About How we built this Sponsorship Shop

Search Subscribe Decision Tools Business Models Frameworks Reading Lists

Privacy Policy Terms of Use Cookie Policy Refund Policy Accessibility Disclaimer

© 2026 Faster Than Normal. All rights reserved.

Dual N-Back Mental Model: Definition… | Faster Than Normal

People Businesses Shop Newsletter

Ask a question →

Home
Mental models
Dual N-Back

High Performance & Learning

Dual N-Back

Model #0755Category: High Performance & LearningSource: Jaeggi / Buschkuehl / Jonides / PerrigDepth to apply:

4 min read

On this page

Core Idea
How to See It
How to Use It
Founders & Leaders
Connected Models
One Key Quote
Summary & Further Reading

Contents

1. Core Idea
2. How to See It
3. How to Use It
4. Founders & Leaders
5. Connected Models
6. One Key Quote
7. Summary & Further Reading

Subscribe to read the full Dual N-Back analysis — when to use it, when it misleads, step-by-step application, and company examples.

Membership gives you full access to every piece of research in the library, plus the AI assistant.

Start 7-Day Free Trial

Cancel anytime.

Or get the newsletter free — I send one every week.

Full subscribe page

Or ask about this topic — 5 free questions included

Continue exploring

Popular Mental Models

First Principles Thinking Occam's Razor Circle of Competence Inversion Confirmation Bias Second-Order Thinking Dunning-Kruger Effect Survivorship Bias Pareto Principle Opportunity Cost

CP

Mental model

Choosing Important Problems

The most important decision in any career or research agenda is which problems t

Mental model

Deep Work

Sustained, distraction-free concentration on cognitively demanding tasks that pr

Mental model

Deliberate Practice

Structured, purposeful practice with immediate feedback that targets specific we

Mental model

Flow State

An optimal state of consciousness where challenge and skill are perfectly matche

Mental model

Spaced Repetition

A learning technique that schedules review sessions at expanding intervals to ex

Mental model

10,000 Hour Rule

More like this, in your inbox

I send a newsletter every week — free, no spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Or open the full subscribe page.

On this page

Core Idea
How to See It
How to Use It
Founders & Leaders
Connected Models
One Key Quote
Summary & Further Reading

·High Performance & Learning

Section 1

Core Idea

Dual N-Back is a cognitive training task that exercises working memory by requiring you to track two independent streams of information simultaneously — typically a sequence of positions and a sequence of sounds — and identify when either matches what appeared N steps ago. The task is brutally demanding because it forces continuous updating, inhibition of outdated items, and dual-channel attention. Research by Jaeggi et al. (2008) showed that sustained Dual N-Back training improved fluid intelligence — the ability to reason through novel problems — a finding that challenged the long-held belief that fluid intelligence was fixed. For founders, the implication is direct: working memory capacity constrains the complexity of problems you can hold and manipulate in real time.

This connects to...

mental modelsCognitive Load Theory

Dual N-Back applied the Cognitive Load Theory mental model

mental modelsIntelligence

Dual N-Back applied the Intelligence mental model

mental modelsScale

Dual N-Back applied the Scale mental model

mental modelsChunking

Dual N-Back applied the Chunking mental model

mental modelsDual N-Back

Dual N-Back applied the Dual N-Back mental model

mental modelsDeliberate Practice

Dual N-Back applied the Deliberate Practice mental model