Attention Span Test vs Task Switching Test
Attention Span measures vigilance — staying focused on a single rule across 60 trials and detecting infrequent targets. Task Switching measures flexibility — alternating between two rules, with a measurable cost on switch trials.
When to take the Attention Span Test
Use Attention Span when the question is whether you can stay focused on one thing for a sustained period.
Take Attention Span Test →When to take the Task Switching Test
Use Task Switching when the question is how efficiently you can shift between different tasks or rules.
Take Task Switching Test →Frequently asked questions
If I'm bad at multitasking, which test should I take?
Task Switching is the more direct measure. True multitasking (parallel processing) is mostly a myth — what people call multitasking is usually rapid task-switching, which Task Switching quantifies via switch cost.
Does training one improve the other?
Limited transfer. Each task targets a distinct executive function (vigilance vs. flexibility) and improvements on one don't reliably generalize to the other. This is consistent with broader brain-training literature (Simons et al., 2016).