Deficiency and Delinquency: An Interpretation of Mental Testing [Review of the book Deficiency and delinquency, an interpretation of mental testing

Abstract

Reviews the book, Deficiency and Delinquency, An Interpretation of Mental Testing by James Burt Miner (1918). The author presents a comprehensive study of mental testing as applied to deficients and delinquents, assembling from a vast body of literature the various conclusions thereto appertaining. As the title suggests, the study is an interpretative one. We may add that it is also a wholesome critique. His claim to greater practicality in this important field of psychology is verified throughout, as there is shown to be a place for the serious attempts of social welfare workers, teachers, and amateurs, as well as the trained clinician. Accepting the common conception of feeble-mindedness, which holds it to be a lack of development rendering the individual socially deficient and requiring constant supervision or guidance, and excluding from this category the so-called "conative" cases of deficiency, the author's contribution is summarized. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)