Serial sevens is an attention test involving what?

Serial sevens is an attention test involving what?

• A. Attention test involving repeated subtraction from 100
• B. Spelling backwards
• C. Recall of distant events
• D. Orientation to time

Answer: (A)

Serial sevens assesses sustained attention and concentration through a mental arithmetic task. The person starts at 100 and continuously subtracts 7, keeping track of each result. This requires focused attention, working memory, and rapid processing. Difficulties or mistakes point to problems with attention or cognitive disturbance, such as delirium or dementia. It isn’t about spelling backwards (that would test language/working memory in a different way), recall of distant events (remote memory), or orientation to time (awareness of current date/time).

Serial sevens assesses sustained attention and concentration through a mental arithmetic task. The person starts at 100 and continuously subtracts 7, keeping track of each result. This requires focused attention, working memory, and rapid processing. Difficulties or mistakes point to problems with attention or cognitive disturbance, such as delirium or dementia. It isn’t about spelling backwards (that would test language/working memory in a different way), recall of distant events (remote memory), or orientation to time (awareness of current date/time).