TWEEZER DEXTERITY TEST

Experimenter’s name : SP Experiment Number : 4

Subject : Date of experiment :

INTRODUCTION
The O’Connor Finger and tweezer dexterity were developed in the mid- 1920’s, while
Johnson O’Connor was employed in the Lynn Works of General Electric company (Hines and
O’Connor 1936). He was concerned with the selection of women for electric meter and
instrument assembly work and devised these tests for that purpose.
Research in the past has demonstrated the existence of a number of manual dexterities.
Whether these aptitudes range on a continuum from gross (arm and hand) to fine (wrist and
finger) dexterity or whether they are relatively distinct and unrelated, representing separate
abilities has not been firmly established.
In general, experience with the O’Connor Finger and Tweezer Dexterity suggests that
wrist and finger dexterity is likely to be important during the period of initial adjustment to fine
manual jobs and that is likely to be related to success on the job when people with approximately
equal amount of technical understanding or trade knowledge are compared. When the latter
considerably differ among applicants or employees, differences in them are likely to outweigh
the importance of differences in finger dexterity. A high score indicates aptitude for work
requiring precision in the use of small hand tools, such as the forceps of the anatomist,
surgeon,or biological laboratory worker, or the tweezers of the watch repairer. This test is
adapted for use with people above 13 years of age.

METHODOLOGY
Problem:
To assess the tweezer dexterity of the subject using a tweezer dexterity board.
Plan:
To administer O’Connor tweezer dexterity test and interpret the time scores with the help of
norms.
Materials required:
1. O’Connor tweezer dexterity
2. Tweezer
3. Stop watch/stop clock
4. Writing materials

[O’Connor Tweezer dexterity board is a wooden board. The board consists of two halves, one
half has a square plate with hundred small holes to insert the pins and the other half has a tray to
keep the pins. The board is provided with sufficient pins and a tweezer.]

Procedure:
Seat the subject comfortably at a table with the tweezer dexterity board placed in front of
him/her. The tray containing more than 100 pins should be placed on the side of the preferred
hand.
The subject is instructed to pick up one pin at a time with the help of the tweezer and begin to fill
the holes in the board beginning left for the right handed person (top right for left-handed). The
holes should be filled row-wise. Note the time taken to fill in all the 100 holes. The time taken
should be noted accurately. The subject is allowed to fill in two rows for practice. Only one trial
is given.

Instructions:
“Here is a board with room for pin in each hole. Using your preferred hand pick up with the
tweezer one pin at a time and begin to fill in from this row (show the first row, left left side to the
right-handed person. The experimenter will demonstrate). Do not stop to pick up the pins that
fall down. Continue working till you fill in the last hole.”

Precautions:
1. Note down the time taken accurately.
2. The subject with the left hand as a preferred hand will begin from the right side of the
board.
3. Allow the subjects to fill in two rows for practice before the proper test begins.
Analysis of the results:
1. Score is simply the number of seconds lapsing between placement of the first and last
pins.
2. Refer the time in seconds to O’Connor Norms (different for men and women) to locate
the standard score. Check the centile rank for interpretation.

Results and interpretation:

Individual result:

INITIALS START TIME END TIME TIME TAKEN

S.P 3:44 PM 3:51 PM 424 SECONDS

Note: Table 1 shows the individual data.

Group result:

SR. NO. INITIALS TIME TAKEN

1. S.K 567 secs

2. R.G 385 secs

3. I.G 538 secs

4. R.B 481 secs

5. A.N 414 secs

6. P.P 344 secs

7. V.S 449 secs

8. M.R.S 400 secs

9. G.K 440 secs

10. S.D 432 secs

11. M.P 364 secs

12. K.B 470 secs

 13. J.R.B 388 secs

14. N.B.A 456 secs

15. S.G 483 secs

16. D.J 445 secs

17. M.B 329 secs

18. N.M 442 secs

19. S.R 364 secs

20. B.S 481 secs

Note: Table 2 shows the group data.

It is calculated by taking the mean (average) and standard deviation of the group and then
calculating the range using the formula:
Range = Mean ± SD
Mean = 431.05
SD = 57.63

Range = Mean ± SD
= 431.05 ± 57.63
Therefore, the range is approximately 373.42 to 488.68.

Individual discussion:
The individual score of 424 falls slightly below the group mean but remains within the range of
average performance. This suggests that the individual’s dexterity level is comparable to that of
many participants within the group, indicating moderate level of fine motor control and
precision.

Group discussion:
Analysis of group data reveals a mean score of 431.05 with standard deviation of around 57.63.
This suggests that the average performance level among the participants fall within a range of
approximately 373.42 to 488.68.

Conclusion:
The tweezer dexterity experiment revealed a diverse range of fine motor skills of participants
with an average score of 431.05 and SD being 57.63. The individual score 424 showcases a
variability within the group context.