Decision Making
Real-Effort Slider Task
Also called: real effort task, effort provision task
Measure effort on a repetitive task: participants set as many of 48 sliders as they can to exactly 50 in each timed round, with the points per slider your study sets.
9-11 minTimed: desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad
Free to start: 10 free participants per account, then $0.99 per participant for academic research, or any yearly plan. Preview any test free after you sign up.
- Papers, 2021 to 2025
- 223
- Evidence grade
- D
- Registered clinical studies
- 1
What it measures
Measures effort on a repetitive task that needs no knowledge. In each round participants set as many of 48 sliders as they can to exactly 50 in a fixed time, with a mouse or trackpad. The main score is the mean number at exactly 50 at the end of a round.
Constructs
- Effort provision
- Motivation
- Response to incentives
- Sustained attention to a repetitive task
Research uses
- Behavioral economics research
- Incentive and motivation studies
- Fatigue and learning across repeated rounds
- Within-study group comparison
How the paradigm works
The real-effort slider task measures effort on a repetitive task that needs no knowledge. Each round shows 48 sliders on one screen. Each slider starts at 0 and moves to any whole number from 0 to 100, with its current number beside it. The participant has 120 seconds to set as many as possible to exactly 50, with a mouse or trackpad. The arrow keys and the scroll wheel do not move the sliders, as in the source. A counter shows the points earned and a timer shows the time left. The layout was written for this test: 3 columns of 16 rows, the same for every participant and round, with the sliders offset across rows so they cannot be lined up by eye.
More about the paradigm
The standard settings run 4 rounds of 120 seconds at 1 point per slider, with a 20 second rest between rounds, after a 30 second practice on 4 sliders with feedback. A study can set 1 to 10 rounds, 60 to 180 seconds per round and 0 to 10 points per slider; at 0 the task runs without points. The study decides what the points are worth, and no money is mentioned unless it turns on the payment line.
The main score is the mean number of sliders at exactly 50 at the end of a round. In the source's lab data, 60 participants with the same screens and mice set a mean of 22.2 sliders in the first round and 26.3 in the tenth, the highest count was 41 and 65.4% of the variation was between people (Gill and Prowse, 2019). Online, the count depends on the pointer and the screen as well as on effort, so the rows save the pointer type and the window size. Effort on real tasks responds to incentives (DellaVigna and Pope, 2018), and results from one real-effort task may not carry over to another (Charness, Gneezy and Henderson, 2018). Scores support research and do not diagnose.
Scores
- Sliders per Roundcount
- Mean number of sliders at exactly 50 at the end of a round.
- Higher means more sliders set
- Round 1 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 1.
- Informational
- Round 2 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 2.
- Informational
- Round 3 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 3.
- Informational
- Round 4 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 4.
- Informational
- Round 5 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 5.
- Informational
- Round 6 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 6.
- Informational
- Round 7 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 7.
- Informational
- Round 8 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 8.
- Informational
- Round 9 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 9.
- Informational
- Round 10 Countcount
- Sliders at exactly 50 at the end of round 10.
- Informational
- Change from First to Last Roundcount
- The last round's count minus the first's, with at least two rounds.
- Positive values mean more sliders in the last round
- Seconds per Sliderseconds
- All rounds' time divided by all sliders at exactly 50 at the end of a round.
- Lower means sliders were set faster
- Sliders Left off 50count
- Mean per round of sliders that were moved and were not at exactly 50 at the end.
- Informational
- Overshootscount
- Mean per round of the times a slider went from one side of 50 to the other.
- Lower means more precise moves
- Pointer Types%
- Share of presses on the sliders from a mouse or trackpad, a pen or touch, keyed by type. Browsers report a trackpad as a mouse.
- Any touch or pen is flagged for review
- Focus Lossescount
- Times the page lost focus during rounds.
- Above 0 is flagged for review
- Rounds Completedcount
- Rounds scored.
- Equal to the number of rounds when the task was finished
- Rounds with No Slider Setcount
- Rounds that ended with no slider at exactly 50.
- Above 0 flags the session for review
- Rounds with Every Slider Setcount
- Rounds that ended with all 48 sliders at exactly 50.
- Above 0 is flagged, because the count may be capped
- Total Pointspoints
- All sliders at exactly 50 at the ends of rounds, times the points per slider. Empty when the task runs without points.
- Informational
Use and evidence
223 papers from 2021 to 2025 name this task in their title or abstract, up 2% compared with 2016 to 2020. That ranks it 114 of 395 test families in our census. See the counts for every test.
Show the numbers
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 51 |
| 2024 | 41 |
| 2023 | 46 |
| 2022 | 47 |
| 2021 | 38 |
| 2020 | 39 |
| 2019 | 45 |
| 2018 | 52 |
| 2017 | 44 |
| 2016 | 39 |
| 2015 | 25 |
| 2014 | 34 |
| 2013 | 24 |
| 2012 | 16 |
| 2011 | 16 |
| 2010 | 13 |
| 2009 | 8 |
| 2008 | 3 |
| 2007 | 3 |
| 2006 | 2 |
| 2005 | 0 |
| 2004 | 0 |
| 2003 | 0 |
| 2002 | 0 |
| 2001 | 1 |
| 2000 | 0 |
Use grade C
100 to 299 papers from 2021 to 2025.
Evidence grade D
Little published measurement evidence found.
- Papers on test-retest reliability
- 0
- Papers on reliability or validity
- 18
- Registered clinical studies using it as an outcome
- 1
Note on the counts: includes counting and typing tasks.
How the grades work
Use: A is 1,000 or more papers from 2021 to 2025, B 300 to 999, C 100 to 299, D 30 to 99 and E fewer than 30. Evidence: A means at least 25 papers report its test-retest reliability and at least 25 registered clinical studies use it as an outcome; B, at least 8 test-retest papers, and either 5 registered clinical studies or 150 reliability or validity papers; C, at least 2 test-retest papers, 30 reliability or validity papers or 3 registered clinical studies; D, little published measurement evidence found. The counts measure use. They include every paper that names the task in its title or abstract. Grades describe the published research on this task, not ConductCognition's version of it.
Source: ConductCognition test census 0.14.0, counted 31 October 2026 from OpenAlex and ClinicalTrials.gov.
Task design
The trial sequence as the test runs in ConductCognition.
- Sliders
- 48 on one screen, each from 0 to 100 and starting at 0, with its current number beside it: 3 columns of 16 rows, the same for every participant and round, offset across rows so no two line up.
- Task
- Set as many as possible to exactly 50. Only the numbers at the end of the round count, and a slider can be moved as often as the participant likes.
- Rounds
- 4 rounds (standard, 1 to 10) of 120 seconds (standard, 60 to 180), with a 20 second score screen and rest between them.
- Points
- 1 per slider (standard, 0 to 10), with a counter of points and a timer of the time left. At 0 the task runs without points. Money is mentioned only if the study turns on the payment line.
- Control
- Mouse or trackpad only; the arrow keys and the scroll wheel do nothing. Dragging sets any whole number, and a press on the track moves a slider 15 units toward the press.
- Size
- Each track is 200 pixels long at any window size, 2 pixels per unit, so exactly 50 can be reached on the smallest allowed screen, 1024 by 700.
- Practice
- 4 sliders for up to 30 seconds, with feedback.
- Data
- Per round: every slider's final number and the time it reached 50, overshoots, pointer types, focus losses and the window size.
Gill and Prowse (2012, 2019) ran 10 rounds for prizes in a lab, with the same large screens and mice for everyone. Online, screens and pointers differ and browsers report a trackpad as a mouse, so compare conditions within a study. The authors note that the task takes concentration and dexterity rather than higher reasoning, and that men tend to do better on it, so it does not suit a study that needs gender neutrality. Real-effort tasks also include counting and typing tasks, which this test does not run. The scores support research and do not diagnose.
Quality checks
Each session is marked valid, needs review or invalid, with the reason, before you see its scores.
Scored rows: real_effort_round from the scored run, one per round. No answer is right or wrong, so accuracy is not judged against chance. A round that ends with no slider at exactly 50, losing focus on the page during a round, presses from touch or a pen, and a round with all 48 sliders set are flagged for review.
Why these rules
There is no correct option to compare with chance, so accuracy is not judged against chance. A round with no slider set can be a real result, so it is flagged and does not invalidate: Gill and Prowse (2019) report seven such rounds in 600, from people who had trouble placing the sliders at first or chose no effort for a low prize. The count depends on the pointer and on time at the task, so time away from the page and a pointer other than a mouse or trackpad are flagged. Gill and Prowse (2019) chose a screen on which no one could set every slider, so that the design does not cap effort; a round with every slider set may have been capped.
No percentile. Scores and quality flags only.
Running this test
Settings you can change
| Setting | Standard | Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Rounds | 4 | 1 to 10 |
| Round length (seconds) | 120 | 60 to 180 |
| Points per slider | 1 | 0 to 10 |
| Payment line | No mention of money (standard) | No mention of money (standard), The study pays for points |
Yearly plans can change settings within these limits. Free and pay-as-you-go studies use the standard settings.
Need a setting this test does not have?
Devices and languages
- Timed test: participants need a desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad. Participant devices
- Languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified) and Japanese.
- Available on: Every plan, including the free plan.
- No percentile. Scores and quality flags only. How norms work
- Recruiting online? See the setup guides for Prolific, Sona Systems, CloudResearch Connect and Qualtrics.
Cite and describe
Participants completed the Real-Effort Slider Task in a web browser (ConductCognition task version 1.0.0, scoring version 1.0.0; Gill D, Prowse V, 2012; Gill D, Prowse V, 2019), with the standard settings (rounds: 4; round length (seconds): 120; points per slider: 1; payment line: No mention of money). The main score was sliders per round (mean number of sliders at exactly 50 at the end of a round).
ConductCognition versions: task version 1.0.0, scoring version 1.0.0. Every export records the versions each session used, for a methods section.
- Gill, D., & Prowse, V. (2012). A structural analysis of disappointment aversion in a real effort competition. American Economic Review, 102(1), 469-503. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.102.1.469
- Gill, D., & Prowse, V. (2019). Measuring costly effort using the slider task. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 21, 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbef.2018.11.003How to run the task, and its properties.
- Charness, G., Gneezy, U., & Henderson, A. (2018). Experimental methods: Measuring effort in economics experiments. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 149, 74-87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2018.02.024When real effort is a good measure.
- DellaVigna, S., & Pope, D. (2018). What motivates effort? Evidence and expert forecasts. Review of Economic Studies, 85(2), 1029-1069. https://doi.org/10.1093/restud/rdx033How incentives change effort.
Source papers
- Gill and Prowse (2019): the slider task, its properties and practical guidance. Charness, Gneezy and Henderson (2018): when real effort is a good measure. DellaVigna and Pope (2018): incentives and effort.Paradigm source, Adults
Questions
How long does the Real-Effort Slider Task take?
About 9 to 11 minutes, as listed in the test library.
What device does a participant need?
Timed test: participants need a desktop or laptop with a mouse or trackpad. The browser must be Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari.
What scores does it produce?
Sliders per Round, Round 1 Count, Round 2 Count, Round 3 Count, Round 4 Count, Round 5 Count, Round 6 Count, Round 7 Count, Round 8 Count, Round 9 Count, Round 10 Count, Change from First to Last Round, Seconds per Slider, Sliders Left off 50, Overshoots, Pointer Types, Focus Losses, Rounds Completed, Rounds with No Slider Set, Rounds with Every Slider Set and Total Points. Each session is also marked valid, needs review or invalid, with the reason.
How widely is the Real-Effort Slider Task used in research?
223 papers from 2021 to 2025 name it in their title or abstract, up 2% compared with 2016 to 2020. That ranks it 114 of 395 test families in the ConductCognition test census (use grade C). Source: ConductCognition test census 0.14.0, counted 31 October 2026 from OpenAlex and ClinicalTrials.gov.
How much reliability evidence does the Real-Effort Slider Task have?
In the published research, 0 papers report its test-retest reliability and 1 registered clinical study uses it as an outcome (evidence grade D in the ConductCognition test census).
Does it report a percentile?
No. Scores and quality flags only.
Which settings can a researcher change?
Rounds (1 to 10), round length (seconds) (60 to 180), points per slider (0 to 10) and payment line (No mention of money (standard), The study pays for points). Settings can be changed on yearly plans; free and pay-as-you-go studies use the standard settings.
Which languages can participants use?
Participants can take this test in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified) and Japanese. English is on every plan, and the other languages come with yearly plans. Have a native speaker read the machine-translated text before launch.
Is this a clinical test?
No. ConductCognition is for research use only. It runs, scores and exports the test; clinical interpretation is outside the platform.
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