Learning · ~3 minutes

Can you hold your attention?

Press on the circles, hold back on the squares. Simple — until the squares turn rare and the habit to press takes over. This Go/No-Go task measures vigilance, impulse control, and how steady your focus stays over forty trials.

● Circle — press ■ Square — hold back

Forty shapes will flash one at a time. Press the panel (or Space) the instant you see a circle. When you see a square, do nothing and let it pass. Squares are rare, so the urge to press everything is the whole challenge. Around three minutes.

About this instrument

What this measures — and what it doesn't

Measures
Sustained attention

Two things at once: staying vigilant across a repetitive stream, and inhibiting a prepotent response when the rare stop-signal appears. Together they form the core of what everyday language calls focus.
Method
Go/No-Go, 40 trials

Circles (go, ~75%) and squares (no-go, ~25%) flash for one second each. The high go-rate builds a response habit, so withholding on squares is genuinely effortful — which is exactly what makes commission errors informative.
Result
A profile, not one number

Accuracy, impulse errors, missed signals, mean reaction time, and consistency — plus an approximate composite that rewards steadiness. The shape of the profile tells you whether your focus fails by impulsivity or by drifting off.
Limits
Honest limits

This is not an ADHD test or any clinical assessment. Go/No-Go performance is highly state-dependent — sleep, caffeine, noise, and motivation all move it — and one short run is a snapshot, not a trait. Real attention concerns belong with a clinician.

Scoring & evidence

How the focus score is built

The sustained-attention task uses 40 trials, approximately one quarter of which are no-go trials. The score tracks overall accuracy, commission errors (responding when you should withhold), omission errors (missing a go response), mean valid reaction time, and reaction-time variability.

The displayed focus score begins with accuracy and can be reduced when response-time variability is high. The code uses the coefficient of variation—reaction-time standard deviation divided by mean reaction time—and applies a capped penalty above a low-variability reference point. This makes inconsistent attention visible even when overall accuracy looks acceptable.

This is not an ADHD diagnostic test and it does not measure every aspect of attention. Sleep, anxiety, device latency, motor ability, practice, and motivation can affect commission/omission patterns and timing. A clinical attention evaluation requires a broader history and appropriately validated tools.

Interpretation standard: observations describe this task; internal indices are model or response summaries, not population rankings. Use the report for education and reflection. See the methodology for limitations.

Go deeper

The science behind this instrument

Performance

Sleep, stress & test performance

The state factors that make attention wander — and how to test on a fair day.

Read Domains

Working memory explained

The close cousin of attention — and why they rise and fall together.

Read Fundamentals

Does brain training work?

What the evidence says about attention-training apps and real transfer.

Read

Questions

Before you begin

What does this focus test measure?

Sustained attention and response inhibition, using a Go/No-Go task. You respond quickly to common 'go' signals and withhold on rare 'no-go' signals. It captures how well you stay vigilant over time and resist acting on impulse.

What do commission and omission errors mean?

A commission error is pressing when you should have withheld — a failure of impulse control. An omission error is missing a signal you should have responded to — a lapse of attention. The two patterns say different things about how your focus breaks down.

Why does response consistency matter?

A steady reaction time signals stable attention; a reaction time that swings wildly between fast and slow is one of the clearest markers of a wandering mind — often more telling than average speed. That's why the score weighs consistency, not just accuracy.

Is this an ADHD test?

No. Go/No-Go tasks resemble tools used in attention research, but this is an educational instrument, not a diagnostic one. A low score can come from tiredness, a distracting environment, or simply an off day. If attention affects your daily life, that's a conversation for a qualified clinician.

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Treat this as a session snapshot

A short task reflects this moment, including distractions, fatigue and your device. Use a quieter setting for a fairer repeat. The result cannot diagnose an attention disorder or explain its cause.

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How should I use this result?

This is an educational task or self-assessment, not a diagnosis. Read the instructions above for the format and approximate time. Scores describe this task or your reported preferences; research on the underlying concept does not validate this implementation.

The engine calculates results in your browser. Completed report snapshots are saved locally in My AurorIQ; planning tools require an explicit save. You can export or delete saved data at /passport/. Separate hosting, analytics, advertising and optional sharing have separate data implications. Read the privacy notice, methodology, or report an error.