Battery guide
Language-Minimized Screening Battery guide
Eight tests with little language on screen, for cohorts who speak different languages.
- Guide version
- 1.0.0
- Battery version
- 1.0.0
What it measures
Who it is for: Multilingual or international cohort studies.
It measures Attention, Memory, Processing speed and Executive function.
Processing speed: How quickly people take in information and respond.
Attention: Keeping attention on a task and picking out what matters.
Response inhibition: Stopping or holding back a response.
Executive function: Planning, switching rules, handling conflict and making decisions.
Working memory: Holding and updating information for a few seconds.
Episodic memory: Learning material and later recalling or recognizing it.
Scores describe how a person performs on these tasks. Research use only.
Tests in order
The tests run in this order. A study started from the battery keeps the order and the settings.
1. Simple Reaction Time. Measures basic processing speed by asking participants to respond as quickly as possible when a stimulus appears on screen.
2. Choice Reaction Time. Measures attention and decision speed by requiring participants to select the correct response based on which stimulus appears.
3. Eriksen Flanker Task. Measures selective attention and cognitive control by requiring participants to identify the direction of a central arrow while ignoring flanking arrows.
4. Go/No-Go Task. Measures response inhibition by requiring participants to respond to 'go' stimuli and withhold responses to 'no-go' stimuli.
5. Trail Making Test A. Measures processing speed and visual scanning by asking participants to connect numbered circles in ascending order as quickly as possible.
6. Trail Making Test B. Measures executive function and cognitive flexibility by asking participants to alternate between numbers and letters (1-A-2-B-3-C...).
7. 1-Back Task. Measures working memory by requiring participants to indicate whether the current stimulus matches the one presented N items ago.
8. Paired Associate Learning. Measures visuospatial episodic memory by asking participants to learn and recall the locations of patterns hidden in boxes on a grid.
| Order | Test | Domain | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Simple Reaction Time | Processing speed | 2 to 3 minutes |
| 2 | Choice Reaction Time | Attention | 3 to 4 minutes |
| 3 | Eriksen Flanker Task | Attention | 4 to 5 minutes |
| 4 | Go/No-Go Task | Response inhibition | 4 to 5 minutes |
| 5 | Trail Making Test A | Processing speed | 2 to 3 minutes |
| 6 | Trail Making Test B | Executive function | 3 to 5 minutes |
| 7 | 1-Back Task | Working memory | 3 to 4 minutes |
| 8 | Paired Associate Learning | Episodic memory | 6 to 8 minutes |
Time and devices
Allow about 30 minutes for the whole battery. The table gives each test's time.
The battery has timed tests. Participants need a desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad, and the timed tests run in full screen. Tablets and phones cannot run it.
On a desktop or laptop the screen must be at least 1024 by 700 pixels.
Participants need Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari.
| Test | Timing | Devices |
|---|---|---|
| Simple Reaction Time | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| Choice Reaction Time | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| Go/No-Go Task | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| Trail Making Test A | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| Trail Making Test B | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| 1-Back Task | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| Paired Associate Learning | Untimed | Desktop or laptop, tablet or phone |
How to give it
Start a study from the battery in the app. The tests, their order and their settings are already set and stay fixed. If you change, reorder or customize a test, the study becomes a custom study and no longer carries the battery.
Each test opens with its instructions. Participants see these:
Simple Reaction Time: Press the spacebar as quickly as you can when you see the target appear on screen.
Choice Reaction Time: Press the LEFT arrow key if the stimulus appears on the left, or the RIGHT arrow key if it appears on the right. Respond as quickly and accurately as you can.
Eriksen Flanker Task: Focus on the MIDDLE arrow and indicate its direction. Press the LEFT arrow key if the middle arrow points left, or the RIGHT arrow key if it points right. Ignore the surrounding arrows.
Go/No-Go Task: Press the spacebar when you see a GREEN circle (Go). Do NOT press anything when you see a RED circle (No-Go). Respond as quickly and accurately as you can.
Trail Making Test A: Connect the circles in numerical order (1-2-3-4...) as quickly as you can. Click or tap each circle in order.
Trail Making Test B: Connect the circles alternating between numbers and letters (1-A-2-B-3-C...) as quickly as you can.
1-Back Task: You will see a series of letters. Press the SPACEBAR if the current letter is the SAME as the one shown immediately before it (1 back). Otherwise, do not press anything.
Paired Associate Learning: Boxes will open one at a time to reveal patterns. Remember which pattern is in which box. When a pattern appears in the center, click the box where you saw it.
| Step | Before you invite participants |
|---|---|
| 1 | Set the participant language in study settings to match your cohort. |
| 2 | Pilot with 2-3 participants to verify translated instructions render correctly. |
| 3 | Review normative comparison output — norms are derived from English-language studies. |
How each test is scored
The server scores each test when the participant finishes it. The primary score is the one the app compares with a norm. The other scores are reported with it.
Every result records its scoring version. For this battery they are Simple Reaction Time 1.0.0, Choice Reaction Time 1.0.0, Eriksen Flanker Task 1.0.0, Go/No-Go Task 1.0.0, Trail Making Test A 1.0.0, Trail Making Test B 1.0.0, 1-Back Task 1.0.0 and Paired Associate Learning 1.1.0.
| Test | Score | What it is | Better |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Reaction Time | Mean Reaction Time (ms, primary) | Average reaction time across valid trials, excluding anticipatory responses (<100ms). | Lower is better |
| Simple Reaction Time | Median Reaction Time (ms) | Median reaction time, more robust to outliers than the mean. Preferred when the RT distribution is skewed. | Lower is better |
| Simple Reaction Time | RT Standard Deviation (ms) | Standard deviation of reaction times. Reflects response consistency (intraindividual variability). Elevated IIV is a biomarker for cognitive decline. | Lower is better |
| Simple Reaction Time | Minimum RT (ms) | Informational | |
| Simple Reaction Time | Maximum RT (ms) | Slowest response recorded. May indicate lapses in attention. | Informational |
| Simple Reaction Time | Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion of trials with a valid response. Expected near ceiling for healthy participants. | Higher is better |
| Choice Reaction Time | Mean Reaction Time (ms, primary) | Average RT on correct trials only. Primary measure of decision speed. | Lower is better |
| Choice Reaction Time | Median Reaction Time (ms) | Median RT on correct trials, robust to outliers. | Lower is better |
| Choice Reaction Time | RT Standard Deviation (ms) | Variability in reaction times across correct trials. | Lower is better |
| Choice Reaction Time | Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion of correct responses (correct key pressed). | Higher is better |
| Choice Reaction Time | Correct Trials | Number of trials with a correct response. | Higher is better |
| Choice Reaction Time | Error Trials | Number of trials with an incorrect key press. | Lower is better |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Congruent RT (ms) | Average RT on congruent trials (all arrows same direction). | Lower is better |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Incongruent RT (ms) | Average RT on incongruent trials (flankers oppose target). | Lower is better |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Flanker Effect (ms, primary) | Incongruent RT minus congruent RT. Primary measure of interference cost. Higher values indicate greater susceptibility to distraction. | Lower is better |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Congruent Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion correct on congruent trials. Expected near ceiling. | Higher is better |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Incongruent Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion correct on incongruent trials. More sensitive to attentional deficits than congruent accuracy. | Higher is better |
| Eriksen Flanker Task | Overall Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion correct across all trial types. | Higher is better |
| Go/No-Go Task | Mean Go RT (ms) | Average reaction time on correct Go trials. Reflects processing speed for respond conditions. | Lower is better |
| Go/No-Go Task | Go Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion of Go trials with a correct response. Low values suggest inattention. | Higher is better |
| Go/No-Go Task | No-Go Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion of No-Go trials correctly withheld. Directly measures inhibitory success. | Higher is better |
| Go/No-Go Task | d-Prime (primary) | Signal detection sensitivity: Z(hit rate) - Z(false alarm rate). Separates discriminability from response bias. | Higher is better |
| Go/No-Go Task | Commission Errors | Responses on No-Go trials (false alarms). Primary index of inhibitory failure. | Lower is better |
| Go/No-Go Task | Omission Errors | Missed responses on Go trials. Indicates lapses in sustained attention. | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test A | Completion Time (ms, primary) | Total time from first click to connecting the final circle. Primary speed measure. | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test A | Completion Time (sec) | Same as completion time, converted to seconds with one decimal place. | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test A | Errors | Number of incorrect clicks (wrong circle selected). | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test A | Total Circles | Number of circles in the trail (25 for TMT-A). | Informational |
| Trail Making Test B | Completion Time (ms, primary) | Total time from first click to connecting the final circle. Primary measure of executive-mediated processing speed. | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test B | Completion Time (sec) | Same as completion time, converted to seconds. | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test B | Errors | Incorrect clicks (wrong circle). In TMT-B, errors often reflect sequencing or set-switching failures. | Lower is better |
| Trail Making Test B | Total Circles | Number of circles in the trail (16 for TMT-B: 8 numbers + 8 letters). | Informational |
| 1-Back Task | Overall Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion of all trials (targets + non-targets) correctly classified. | Higher is better |
| 1-Back Task | Hits | Number of targets correctly identified (pressed spacebar on match). | Higher is better |
| 1-Back Task | Misses | Number of targets missed (failed to press on match). | Lower is better |
| 1-Back Task | False Alarms | Responses to non-target stimuli (pressed spacebar on non-match). | Lower is better |
| 1-Back Task | Correct Rejections | Non-target stimuli correctly ignored. | Higher is better |
| 1-Back Task | d-Prime (primary) | Signal detection sensitivity: Z(hit rate) - Z(false alarm rate). Primary measure of working memory discriminability. | Higher is better |
| 1-Back Task | Hit RT (ms) | Average reaction time on correct target detections. | Lower is better |
| Paired Associate Learning | Total Errors (primary) | Patterns not placed correctly across all stages and attempts: a click on the wrong box, or no click within 30 seconds. Primary measure of learning efficiency. | Lower is better |
| Paired Associate Learning | Total Trials | Total number of pattern placement attempts across all stages. | Lower is better |
| Paired Associate Learning | First Trial Memory Score | Number of stages where all patterns were correctly placed on the first attempt. Measures immediate memory strength. | Higher is better |
| Paired Associate Learning | Stages Completed | Number of stages passed in order, each by an attempt that placed every pattern correctly within the maximum attempts. | Higher is better |
| Paired Associate Learning | Time-outs | Patterns with no box chosen within 30 seconds. Each also counts as an error. | Lower is better |
| Paired Associate Learning | Mean Response Latency (ms) | Average time to select a box location after pattern presentation. | Informational |
Session quality rules
The app checks every session when it scores it and records one of four states.
An Invalid session stays in the study's results, labelled with its reason, and does not count toward norms.
A session can carry warnings and still be valid. The results list the warnings next to the scores.
| State | What it means |
|---|---|
| Norm-ready | The session passed every check and a norm exists for it, so the app can show a percentile. |
| Raw-only | The scores are usable, but the app shows no percentile. Typical reasons are no norm for the test, changed settings, or a warning that makes a comparison unfair, such as a restart or a screen too short for the display. |
| Invalid technical | The setup broke the timing or the task. Examples are leaving full screen, a browser tab that lost focus during a timed test, and long pauses. |
| Invalid behavioral | The responses suggest the task was not done as asked. Examples are a failed attention check, repeated switching away from the task, and accuracy at or below chance on a choice task. |
Published norms used
No published norm is used for any test in this battery.
ConductCognition also builds norms from its own participants. An age band of a test uses them once it holds at least 50 valid sessions on the same device and input type, run with standard settings and scored with the current scoring version. Sessions from paying customers' studies and from clinical or patient samples do not count.
A report shows a percentile only when the app has stored one for that session. Otherwise it shows the raw scores.
How to cite
ConductScience, Inc. Language-Minimized Screening Battery guide, version 1.0.0. ConductCognition. https://conductcognition.com/batteries/language-minimized-screening/guide
Cite the guide version you used. Name the battery version (1.0.0) and the scoring versions listed in this guide.