A partially selected group of 341 inmates at the St. Charles, Ill., State School for Boys chosen in such a way that it naturally would somewhat increase the frequency of deficiency, was tested by Dr. Ordahl with Kuhlman's form of the 1911 scale supplemented by the Stanford Scale above XII. The results showed 11% in the presumably deficient group and 20% in the doubtful group ([41]).
One of the main uses of the objective scale is to demonstrate that the same conditions do not prevail in various institutions which, except for this objective evidence, might be expected to care for the same type of inmates. This is illustrated by the comparison of the above studies in Ohio and Michigan with that made at a similar state school for delinquent boys in Indiana reported by Hickman (12, 28). The Binet 1911 tests, Goddard's adaptation, were applied to 229 new boys 8 to 17 years of age inclusive, admitted to the Indiana Boys School at Plainfield. Among these, 68 boys (30%) tested below our borderline for the clearly deficient and 53 more within the doubtful region, a total of 48%. There seems little doubt that this represents a significant difference from the condition at the corresponding Ohio and Michigan schools where only 15% and 6% respectively tested clearly deficient on a corresponding standard. An interesting commentary on the necessity of reinterpreting the borderline for feeble-mindedness on the scale arises when we note that Hickman says: “One hundred and sixty-six, or about 75% of the whole number tested, tested as much as three years or more below normal, and therefore would be classed as feeble-minded to a greater or less degree.”
(d) Men And Boy Delinquents In County And City Institutions.
It seems likely that in city and county institutions deficiency is most common among repeaters in the jails or workhouses. One study has been made of a randomly selected group of repeaters who were in the jail of a Virginia city for fixed sentences of not more than a year. The examinations are summarized in the Special Report of the Virginia State Board of Charities and Corrections ([58]). In this Virginia city 50 whites of both sexes and 50 negroes of both sexes were examined. Among the whites, 18 tested IX or under and 5 more tested X. Among the negroes, 24 tested IX or under and 10 tested X. The percentages would be just twice these numbers, a total of 61% below passable capacity in this group of 100. If such is the condition in other jails in other parts of the country, it indicates one of the most serious hot beds of deficiency among delinquents. The repeaters in this city jail during three years were responsible for 60% of the commitments to jail, although only about one-fourth of the 33,306 arrests in this city during the three years resulted in commitment to jail. The feeble-mindedness among the repeaters, therefore, may be little indication of the frequency of deficiency among those arrested in the city. The repeaters represented only a third of those committed to jail during this period and this third was probably the most deficient among those committed, since recidivism goes with deficiency. Moreover, those committed to jail are probably more likely to be deficient than those who escape jail sentences. To assume, therefore, that 61% of this city's delinquents were of doubtful ability would be clearly unjustified, and yet this sort of reasoning about the frequency of deficient delinquents has been all too common.
Gilliland[[24]] tested one hundred male inmates of the Columbus, Ohio, Workhouse (28 negroes) selected so as to attempt to represent the different offenses about in their proportions. He gives the results in point scores with the Yerkes-Bridges scale, which may be translated only roughly into Binet 1911 ages by Haines' data, as I have indicated for the study by Rossy. All were 18 years of age or over, so that I estimate 14% would fall into our presumably deficient group including only the proportion of those under 64 points who would test as Binet IX or less. The doubtful group would include 17% more, including the proportion under 66 points who would test X or under.
Among the local institutions supported by the county or city, the most serious delinquency is probably found in the group reported by Kohs at the Chicago House of Correction ([33]). He tested with the 1911 Binet scale 335 consecutive cases between 17 and 21 years of age. Among these were 72 cases (21%) who tested clearly deficient according to our standard, and 95 cases doubtful, a total of 50% at least uncertain in intellectual ability.
Through the courtesy of Catherine Mathews, who made the examinations for the psychological clinic of the University of Pittsburgh, which is under the direction of Dr. G. C. Bassett, I am able to give the records of 125 consecutive admissions to the Allegheny County Detention Home. The institution is known as the Thorn Hill School. It is situated some miles outside of Pittsburgh and provides on the cottage plan for about 300 boys. The boys are sent from the Juvenile Court for milder training than that at the state school. The school has also been found to furnish a necessary place to care for cases of feeble-minded delinquent boys who cannot be immediately admitted to the state institution on account of its crowded condition. A detention home is also provided in the city for juvenile court children awaiting trial or the disposition of their cases. These are not included in the Thorn Hill group.
Among the 125 consecutive cases at Thorn Hill, omitting two cases which are probably dementia praecox, there were 37, or 29%, who tested presumably deficient according to our standard, and a total of 68 cases, or 55%, presumably and doubtfully deficient. It is to be remembered that our standard for the immature was arranged for the 1908 scale and not the 1911 scale which was used here, although the difference would be slight.
TABLE X.
Binet 1911 Tests of Boys Consecutively Admitted to the Allegheny County Detention Home at Thorn Hill. (Mathews)