like to enter?” It would be more proper to ask one to specify the kinds of activity that give him satisfaction and pleasure. Thus: “Do you like to work alone, or with other persons; in an enclosed place, or in the open? Do you like changing from place to place, or staying in one spot; do you prefer to deal with persons, things, or ideas: If things, of what nature are they? If men, do you like to direct or to be directed?” And so on, without naming any of the existing occupations. He should also be asked to describe his day-dreamings and his dreams during sleep, so that his inmost tendencies may be reached. He should be asked to recall the vocational ideals of his childhood, dwelling on the “how” rather than on the “what.” Suppose that he desired to become a locomotive engineer. The question then to be asked is: “In what way do you think of this occupation; what is there about the work that attracts you?”
The attitude factor is so important for the social orientation of the individual that we should begin with it in giving vocational guidance. Only after examining the attitudes should we search for aptitudes. Then the difficulty of determining whether there is harmony between attitude and aptitude, between inclination and aptitude, disappears.
Let us suppose that we are counseling an individual in whom we have discovered a real curiosity. We should regard more than is Kramer, C. Kindliche Phantasien iiber Berufswahl. Heilen & Bilden von Adler, 1914.
merely the intellectual direction (psychotropic) this inclination takes. We find, let us say, that it is abstract rather than concrete. Then we should inquire concerning the aptitude, first ascertaining the mental level which, let us say, is very high. Only then can we ask what are the occupations that will permit the individual to satisfy his curiosity, taking into consideration his attitudes and his aptitudes. The sciences would be an appropriate field toward which he might direct his energies. If, on the contrary, his general intelligence is only moderate, we should direct him toward journalism, particularly reporting, where his curiosity would have opportunity for satisfying itself, on a level appropriate to his mentality. For persons of inferior intelligence we recommend appropriate occupations where their curiosity can be satisfied. But even in the cases where we find lack of harmony between inclination and aptitude, we do not necessarily conclude that a compromise cannot be effected. The persistence with which a person may pursue a goal can arouse compensatory functions which can serve as substitutes for certain defects. We have known cases of apprentice watch-makers who, though handicapped by poor vision, have persisted in their choice and, by developing compensatory abilities, such as delicacy of touch, have attained their vocational objective. Alfred Adler has shown how strong inclinations in a given field can play a more important part than fitness. Where there is a feeling of inferiority certain compensatory mechanisms arise which not only nullify the defects in question, but actually overcompensate. Thus the stammerer Demosthenes became a brilliant orator, and Byron, afflicted with lameness, became a remarkable sportsman.
Thus the attitudes are structural elements of human personality, and, so long as this personality does not change in its constitutive elements, the attitudes do not change. Furthermore, the attitudes carry with them corresponding aptitudes which will permit the attitudes to realize themselves. In other words, they correspond to the aptitudes as long as one will make abstraction from the occupations in which these attitudes must crystallize themselves. We must interject one remark in order to avoid being misunderstood : We have spoken of the attitudes as though the individual were characterized by a single attitude. This is not the case. Several attitudes of different and even contrary nature may exist together. But the justification for speaking of one alone comes from the fact that frequently one or a complex of attitudes may predominate within the individual.
The co-existence of two rival inclinations often gives opportunity for happy combinations through which the counselor can guide the individual in a direction that will satisfy both: for example, an interest in traveling and in practicing medicine would suggest the occupation of marine surgeon; a liking for colors and a necessity for outdoor life might be combined in the occupation of wagon painter.
To summarize: In answer to the question, “Does it matter who enters the higher occupations?” the facts lead us to reply that intelligence is the determining factor.
As to which one of the professions an individual will succeed best in, the facts point to the conclusion that it is the attitudes rather than the aptitudes that determine this. The attitudes which an individual takes toward his occupational activities, the inclinations which direct him toward these activities, impel him to choose an occupation which is in intimate relation with his mental states. The special aptitudes, if they operate at all, function to a minimum degree and by way of compensation and substitution for each other. The situation is different in the case of the trades where special vocational aptitudes are the determining factors which lead the individual toward vocational success in harmony with his inclinations. These special aptitudes are now always easily replaced by others; substitution and over-compensation do not function over a scale so wide as they do within the higher professions. Furthermore, the general aptitudes are concerned in the trades to a less extent.
On the one hand is general intelligence; on the other, pronounced attitudes: these make for success in a given profession. This is the conclusion to which the facts force us.
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