Can I run the Trail Making Test A online?
Yes. ConductCognition runs the Trail Making Test A in a browser-based participant flow with study setup, automated scoring, and export-ready results.
Processing Speed
Trail Making Test A
Capture visual scanning and sequencing speed with a remote-friendly browser version of TMT-A.
Useful for processing-speed baselines, visual-search research, and neuropsychological screening workflows.
Processing Speed2-3 minBrowser-based testing workflow
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Connect numbers in order
What this task measures
Measures processing speed and visual scanning by asking participants to connect numbered circles in ascending order as quickly as possible.
Core constructs
- Visual scanning
- Processing speed
- Number sequencing
- Psychomotor coordination
Research fit
- Neuropsychological screening
- Traumatic brain injury assessment
- Dementia screening (part of standard battery)
- Psychomotor speed evaluation
- Pre-surgical cognitive baseline
Why researchers use ConductCognition
- Hosted browser delivery with no local install burden for participants.
- Study setup, scoring, exports, and participant links in one workflow.
- Transparent pricing instead of opaque enterprise quoting for solo labs.
- Free entry tier plus Academic Pro when you need the full battery and trial-level exports.
Paradigm overview
Trail Making Test Part A measures visual scanning and processing speed. Participants must connect 25 numbered circles in ascending order (1-2-3-...25) as quickly as possible by clicking each circle in sequence. The circles are randomly positioned on a canvas.
The task was originally developed for the Army Individual Test Battery (1944) and later incorporated into the Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Battery. Part A primarily measures psychomotor speed and visual search efficiency with minimal cognitive demand beyond number sequencing.
Completion time is the primary outcome. Errors are tracked but in the computerized version, incorrect clicks are simply rejected (the circle doesn't connect), so errors primarily reflect misclicks rather than sequencing failures. TMT-A serves as the motor-speed baseline against which TMT-B performance is compared to isolate executive function.
Key scoring outputs
Completion Time
msTotal time from first click to connecting the final circle. Primary speed measure.
Lower is better
Completion Time (sec)
secondsSame as completion time, converted to seconds with one decimal place.
Lower is better
Errors
countNumber of incorrect clicks (wrong circle selected).
Lower is better
Total Circles
countNumber of circles in the trail (25 for TMT-A).
Informational
Research evidence and scoring context
Tombaugh TN (2004). Trail Making Test A and B: Normative data stratified by age and education. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 19(2):203-214.
N 91118-89
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Related task pages
Research FAQ
Common questions about this online cognitive test
What does this test measure?
Trail Making Test A is used for visual scanning, processing speed, number sequencing research workflows.
What data can researchers export?
Researchers can export scored results, and paid plans support trial-level exports for deeper analysis.
Is this for clinical diagnosis?
ConductCognition is for research use. The platform supports task delivery, scoring, and exports; clinical interpretation remains outside the platform.