Practical no.

1
Standard Progressive Matrices
Name of the Test:
Name of the Tester:
Name of the testee:
Educational Qualification of the testee:
Age of the testee:
Gender of the testee:
Mental Status of the testee:

Purpose: To access the Intellectual capacity of the testee using Standard Progressive Matrices

Introduction

The term intelligence refers primarily to individual differences in a wide range of cognitive
abilities and intelligence is a very important aspect of individual distinctiveness. Intelligence can
be generally defined as the capacity to learn from experiences and adapt to one’s environment.
According to William Stern, “Intelligence is the ability to adjust oneself to a new situation.”
The most widely used definition of Intelligence was given by David Wechsler as, “The global
capacity of an individual to think rationally, to act purposefully and deal effectively with the
environment.”
In 1905, Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon, made the first successful attempt to formally
measure intelligence. They developed the first standardized test of intelligence for the purpose of
identifying French school children who were in need of special help in school. In 1908, when the
scale was revised, Binet gave the concept of Mental Age (MA), which is a measure of a person’s
intellectual development relative to people of her/his age group.
Stanford University psychologist Lewis Terman translated the Binet-Simon into English and the
test was named as The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale. It subsequently became a model for
other tests and has been revised many times. It is one of the most widely administered tests of
intelligence in the world.
In 1912, William Stern, a German psychologist, devised the concept of Intelligence Quotient
(IQ). IQ refers to mental age divided by chronological age, and multiplied by 100. The number
100 is used as a multiplier to avoid the decimal point.
The major work in the area of Intelligence came in with David Wechsler’s tests of Intelligence.
The tests include Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for
Children (WISC). These are individual tests made up of variety of tasks.

B.A Semester IV Practical notes (only for reference) Dr. Sonal Paliwal Page 1
Types of Intelligence Test

On the basis of Language use they can be classified into:

- Verbal tests: consists of entirely verbal material dealing with vocabulary, general information
etc.
(Ex. Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale)
- Non-verbal tests: involve no language. But items are pictures, drawing, block patterns, etc.
(Ex. Raven’s Progressive Matrices)
On the basis of administration they can be classified into:
- Individual tests: can be administered to only one individual at a time.
(Ex. Koh’s Block Design Test, Alexander Pass along Test, WAIS)
- Group tests: can be administered to a large number of individuals at a time
(Ex.Raven’s Progressive Matrices)
On the basis of time and the difficulty level of the items they can be classified into:
- Speed tests: There is time limit to answer. The subject should try to answer as many items as
possible with in that time limit (Ex. Koh’s Block Design test, Alexander Pass along Test)
- Power tests: Allow sufficient time to the subject to answer the items. (Ex. Wechsler Scales of
Intelligence)

The various uses of the intelligence tests are:

- They can be used for career guidance and counseling.
- They can be used for diagnostic purposes.
- They can be used for recruitment and selection in industries.
- They can be used for research.

Description of Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM)

SPM is a test of a person’s capacity at the time of the test to apprehend meaningless figures
presented for his observation, see the relations between them, conceive the nature of the figure
completing each system of relations presented, and, by so doing, develop a systematic method of
reasoning. SPM was designed to cover the widest possible range of mental ability and to be
equally useful with persons of all ages, whatever their education, nationality or physical
condition. The scale consists of 60 problems divided into five sets of 12. With each item the
difficulty level increases in all the sets. Split-half reliability of the SPM is 0.90 and the test-retest
reliability is between 0.80 and 0.90. It has a concurrent validity of 0.86.

Types of Raven’s Progressive Matrices (RPM)

Coloured Progressive Matrices(CPM): For age group 8-11 years

Standard progressive Matrices (SPM): Normal average adults
Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM): For adults of more than average intellectual capacity.

B.A Semester IV Practical notes (only for reference) Dr. Sonal Paliwal Page 2
RPM gives result in Percentile point. The percentile usually indicates that a certain percentage
falls below that percentile. For example, if you score in the 25th percentile, then 25% of test
takers are below your score.

Material Required

1) Standard Progressive Matrices

2) Record sheet
5) Paper and pencil

Plan and Procedure

Prior Arrangement: The testee is made to sit comfortably and rapport is established. Pencil and
record sheet is given to the testee and following instructions are given:

Instructions: “The test consists of 60 problems which are presented in serial order. Open your
book to the first page. It is like this. At the top it says Set A and you have a column here, on your
answer sheet, for Set A. This is A1. You see what it is. The upper part is a pattern with a bit
missing. Each of these pieces below is the right shape to fit the space, but they do not all
complete the pattern. Only one pattern is right. On every page in your book there is a pattern
with a bit missing. You have to decide each time which of the pieces below is the right one to
complete the pattern above. When you have found the right bit you write its number down on
your answersheet next to the number of the pattern. Do not write on the booklets. You can have
as much time as you like.”

Actual Procedure: write on your own

Precautions:
1) Language is used only for giving instructions.
2) Testee is not allowed to go through the booklet prior to the test.
3) The testee is asked to work silently without consulting anyone.

Scoring:
Scoring is done with the help of scoring key. A person’s score on the scale is the total number of
problems solved correctly. The score to be expected in every set is taken out from the ‘Expected
score composition’table. The difference between the score a person obtains on each set and that
normally expected for that total score is called the discrepancy score. On the basis of the raw
score the percentile point and grade/category of the testee is taken out.

B.A Semester IV Practical notes (only for reference) Dr. Sonal Paliwal Page 3
Result:
The total score is: _______
Percentile of the testee is:
Category/Grade of the testee is:

Discussion: In brief
Introduction to the topic
Which test was used?
What was the procedure?
How was the scoring done?
What is the result?
What does the result indicate?

Conclusion: Percentile of the testee is______ and she is _____________________ in

Intellectual capacity.

Recommendations if any:

On the left blank side do the following:

1) Make the Category table
2) Calculations if any
3) Introspective Report

B.A Semester IV Practical notes (only for reference) Dr. Sonal Paliwal Page 4