Testing for leadership and morale : the implementation of social psychological methods into dutch testing practice / Leadership et moral : l'introduction des méthodes de la psychologie sociale dans la pratique des tests psychologiques dans les Pays-Bas

Abstract

ERIC HAAS TESTING FOR LEADERSHIP AND MORALE : THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL METHODS INTO DUTCH TESTING PRACTICE This paper investigates the introduction and implementation, after World War II, of social psychological methods into the Dutch army's psychological testing practice. A short history of the testing and selection of officers in Germany and the United Kingdom is presented. The introduction of these methods in the Netherlands, which was closely connected with societal and political problems, is discussed. The application of modem social psychological methods was presented as a democratic means of selecting staff. Leadership based on nepotism and giving and obeying orders were considered no longer appropriate for the democratic postwar period. The way in which a person affiliated with others, understanding their feelings and motives, became important factors in psychological assessment. Within the Dutch army, these ideas called for a comprehensive testing procedure, in which the behaviour of the individual in group settings became an important target for social psychological testing methods.