Confluence of Dynamic Forces 381greatest need was to find people to fill jobs, so the emphasis was
on recruitment, selection, and placement. G. Stanley Hall first
suggested the use of psychology in the military in 1916 while
addressing a joint session of the APA and the American Associ-
ation for the Advancement of Science (Hergenhahn, 1997).
When the United States declared war on Germany in April
1917, a group of psychologists led by Robert M. Yerkes (then
president of APA) and others (from the National Academy of
Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement
of Science, and theAPA) formed the Psychology Committee of
the National Resource Council to evaluate a psychological ex-
amining program for recruits (von Mayrhauser, 1987). At the
same time, W. D. Scott and W. V. Bingham, faculty at Carnegie
Institute of Technology, formed the Committee on Classifica-
tion and Personnel to aid the army in the selection of officers
(von Mayrhauser, 1987). Douglas Fryer worked with a small
program in the Morale Branch of the Surgeon General’s Office
to ease the adjustment of soldiers to army life.
Although many psychologists were involved with World
War I, Yerkes and his colleagues received the most publicity
for developing the Army Alpha and Army Beta group mental
ability tests. These tests paved the way for large-scale intelli-
gence testing and for later expansion of psychological testing
into government, industry, and education (Katzell & Austin,
1992). After the war, the military increased spending to iden-
tify ways to improve the efficiency of the fighting forces, thus
creating opportunities for psychological research and appli-
cation under the auspices of the armed forces. In addition, the
success of psychological applications during the war stimu-
lated the interests of corporate leaders to use psychology in
their businesses.
The Second World War, like the First World War, created
the opportunity for psychologists to apply their techniques.
The army sought the assistance of psychologists, who were
ready to be involved (e.g., Capshew, 1999). Significant
accomplishments included the Army General Classification
Test (AGCT), situational stress tests, assessment centers, and
simulation training. One of the first comprehensive applied
psychology programs was the Aviation Psychology Program
directed by J. C. Flanagan and published in 19 volumes
(Flanagan, 1947–1949). APA Division 14 (now SIOP) past
president (1976–1977) Paul W. Thayer recalled,
World War II had an interesting effect on I/O.... It threw to-
gether a number of psychologists, some industrial, some experi-
mental, some measurement, etc., in a variety of places. Wallace
and Flanagan worked with some experimental types in the Army
Air Corps (later the USAF), while McGehee and others were in
the Navy. Wherry worked with the Army in D.C., and Shartle
continued his work on job classification.... Experimental psy-
chologists learned to respect what applied psychologists coulddo, and vice versa. (Paul W. Thayer, personal communication,
June 5, 2000)After World War II, the economic and political division of
the world along capitalistic-communist lines, the emergence
of the Soviet Union as a superpower, and the threat of nuclear
war increased military spending (Dipboye et al., 1994). Psy-
chological research benefited from this spending as the mili-
tary sought behavioral means to improve the effectiveness of
the armed forces. Several research centers were created, such
as the Army Research Institute (ARI), the Navy Personnel Re-
search and Development Center (NPRDC), and the Air Force
Human Resources Laboratory (AFHRL). Although military
spending on research has decreased in the past 20 years, some
projects prevailed. For example, J. P. Campbell (1990) de-
scribed Project A, a large-scale project for the U.S. Army. This
effort involved several psychologists over a 10-year period to
research the selection and classification of military personnel
and develop the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery
(ASVAB). Another example of military research is the exten-
sive investigation of teams completed by the U.S. Navy’s
Training Systems Center (e.g., Swezey & Salas, 1992).
One outcome of the wars that indirectly influenced I-O
psychology was the creation of the G.I. bill (e.g., Haydock,
1996). This bill allowed funded military personnel to attend
college, increasing the number of students entering graduate
programs. At 92 years of age, APA Division 14 (now SIOP)
past president (1957–1958) Charles H. Lawshe Jr. recalled,Tiffin’s book... was adopted by the U.S.A.F.I. (Armed Forces
Institute) in a correspondence course for G.I.’s and was sent to
them all over the world. With the cessation of hostilities these
G.I.’s, now familiar with the book and with pockets full of cash
applied for admission to graduate schools in drones. [sic] Purdue
alone admitted 23 or 24 each year.... The result, a tremendous
influx of many, many very bright students, all who eventually
became available to be hired by industry. While it is no longer
true, it seemed that almost every industry had its own “in house”
industrial psychologist. (Charles H. Lawshe, Jr., personal com-
munication, June 1, 2000)The significant impact of the two world wars and the military
on the development of I-O psychology has been documented
(e.g., Britt & Morgan, 1946; Ferguson, 1962–1965; von
Mayrhauser, 1989). The impact of other wars (e.g., Korea,
Vietnam, the Gulf War) and military efforts on I-O psychol-
ogy needs investigation.Technological ForcesTechnological forces include new processes and hard-
ware revolutions with regard to computers, transportation,