VI

TESTING  MEN  ASSEMBLERS
THE  FIRST  EXPERIMENT  WITH  MEN
Up  t 0  the  time  of  this  experiment  nearly  all  tests
a d  been  given  to  girls  and  on  jobs  which  were  handled
a ^ m °st  wholly  by  girls.  The  present  experiment  was  conducted
  entirely  among  men.  It  was  therefore  an  experiment ­
  in  a  double  sense:  first,  an  experiment  to  determine
ne  value  of  certain  tests;  secondly,  an  experiment  calculated ­
  to  show  what  could  be  done  among  men  in  a
slt uation  of  this  kind.
The  two  largest  gun-assembling  shops  served  as  the
, e  u  for  this  experiment.  It  must  be  admitted  that  con-S'derable
  apprehens  ion  was  felt  as  to  the  attitude  which  a
^ lr S e  body  of  shop  men  would  adopt  toward  being  taken
° m  their  work  into  a  mysterious-looking  brown  box—
e  portable  laboratory  which  was  set  up  for  this  purpose
Was  only  a  brown  box  to  them—for  a  series  of  mysterious
test s.  However,  as  with  the  girls,  a  policy  of  entire  frankness
  w as  pursued  from  the  very  outset.  As  soon  as  the
Portable  laboratory  had  been  set  up—a  process  which  imrtle
 diately  aroused  the  interest  of  the  men—a  notice  was
P°sted  on  it  to  this  effect:
The  tests  which  will  be  given  here  are  in  the  interests  of  the
^Ployment  office.  Their  purpose  is  to  provide  the  employkj
  nt  office  with  standards  by  which  to  select  successful  assemers
  ln  the  future.  Your  cooperation  is  requested.”
69