The classic cognitive tests, explained honestly.
Cognitive psychology has built a small library of tests over the last century — Stroop, N-back, digit span, reaction time, mental rotation, Flanker. Each one isolates a specific skill: attention, working memory, speed, spatial reasoning. These pages explain what each test measures, where the paradigm came from, what average scores look like by age, and what your result does and does not tell you.
Senwitt is a daily practice app, not a cognitive test. We publish these explainers because the line between “measure” and “practice” gets blurred all the time, and most pages you find online about these tests either oversell the science or skip it entirely. We try to do neither.
Brain Rot Test — 90-second self-check for the AI era
12 short questions across sustained attention, active recall, from-scratch drafting, and independent reasoning. Radar-chart result, tier label, and a clear “what to practice next” recommendation. Not a clinical assessment — a habit signal.
- working memory
Corsi Block Test — what spatial working memory really measures
A clear, source-backed explainer for the Corsi block-tapping test: the spatial working-memory paradigm, Kessels et al. (2000) normative data, and how the test fits alongside digit span and n-back.
Spatial working memory — Corsi, 1972
- working memory
Digit Span Test — what forward and backward span really measure
A clear, source-backed explainer for the digit span test: forward span as short-term memory, backward span as working memory, the Miller (1956) seven plus or minus two finding, and the WAIS clinical version.
Short-term memory — Wechsler & predecessors
- attention
Flanker Test — what your interference score actually shows
A clear, source-backed explainer for the Eriksen flanker test: the 1974 paradigm, congruent vs incongruent trials, what the flanker interference score means, and how the modern Attention Network Test extended it.
Selective attention — Eriksen & Eriksen, 1974
- decision making
Iowa Gambling Task — what it really measures and what the score means
A clear, source-backed explainer for the Iowa Gambling Task: the Bechara et al. (1994) paradigm, the somatic marker hypothesis, what 'good' and 'bad' deck choices show, and the critical questions raised by Dunn et al. (2006).
Decision-making under uncertainty — Bechara, 1994
- spatial reasoning
Mental Rotation Test — what spatial reasoning actually measures
A clear, source-backed explainer for the mental rotation test: the Shepard & Metzler (1971) paradigm, what the rotation-angle slope tells you, the sex-difference literature, and the limits of what a single test result actually shows.
Spatial cognition — Shepard & Metzler, 1971
- working memory
N-Back Test — what it measures and how to read your score
A clear, source-backed explainer for the n-back test: the original Kirchner (1958) paradigm, the dual n-back variant, what working memory load means, and what the controversial transfer literature actually shows.
Working memory — Kirchner, 1958
- reaction time
Simple Reaction Time Test — what your milliseconds actually mean
A clear, source-backed explainer for the simple reaction time test: typical ranges by age, why your score varies night to night, what reaction time does and does not predict, and how online tests differ from lab-grade timing.
Processing speed — Donders / Cattell tradition
- attention
Stroop Test — what it measures and how to read your score
A clear, source-backed explainer for the Stroop test: paradigm history from Stroop (1935), what the interference score means, average response times by age, and what your result does and does not tell you.
Selective attention — Stroop, 1935
- memory
Visual Memory Test — what your image-recognition score really means
A clear, source-backed explainer for visual memory tests: the surprising capacity finding from Standing (1973), the Brady et al. (2008) detail-level study, and what online visual memory tests actually measure.
Visual long-term memory — Standing, 1973
- working memory
Working Memory Test — what it really measures and which version to use
A clear, source-backed explainer for working memory tests: how working memory differs from short-term memory, the Baddeley model, complex span vs n-back, and what high or low scores actually predict.
Working memory — Baddeley & Hitch, 1974