counselors to the experimental psychologists, and it is certainly in
the spirit of the modern tendency toward applied psychology that the
psychological laboratories undertake the investigation and withdraw it
from the dilettantic discussion of amateur psychologists or the mere
impressionism of the school-teachers. Even those early beginnings
indicate clearly that the goal can be reached only through exact,
scientific, experimental research, and that the mere naïve
methods--for instance, the filling-out of questionnaires which may be
quite useful in the first approach--cannot be sufficient for a real,
persistent furtherance of economic life and of the masses who seek
their vocations. In order to gain an analysis of the individual,
Parsons made every applicant answer in writing a long series of
questions which referred to his habits and his emotions, his
inclinations and his expectations, his traits and his experiences. The
psychologist, however, can hardly be in doubt that just the mental
qualities which ought to be most important for the vocational
counselor can scarcely be found out by such methods. We have
emphasized before that the ordinary individual knows very little of
his own mental functions: on the whole, he knows them as little as he
knows the muscles which be uses when he talks or walks. Among his
questions Parsons included such ones as: "Are your manners quiet,
noisy, boisterous, deferential, or self-assertive? Are you thoughtful
of the comfort of others? Do you smile naturally and easily, or is
your face ordinarily expressionless? Are you frank, kindly, cordial,
respectful, courteous in word and actions? Do you look people frankly
in the eye? Are your inflections natural, courteous, modest, musical,
or aggressive, conceited, pessimistic, repellent? What are your powers
of attention, observation, memory, reason, imagination, inventiveness,
thoughtfulness, receptiveness, quickness, analytical power,
constructiveness, breadth, grasp? Can you manage people well? Do you