Working Memory
Self-Ordered Pointing Task
Also called: SOPT, self-ordered pointing test, subject-ordered pointing task, Petrides self-ordered task
Measure working memory with pictures that change places after every choice, where each choice must be a picture not chosen before.
7-10 minUntimed
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
- 10
- Evidence grade
- C
- Registered clinical studies
- 9
What it measures
Measures working memory with the self-ordered pointing procedure. Participants see the same pictures in new places on each screen and must choose a picture they have not chosen yet, until every picture has been chosen once.
Constructs
- Working memory
- Monitoring of self-generated responses
- Executive function
- Nonspatial visual memory
Research uses
- Frontal lobe and medial temporal lobe research
- Development and aging of working memory
- Studies of schizophrenia, autism and other conditions with working memory differences
How the paradigm works
The self-ordered pointing task measures working memory: keeping track of one's own choices while planning the next. The participant sees a set of pictures and clicks or taps any one of them. The same pictures then come back in new places, and on every screen the participant must choose a picture not chosen yet in that round, until every picture has been chosen once. The pictures change places at random after every choice, so remembering a place does not help.
More about the paradigm
The task follows Petrides and Milner (1982): sets of 6, 8, 10 and 12 pictures, smallest first, each given three times in a row, for 12 rounds and 108 choices; a setting gives one or two rounds of each set instead. Each round has as many screens as pictures. A practice round of 4 pictures says after each choice whether it was a new picture; the test gives no feedback. There is no time limit: accuracy counts, not speed.
The pictures are Noto Emoji pictures of everyday objects and animals, a new set for each size, chosen so that the pictures in a set look clearly different. They are pictures people can name, the representational kind Petrides and Milner used beside abstract designs.
The main score is total errors: choices of a picture already chosen in the same round. Errors at each set size and in the first, second and third round of each set, the mean number of new pictures chosen before the first repeat in a round, perseverative errors (choosing the picture chosen just before) and choices in the same place as the one before are also reported. Scores support research and do not diagnose.
Scores
- Total Errorscount
- Choices of a picture already chosen in the same round, over all rounds (0 to 96 at the standard settings).
- Lower is better
- Errors, Sets of 6count
- Repeat errors in the rounds of 6 pictures.
- Lower is better
- Errors, Sets of 8count
- Repeat errors in the rounds of 8 pictures.
- Lower is better
- Errors, Sets of 10count
- Repeat errors in the rounds of 10 pictures.
- Lower is better
- Errors, Sets of 12count
- Repeat errors in the rounds of 12 pictures.
- Lower is better
- Errors, First Roundscount
- Repeat errors in the first round of every set.
- Lower is better
- Errors, Second Roundscount
- Repeat errors in the second round of every set.
- A rise over the first rounds suggests interference from earlier rounds
- Errors, Third Roundscount
- Repeat errors in the third round of every set.
- A rise over the first rounds suggests interference from earlier rounds
- Mean Spanitems
- New pictures chosen before the first repeat in a round, averaged over rounds (the whole set when a round has no repeat).
- Higher is better
- Perseverative Errorscount
- Choices of the picture chosen on the screen just before.
- Lower is better
- Same-Place Choicescount
- Choices in the same place on the screen as the choice before. The pictures move after every choice, so this strategy does not help.
- Informational
- Median Choice Timems
- Median time to choose a picture, from the screen's onset; choices under 100 ms are left out.
- Informational; the task is untimed
- Anticipationscount
- Choices made under 100 ms after the screen appeared.
- Informational
- Rounds Completedcount
- Rounds with a choice on every screen.
- Informational
Use and evidence
10 papers from 2021 to 2025 name this task in their title or abstract, down 47% compared with 2016 to 2020. That ranks it 371 of 395 test families in our census. See the counts for every test.
Show the numbers
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2023 | 3 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2019 | 6 |
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2017 | 5 |
| 2016 | 3 |
| 2015 | 4 |
| 2014 | 10 |
| 2013 | 10 |
| 2012 | 6 |
| 2011 | 2 |
| 2010 | 6 |
| 2009 | 4 |
| 2008 | 9 |
| 2007 | 8 |
| 2006 | 3 |
| 2005 | 6 |
| 2004 | 7 |
| 2003 | 3 |
| 2002 | 1 |
| 2001 | 2 |
| 2000 | 4 |
Use grade E
Fewer than 30 papers from 2021 to 2025.
Evidence grade C
At least 2 test-retest papers, 30 reliability or validity papers or 3 registered clinical studies.
- Papers on test-retest reliability
- 2
- Papers on reliability or validity
- 14
- Registered clinical studies using it as an outcome
- 9
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.
- Pictures
- 40 Noto Emoji pictures of objects and animals: 4 for practice, then a new set of 6, 8, 10 and 12. No picture is in two sets, and the pictures in a set look clearly different.
- Rounds
- Each set three times in a row, smallest first, the same pictures each time: 12 rounds and 108 choices (standard; one to three rounds of each set).
- Screens
- A round has as many screens as pictures, one choice on each. The pictures take new places at random on every screen, in a fixed grid of 3, 4, 5 and 4 columns, with a 300 ms blank between screens.
- Rule
- Choose a picture not chosen yet in the round. A choice of a picture already chosen is a repeat error; the picture chosen on the screen just before is also a perseverative error.
- Practice
- One round of 4 pictures, with 1,000 ms of feedback after each choice.
- Timing
- No time limit; participants are told accuracy counts, not speed. Choices under 100 ms are counted as anticipations.
Petrides and Milner used abstract designs and drawings on paper pages. This version uses pictures of objects that people can name, and people make fewer errors with nameable pictures than with abstract designs (Cragg and Nation 2007), so published error counts are not applied as norms.
Quality checks
Each session is marked valid, needs review or invalid, with the reason, before you see its scores.
Scored rows: test-phase choices of the scored run, in order. A choice is correct when its picture is new to the round; choosing at random is correct with probability (set size minus pictures chosen before) over set size. More repeats than random choosing gives (below chance) invalidates, and not above chance is flagged. The same grid cell on 90% of choices invalidates when choices are not above chance. Choices under 200 ms on at least half the pages invalidate. Untimed, so nothing can be missed. A hidden tab withholds the percentile.
Why these rules
Accuracy significantly below chance (one-sided exact test, p < .05) cannot come from guessing; it means the response mapping was reversed or the task was not followed (Slick, Sherman and Iverson 1999 treat below-chance forced-choice performance as definite response bias). Chance-level accuracy can be a real result in impaired participants, so it is only flagged. Choosing by place cannot work, because the pictures move after every choice, so one place on nearly every page with choices at chance means the pictures were not followed. An answer under 200 ms is faster than a simple visual reaction, so it cannot reflect the item. Following response-time effort screening for untimed tests (Wise and Kong 2005), the session is invalid only when at least half the answers are that fast. A hidden tab in the middle of a round means the participant looked away while holding the round's choices in mind, or noted them elsewhere, so the percentile is withheld.
Running this test
Settings you can change
| Setting | Standard | Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Rounds of each set | 3 | 1 to 3 |
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
- Untimed test: runs on desktops, laptops, tablets and phones. Participant devices
- Languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified) and Japanese.
- Available on: Every plan, including the free plan.
- Recruiting online? See the setup guides for Prolific, Sona Systems, CloudResearch Connect and Qualtrics.
Cite and describe
Participants completed the Self-Ordered Pointing Task in a web browser (ConductCognition task version 1.0.0, scoring version 1.0.0; Petrides & Milner, 1982), with the standard settings (rounds of each set: 3). The main score was total errors (choices of a picture already chosen in the same round, over all rounds (0 to 96 at the standard settings)).
ConductCognition versions: task version 1.0.0, scoring version 1.0.0. Every export records the versions each session used, for a methods section.
- Petrides, M., & Milner, B. (1982). Deficits on subject-ordered tasks after frontal- and temporal-lobe lesions in man. Neuropsychologia, 20(3), 249-262. https://doi.org/10.1016/0028-3932(82)90100-2
- Ross, T. P., Hanouskova, E., Giarla, K., Calhoun, E., & Tucker, M. (2007). The reliability and validity of the self-ordered pointing task. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 22(4), 449-458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acn.2007.01.023Total errors as the most reliable score.
- Cragg, L., & Nation, K. (2007). Self-ordered pointing as a test of working memory in typically developing children. Memory, 15(5), 526-535. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658210701390750Pictures of objects compared with abstract designs.
- Joseph, R. M., Steele, S. D., Meyer, E., & Tager-Flusberg, H. (2005). Self-ordered pointing in children with autism: Failure to use verbal mediation in the service of working memory? Neuropsychologia, 43(10), 1400-1411. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2005.01.010The span and perseverative error scores.
- Geva, S., Cooper, J. M., Gadian, D. G., Mishkin, M., & Vargha-Khadem, F. (2016). Impairment on a self-ordered working memory task in patients with early-acquired hippocampal atrophy. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 20, 12-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcn.2016.06.001Random places on every page and a new set at each size.
Source papers
- Petrides M, Milner B (1982). Deficits on subject-ordered tasks after frontal- and temporal-lobe lesions in man. Neuropsychologia, 20(3):249-262.Paradigm source, Adults
- Ross TP, Hanouskova E, Giarla K, Calhoun E, Tucker M (2007). The reliability and validity of the self-ordered pointing task. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 22(4):449-458.N 170, Young adults
- Cragg L, Nation K (2007). Self-ordered pointing as a test of working memory in typically developing children. Memory, 15(5):526-535.Paradigm source, 5-11 and young adults
- Geva S, Cooper JM, Gadian DG, Mishkin M, Vargha-Khadem F (2016). Impairment on a self-ordered working memory task in patients with early-acquired hippocampal atrophy. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 20:12-22.Paradigm source, Children and young adults
Questions
How long does the Self-Ordered Pointing Task take?
About 7 to 10 minutes, as listed in the test library.
What device does a participant need?
Untimed test: runs on desktops, laptops, tablets and phones. The browser must be Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari.
What scores does it produce?
Total Errors, Errors, Sets of 6, Errors, Sets of 8, Errors, Sets of 10, Errors, Sets of 12, Errors, First Rounds, Errors, Second Rounds, Errors, Third Rounds, Mean Span, Perseverative Errors, Same-Place Choices, Median Choice Time, Anticipations and Rounds Completed. Each session is also marked valid, needs review or invalid, with the reason.
How widely is the Self-Ordered Pointing Task used in research?
10 papers from 2021 to 2025 name it in their title or abstract, down 47% compared with 2016 to 2020. That ranks it 371 of 395 test families in the ConductCognition test census (use grade E). Source: ConductCognition test census 0.14.0, counted 31 October 2026 from OpenAlex and ClinicalTrials.gov.
How much reliability evidence does the Self-Ordered Pointing Task have?
In the published research, 2 papers report its test-retest reliability and 9 registered clinical studies use it as an outcome (evidence grade C in the ConductCognition test census).
Which settings can a researcher change?
Rounds of each set (1 to 3). 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.
Every test: the full test list.
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