BRIEF HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTING

A. Ancient Roots
• Chinese Civilization – testing was instituted as a means of selecting who, of
the many applicants, would obtain government jobs
• Greek Civilization – tests were used to measure intelligence and physical
skills
• European Universities – these universities relied on formal exams in
conferring degrees and honors
B. Individual Differences
• Charles Darwin – believed that despite our similarities, no two humans are
exactly alike. Some of these individual differences are more “adaptive than
others and these differences lead to more complex, intelligent organisms over
time.
• Francis Galton – he established the testing movement; introduced the
anthropometric records of students; pioneered the application of rating-scale
and questionnaire method, and the free association technique; he also
pioneered the use of statistical methods for the analysis of psychological tests
He used the Galton bar (visual discrimination length) and Galton whistle
(determining the highest audible pitch). Moreover, he also noted that persons
with mental retardation tend to have diminished ability to discriminate among
heat, cold and pain.
C. Early Experimental Psychologists
• Johan Friedrich Herbart – Mathematical models of the mind; father of
pedagogy as an academic discipline; went against Wundt
• Ernst Heinrich Weber – sensory thresholds; just noticeable differences (JND)
• Gustav Theodor Fechner – mathematics of sensory thresholds of experience;
founder of psychophysics; considered one of the founders of experimental
psychology; Weber-Fechner Law first to relate sensation and stimulus
• Wilhelm Wundt – considered one of the founders of Psychology; first to setup
a psychology laboratory
• Edward Titchner – succeeded Wundt; brought Structuralism to America; his
brain is still on display in the psychology department at Cornell
• Guy Montrose Whipple – pioneer of human ability testing; conducted seminars
that changed the field of psychological testing
• Louis Leon Thurstone – large contributor of factor analysis; approach to
measurement was termed as the law of comparative judgment
D. The Study of Mental Deficiency and Intelligence Testing
• Jean Esquirol – provided the first accurate description of mental retardation
as an entity separate from insanity.
• Edouard Seguin – pioneered modern educational methods for teaching people
who are mentally retarded/intellectually disabled
• James McKeen Cattell – an American psychologist who coined the term
“mental test”
• Alfred Binet – the father of IQ testing
• Lewis M. Terman – introduced the concept of IQ as determined by the mental
age and chronological age; translated the Binet-Simon into English
IQ Classification according to the Stanford-Binet
Over 140 : Genius
120-140 : Very Superior
110-119 : Superior
90-109 : Average
80-89 : Dullness
 70-79 : Borderline Deficiency
Under 70 : Feeble-mindedness
• Charles Spearman – introduced the two-factor theory of intelligence (General
ability or “g” – required for performance on mental tests of all kinds; and
Special abilities or “s” – required for performance on mental test of only one
kind)
• Thurstone – Primary Mental Abilities
• David Wechsler – Wechsler Intelligence Tests (WISC, WAIS)
• Raymond Cattell – introduced the components of “g” (Fluid “g” – ability to
see relationships as in analogies and letter and number series, also known as
the primary reasoning ability which decreases with age; and Crystallized “g” –
acquired knowledge and skills which increases with age)
• Guilford – theorized the “many factor intelligence theory” (6 types of
operations X 5 types of contents X 6 types of products = 180 elementary
abilities)
• Vernon and Carroll – introduced the hierarchical approach in “g”
• Sternberg – introduced the “3 g’s” (Academic g, Practical g, and Creative g)
• Howard Gardner – conceptualized the multiple intelligences theory
• Henry Goddard – translated the Binet-Simon test into French
E. World War I
• Robert Yerkes – pioneered the first group intelligence test known as the Army
Alpha (for literate) and Army Beta (for functionally illiterate)
• Arthur S. Otis – introduced multiple choice and other “objective” item type
of tests
• Robert S. Woodworth – devised the Personal Data Sheet (known as the first
personality test) which aimed to identify soldiers who are at risk for shell shock
F. Personality Testers
• Herman Rorschach – slow rise of projective testing; Rorschach Inkblot Test
• Henry Murray & Christina Morgan – Thematic Apperception Test
• Early 1940’s – structure tests were being developed based on their better
psychometric properties
• Raymond B. Cattell – 16 Personality Factors
• McCrae & Costa – Big 5 Personality Factors
G. Psychological Testing in the Philippines
• Virgilio Enriquez – Panukat ng Ugali at Pagkatao or PUP
• Aurora R. Palacio – Panukat ng Katalinuhang Pilipino or PKP
• Anadaisy Carlota – Panukat ng Pagkataong Pilipino or PPP
• Gregorio E.H. Del Pilar – Masaklaw na Panukat ng Loob or Mapa ng Loob