The Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM) test is a leading global non-verbal measure of mental ability, helping to identify individuals with advanced observation and clear thinking skills who can handle rigorous study programmes as well as the complexity and ambiguity of the modern workplace. APM scale is largely employed by researchers and practitioners in the field of psychometrics, education, medicine and the social sciences. A sample of 3100 participants in Nigeria was randomly drawn to answer nine research questions. Triangulation research design, adopting item response theory (IRT) guided the study. The study developed an abridged form of the APM dubbed Advanced Progressive Matrices-Smart Version (APM-SV). Results revealed that all 15 items of the APM-SV test yield favourable statistics under 3-Parameter Logistic IRT Model with regards to item discrimination, difficulty and guessing. Item Response Function showed preponderance of APM-SV’s reliability of 0.92. The APM-SV showed perfect fit, is bias-free and very suitable for use in Nigeria. APM-SV scale strongly and positively correlated well with other measures of fluid ability such as the APM scale itself, CFIT, Digit Span scale, and Bennett Mechanical Comprehension Test (BMCT).
Keywords: 3-Parameter Logistic Model, Advanced Progressive Matrices, Item Response Theory, Nigeria, Test Bias, X-Calibre
