page_title: Memory span
section_title: Digit-span
hierarchical_section_title: Memory span / Digit-span
caption_attribution_description: English: These are typical results that might be obtained from performing a forward/backward digit span recall test across a range of age groups.
context_page_description: In psychology and neuroscience, memory span is the longest list of items that a person can repeat back in correct order immediately after presentation on 50% of all trials. Items may include words, numbers, or letters. The task is known as digit span when numbers are used. Memory span is a common measure of short-term memory. It is also a component of cognitive ability tests such as the WAIS. Backward memory span is a more challenging variation which involves recalling items in reverse order.
context_section_description: A digit-span task is used to measure working memory's number storage capacity. Participants see or hear a sequence of numerical digits and are tasked to recall the sequence correctly, with increasingly longer sequences being tested in each trial. The participant's span is the longest number of sequential digits that can accurately be remembered. Digit-span tasks can be given forwards or backwards, meaning that once the sequence is presented, the participant is asked to either recall the sequence in normal or reverse order. Digit-span tasks are the most commonly used test for memory span, partially because performance on a digit-span task cannot be affected by factors such as semantics, frequency of appearance in daily life, complexity, etc.
  Verbal working memory is involved in many everyday tasks, such as remembering a friend's telephone number while entering it into a phone and understanding long and difficult sentences. Verbal working memory is also thought to be one of the elements underlying intelligence (often referred to as 'IQ,' meaning "intelligence quotient"); thus, the digit span task is a common component of many IQ tests, including the widely used Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS). Performance on the digit span task is also closely linked to language learning abilities; improving verbal memory capacities may therefore aid mastery of a new language.
caption: This is a graphical representation of typical results that might be obtained from performing a forward/backward digit span recall task on participants in several different age groups.  The numbers on the y-axis indicate number of digits successfully recalled.