How to play Dual N-Back: Tutorial
Overview
Dual N-Back task consists of a sequence of signals shown to you one by one.
There are two types of signals in Dual N-Back (that's why Dual N-Back has "Dual" in its name):
- audio signals — these are the alphabet letter sounds
- visual signals — these are the blue squares shown on the training field
In the process of training you have to match signals shown to you now to signals shown earlier. This is where N-Back comes to a game.
For Dual 1-Back you have to match the current signal with signal shown on the previous step (one back); for Dual 2-Back - with the signal shown before previous (two back), etc.
Examples
Let's consider some simple examples. In the examples we'll use only sound signals for simplicity, but during trainings you'll have to match both types.
Example 1: Dual One Back
As was described earlier, on Dual One Back level we match signals, shown on the previous step.
Look at the following sequence:
R S S K S K K K
Matches on this list are marked out in red bold.
As you can see (for Dual One Back), the letter is a match if it is the same as the previous one. In this case (if you spotted a sound match) you have to press the 'L' key on the keyboard.
Now you can go over to the training page. Set N-Back level to 1 and try to do the exercise. If you do not have the high result rate, don't be upset, it's not an exam or a test - it is only a training. Just start another training and you will make it better.
Example 2: Dual Two Back
When you complete the D1B task with a rate >= 80%, the level will be increased automatically to D2B.
Here is the same sequence but matches here are marked out for Dual Two Back task:
R S S K S K K K
Now the letter is a match if it equals the letter 2 positions back.
Other resources
If this tutorial was not enough to understand the Dual N-Back task, you can find a number of resources on the net or follow some links below.
Other N-Back resources:
- Wiki N-Back article
- Huge amount of information on the Dual N-Back task on the Dual N-Back FAQ by Gwern
- A good tutorial on the Dual N-Back training on Brainworksop site — a standalone application for Dual N-Back training.