Testing a novel web-based neurocognitive battery in the general community: Validation and usability study

Background: In recent years, there has been increased interest in the development of remote psychological assessments. These platforms increase accessibility and allow clinicians to monitor important health metrics, thereby informing patient-centered treatment. Objective: In this study, we report the properties and usability of a new web-based neurocognitive assessment battery and present a normative data set for future use. Methods: A total of 781 participants completed a portion of 8 tasks that captured performance in auditory processing, visual-spatial working memory, visual-spatial learning, cognitive flexibility, and emotional processing. A subset of individuals (n=195) completed a 5-question survey measuring the acceptability of the tasks. Results: Between 252 and 426 participants completed each task. Younger individuals outperformed their older counterparts in 6 of the 8 tasks. Therefore, central tendency data metrics were presented using 7 different age bins. The broad majority of participants found the tasks interesting and enjoyable and endorsed some interest in playing them at home. Only 1 of 195 individuals endorsed not at all for the statement, "I understood the instructions." Older individuals were less likely to understand the instructions; however, 72% (49/68) of individuals over the age of 60 years still felt that they mostly or very much understood the instructions. Conclusions: Overall, the tasks were found to be widely acceptable to the participants. The use of web-based neurocognitive tasks such as these may increase the ability to deploy precise data-informed interventions to a wider population.