Battery guide
Working Memory and Learning Battery guide
Working memory span and load, with associative learning, in four tests.
- Guide version
- 1.0.0
- Battery version
- 1.0.0
What it measures
Who it is for: Memory-focused academic studies.
It measures Working memory span, Working memory load and Associative learning.
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. Digit Span Test. Measures verbal working memory capacity by asking participants to recall sequences of digits in forward and backward order.
2. 1-Back Task. Measures working memory by requiring participants to indicate whether the current stimulus matches the one presented N items ago.
3. 2-Back Task. Measures working memory by requiring participants to indicate whether the current stimulus matches the one presented N items ago.
4. 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 | Digit Span Test | Working memory | 5 to 7 minutes |
| 2 | 1-Back Task | Working memory | 3 to 4 minutes |
| 3 | 2-Back Task | Working memory | 3 to 4 minutes |
| 4 | Paired Associate Learning | Episodic memory | 6 to 8 minutes |
Time and devices
Allow about 19 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Digit Span Test | Untimed | Desktop or laptop, tablet or phone |
| 1-Back Task | Timed | Desktop or laptop |
| 2-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:
Digit Span Test: You will see a sequence of digits shown one at a time. After the sequence, type the digits in the order you saw them (forward) or in reverse order (backward).
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.
2-Back Task: You will see a series of letters. Press the SPACEBAR if the current letter is the SAME as the one shown TWO items ago (2 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 | Decide whether demographics are required for normative comparison. |
| 2 | Pilot the full battery to check fatigue and dropout risk. |
| 3 | Plan raw-trial export review if you need trial-level analysis. |
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 Digit Span Test 1.0.0, 1-Back Task 1.0.0, 2-Back Task 1.0.0 and Paired Associate Learning 1.1.0.
| Test | Score | What it is | Better |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digit Span Test | Forward Span (primary) | Longest digit sequence correctly recalled in forward order. Primary capacity measure. | Higher is better |
| Digit Span Test | Backward Span | Longest digit sequence correctly recalled in reverse order. Null if backward phase not included. | Higher is better |
| Digit Span Test | Total Score | Forward span + backward span. Composite working memory measure. | Higher is better |
| Digit Span Test | Longest Forward | Same as forward span. Maximum sequence length achieved. | Higher is better |
| Digit Span Test | Longest Backward | Same as backward span. Maximum reverse sequence length achieved. | Higher is better |
| 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 |
| 2-Back Task | Overall Accuracy (proportion) | Proportion of all trials correctly classified. Typically lower than 1-Back due to increased demand. | Higher is better |
| 2-Back Task | Hits | Number of 2-back matches correctly identified. | Higher is better |
| 2-Back Task | Misses | Number of 2-back matches missed. | Lower is better |
| 2-Back Task | False Alarms | Incorrect responses to non-match stimuli. | Lower is better |
| 2-Back Task | Correct Rejections | Non-match stimuli correctly ignored. | Higher is better |
| 2-Back Task | d-Prime (primary) | Signal detection sensitivity. Primary measure. Expected to be lower than 1-Back d-prime in the same individual. | Higher is better |
| 2-Back Task | Hit RT (ms) | Average reaction time on correct 2-back match 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. Working Memory and Learning Battery guide, version 1.0.0. ConductCognition. https://conductcognition.com/batteries/memory-profile/guide
Cite the guide version you used. Name the battery version (1.0.0) and the scoring versions listed in this guide.