268

EMPLOYMENT  PSYCHOLOGY

frequently  the  last  man  who  can  analyze  his  jobs  adequately. ­
  The  fact  that  he  knows  them  so  well  prevents
him  from  describing  them  in  any  but  technical  and  colloquial ­
  words.  However,  this  danger  will  be  largely  avoided
if  every  analysis  is  made  according  to  the  outline  of
specifications  furnished.  This  outline  serves  to  confine
the  analysis  to  certain  channels  and  predetermined  essentials. ­
  Moreover,  the  entire  process  should  be  under
the  supervision  of  a  group  consisting  of  the  employment
manager,  the  medical  examiner,  and  the  psychological
examiner;  for  the  very  purpose  of  the  analysis  is  to  provide ­
  a  guide  by  which  these  different  agencies  will  function ­
  together  in  choosing  the  right  applicants  for  the  right
place.
After  such  an  analysis  has  been  made,  how  is  it  to  be
used?  At  the  present  time,  whenever  a  shop  needs  men
it  is  customary  to  send  to  the  employment  office  a  requisition ­
  calling  for  six  men,  or  three  machinists,  or  five  millers,
or  seven  edgers,  as  the  case  may  be.  This  manner  of  calling ­
  for  men  by  such  general  names  and  in  such  a  wholesale
fashion  suggests  the  very  evils  which  have  just  been  discussed, ­
  namely;  a  very  loose  connection  between  shops
and  employment  office.  After  the  specifications  for  the
various  kinds  of  work  have  been  made  out,  they  can  be
arranged  and  indexed  for  convenient  reference  in  the  employment ­
  office.  At  the  same  time,  the  different  shops
will  retain  possession  of  the  specifications  which  affect
them  in  particular.  Whenever,  now,  it  becomes  necessary
for  a  shop  to  make  a  requisition  for  men  it  can  do  so  in
terms  of  these  specifications.  In  order  to  simplify  matters
still  further,  the  various  kinds  of  work  which  are  only
superficially  different  can  be  summarized  under  a  common
head,  and  a  system  of  symbols  can  be  employed  to  expedite