Open Access

ARTICLE

The intelligence of the Copts of Sudan: A test of norms validation

Edward Dutton^1,*, Salwa Saleh Mohamed Alamein², Guy Madison³, David Becker⁴, Mohammed Ateik Al-Khadher⁵, Salaheldin Farah Attallah Bakhiet⁶, Yousif Balil Bashir Maki^6,7, Nasser Said Gomaa Abdelrasheed⁸, Ahmad Mohammad Alzoubi⁹

1 Asbiro University, Lodz, 90-265, Poland
2 Department of Continuing Studies, Mashreq University, Khartoum, 11111, Sudan
3 Department of Psychology, Umeå University, Umeå, 90187, Sweden
4 Department of Educational and Development Psychology, Technical University of Chemnitz, Chemnitz, 09111, Germany
5 College of Education, Department of Psychology, King Saud University, Riyadh, 4545, Saudi Arabia
6 College of Education, Department of Special Education, King Saud University, Riyadh, 4545, Saudi Arabia
7 Faculty of Education, Department of Special Education, University of Khartoum, Khartoum, 11115, Sudan
8 College of Arts and Applied Sciences, Department of Education, Dhofar University, Salalah, 211, Sultanate of Oman
9 Department of Psychology, Ajman University, Ajman, P.O. Box 346, United Arab Emirates

* Corresponding Author: Edward Dutton. Email:

Journal of Psychology in Africa 2025, 35(5), 695-699. https://doi.org/10.32604/jpa.2025.067488

Received 05 May 2025; Accepted 18 September 2025; Issue published 24 October 2025

Abstract

This study validated the Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM+) norms in the Sudanese context. A sample of Coptic Sudanese (n = 385, girls = 34.5%) and other Sudanese children (n = 1656, girls = 51.5%) aged between 7 and 10 took the SPM+. Reliability was acceptable (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.755 for the Copts). British Intelligence Quotient (IQ) norms scores from the SPM+ for the Copts were compared to those of the (North) Sudanese, controlling for age. The mean IQ of the Sudanese Copts was 88.92, while that of the other (North) Sudanese was 78.26. This difference is consistent with the higher socioeconomic gradient of the Copts both in Sudan and in various Arab countries, such as Egypt. The 10-point difference is approximately two-thirds of a standard deviation (10/15), and is not, therefore, clinically significant. These findings suggest a need for caution when using the SPM+ with Sudanese school children, and particularly non-Coptic (North) Sudanese.

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Keywords

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