Hypothesis testDecision-Making Tendency

Cognitive Reflection Test

The Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) is a brief measure of cognitive reflection—the ability to override intuitive, reflexive answers in favor of deliberate, analytical reasoning. Participants answer problems that have an intuitive but incorrect answer and a correct answer requiring reflection. The CRT reveals individual differences in the tendency to engage in slow, deliberate thinking (System 2) versus relying on fast, intuitive judgments (System 1). CRT scores predict performance on reasoning tasks, economic decisions, and susceptibility to cognitive biases.

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Sources

  1. Frederick, S. (2005). Cognitive reflection and decision making. Journal of Economic Literature, 43(4), 1047-1048. link
  2. Primi, C., Morsanyi, K., Chiesi, F., Donati, M. A., & Hamilton, J. (2014). The development and testing of a new version of the Cognitive Reflection Test applying Item Response Theory (IRT). Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 27(5), 397-411. DOI: 10.1002/bdm.1803
  3. Toplak, M. E., West, R. F., & Stanovich, K. E. (2011). The Cognitive Reflection Test as a predictor of performance on heuristics-and-biases tasks. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 24(2), 185-194. DOI: 10.1002/bdm.561
ScholarGateCognitive Reflection Test (Cognitive Reflection Test). Retrieved 2026-06-04 from https://scholargate.app/en/psychology/cognitive-reflection-test