ind of business and of labor. The psychologist would have to
find for every one of these ends the right mental means. This would be
the ideal system of economic psychology.

But we are still endlessly far from such a perfect system. Modern
educational psychology and medical psychology have reached a stage at
which an effort for such a complete system might be realized, but
economic psychology is still at too early a stage of development. It
would be entirely artificial to-day to aim at such ideal completeness.
If we were to construct such a complete system of questions, we should
have no answers. In the present stage nothing can be seriously
proposed but the selection of a few central purposes which occur in
every department of business life, and a study of the means to reach
these special ends by the discussion of some typical cases which may
clearly illustrate the methods involved.

From this point of view we select three chief purposes of business
life, purposes which are important in commerce and industry and every
economic endeavor. We ask how we can find the men whose mental
qualities make them best fitted for the work which they have to do;
secondly, under what psychological conditions we can secure the
greatest and most satisfactory output of work from every man; and
finally, how we can produce most completely the influences on human
minds which are desired in the interest of business. In other words,
we ask how to find the best possible man, how to produce the best
possible work, and how to secure the best possible effects.

PART I

THE BEST POSSIBLE MAN

IV

VOCATION AND FITNESS

Instead of lingering over theoretical discussions, we will move
straight on toward our first practical problem. The economic task,
with reference to which we want to demonstrate the new psychotechnic
method, is the selection of those personalities which by their mental
qualities are especially fit for a particular kind of economic work.
This problem is especially useful to show what the new method can do
and what it cannot do. Whether the method is sufficiently developed to
secure full results to-day, or whether they will come to-morrow, is
unimportant. It is clear that the success of to-morrow is to be hoped
for, only if understanding and interest in the problem is already
alive to-day.

When we inquire into the qualities of men, we use the word here in its
widest meaning. It covers, on the one side, the ment