Attention & Focus
Stroop Test
The word RED appears — printed in blue ink. Your job: answer the ink colour, not the word. Forty-five seconds against one of psychology's most famous interference effects.
A colour word appears in coloured ink. Click the button matching the INK COLOUR — not what the word says. 45 seconds; wrong answers subtract a point.
What this measures
The Stroop test measures selective attention and response inhibition. Reading is so automatic that the word's meaning races ahead of the ink colour, and suppressing that prepotent response takes measurable effort — the Stroop effect, first published by John Ridley Stroop in 1935 and replicated thousands of times since. Performance reflects the executive control functions of the prefrontal cortex, which is why Stroop variants appear in clinical neuropsychology, ADHD assessment, and cognitive ageing research.
Where this shows up in real life
Ignoring the wrong cue while you answer the right one is executive control — the same skill you need when a notification fights for attention during focused work, or when a label contradicts a colour on a control panel.
Score guide
| Rating | Score |
|---|---|
| Exceptional | 40+ points |
| Excellent | 33–39 points |
| Above average | 29–32 points |
| Average | 22–28 points |
| Below average | under 22 points |
How to improve
- Blur the word slightly — soften your focus so colour reaches you before meaning does.
- Attend to the first letter's colour rather than reading the whole word.
- Build a steady rhythm and resist speeding up; interference errors cluster when you rush.
- Mistakes cost a point, so favour accuracy — the scoring punishes guessing.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Stroop effect?
It is the delay (typically 100–300 ms per item) and error increase that occurs when a colour word is printed in a conflicting ink colour. Reading is automatic; naming colours is not, and the conflict must be resolved by executive attention.
What does my Stroop score say about me?
Higher scores reflect stronger inhibitory control — the ability to suppress automatic responses. This skill correlates with focus under distraction and shows reliable declines with fatigue, which makes the test a decent quick gauge of mental freshness.
Why is the Stroop test used clinically?
Because interference control is sensitive to frontal-lobe function, Stroop variants help characterise attention deficits, brain injury effects, and cognitive ageing. Clinical versions are administered under controlled conditions — this browser version is for training and fun, not diagnosis.