Big Featured Discussions | September 17, 2010 | 35 comments

Do action video games make you a better decision maker?

New research from the University of Rochester has found that those who play first-person shooter video games may be better at making quick, accurate decisions based on their surroundings.

Even those who don't play this type of game regularly showed improved abilities after playing only 50 hours. However, those who do may also be more aggressive.

What do you think--could this be an argument for first person shooter games? Does it make you more likely to consider playing?

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35 comments // Do action video games make you a better decision maker?

  • IreneKholle
    • 0
      IreneKholle  

    • Violent interactions can both influence a gamer to be more aggressive or alleviate such symptoms depending on the home life of the person or child in question, however does it make you more successful in handling high impact situations on the fly? Certainly. I worked at GT Interactive and supported the "Dear Hunter" series and gamers called in needing help with patches or updates but one thing in common, some folks that where real game hunters found that playing the virtual game considerably increased their success out in the field. Why? It helps you think and handle it more often and more directly giving you more "flight hours" in a field which will in turn increase your abilities. Wonder if it will help my golf game....

      I write for: http://www.gameguidedog.com A Video Game Help Website

    • 11 months ago
  • Raffielo
    • 0
      Raffielo  

    • These activities may hone concentration and focus as demonstrated through psychological tests performed through various military branches.

    • 1 year ago
  • Ashley_Kupid
  • rhetoricallyineffective
    • 0
      rhetoricallyineffective  

    • I tried explaining this to my friend who thinks she knows everything, but it didn't work.
      She constantly ridicules me for playing games, but I believe they do help your reflexes and problem solving skills, depending on the game you're playing.

    • 1 year ago
  • Dazedandconfused
    • 0
      Dazedandconfused  

    • Yes, finally playing call of duty and sitting on the couch eating doughnuts will turn me into a fast thinking quick acting super ninja cammando? sweet

    • 1 year ago
  • RojoGatto
  • rhetoricallyineffective
  • Almibry
  • Nephwrack
  • B_Cramer
  • iamaman
  • CalgarC
  • asoliz08
  • Ari_Liston
  • themotivateddropout
  • PirateSauce
    • +4
      PirateSauce  

    • Yes, of course.. been playing video games since I was 4 and I have the reflexes of a cat and my spatial awareness is amazing. :)

    • 1 year ago
  • booninvailable
  • CalgarC
  • themotivateddropout
  • Alex_Bevard
  • themotivateddropout
    • +3
      themotivateddropout  

    • There are dozens of mental leaps our minds perform while playing a video game, most significantly while playing a first person perspective shooter.
      Between controlling the physical movements, aiming and hitting the target, finding keys and easter eggs to move the game along, and monitoring the vitals and ammunition of the player our minds perform faster than almost any other mental exercise available. It's like playing chess with an adrenaline rush.
      Of course there are lots of jokes to be made about video games and the people who play them, but to outwardly deny any benefits because of a bias perception of the "consequences" is simply (and ironically) childish.

    • 1 year ago
  • Almibry
    • 0
      Almibry  
    • themotivateddropout:

      You forgot to mention that video games are all basically puzzles and they all have situations requiring you to solve problems with incomplete information (and you have to figure those out while keeping all that other crap you just listed in mind). I'm not understanding how people think they can't help with "real life". Real life is basically a boring video game.

    • 1 year ago
  • themotivateddropout
    • +2
      themotivateddropout  
    • Almibry:

      People have a misconception that video game players never go outside, stay physically active, or socialize. And that's apparently a hard misconception to get over.

      It's easier for them to make video games out to be an enemy, a promoter of procrastination.
      And video games can distract you and eat away your time.
      But like all things that are too much fun, you have to be responsible for how much time you spend playing and not losing sight of your priorities.

    • 1 year ago
  • Nephwrack
    • 0
      Nephwrack  
    • Image

    • We've already reported on findings that playing action video games may improve vision, and some studies indicate that video gamers even make better surgeons.

      Now, researchers at the University of Rochester have found that first-person shooter players excel at probabilistic inference--that is, making fast, accurate decisions based on evidence extracted from their surroundings.

      What's more, even those who don't normally play action video games improved their inference skills after being forced to play just 50 hours over those who don't play at all.

      So are action video gamers better decision makers? The short answer appears to be yes, according to the researchers who report their findings this week in Current Biology, but with an asterisk: those who don't consider themselves action gamers appear just as able to hone these skills if they, well, start gaming.

      Researchers compared the skills of action gamers versus non-gamers by presenting both groups with simple decision-making experiments, where people appeared in the form of an array of dots and the volunteers had to discern the person's main direction of movement. They made this task easier and harder by adding to or taking away the number of dots moving in one direction.

      Gamers were able to identify direction both faster and more accurately than non-gamers, according to Daphne Bavelier, professor of brain and cognitive sciences at Rochester. However, she adds that the gamers had to have experience with "shooter games, where you go through a maze and you don't know when a villain will appear. It's not exactly what you'd think of as mind enhancing."

      (According to their findings, strategy and role-playing games don't have the same effect.)

      Bavelier adds that an interesting finding in the improved probabilistic inference skills among action gamers is that it transfers to so many other tasks, as opposed to most kinds of training that help develop skills specific to what is being taught.

      "Unlike standard learning paradigms, which have a highly specific solution, there is no such specific solution in action video games because situations are rarely, if ever, repeated," the researchers write. "Thus, the only characteristics that can be learned are how to rapidly and accurately learn the statistics on the fly and how to accumulate this evidence more efficiently."

      The researchers have yet to study actual brain function at a cellular level during this decision-making; they have simply measured the resulting performance. Even so, they write, "This mechanism may serve as a signature of training regimens that are likely to produce transfer of learning."

      Of course, there is also evidence that these better decision makers may also be more aggressive. Guess we can follow their careers into the military, or politics, or both. I can see the vetting process already: "Approximately how many hours of Call of Duty Black Ops did you clock in back in the fall of 2010? Only 200? Get back to your station."

      Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-27083_3-20016266-247.html?part=rss&subj=news&t...

    • 1 year ago
  • Nephwrack
    • 0
      Nephwrack  

    • so much hating on video games here on current. has everyone bought into the republicans old line about violent video games making people violent? if so, it's pathetic.

    • 1 year ago
  • JanforGore
  • remanns
  • Deltone
  • remanns
  • remanns
  • ThoughtNu
  • remanns
  • neuroburger
  • rebel_scum
    • +1
      rebel_scum  

    • If you've ever driven through Atlanta, you know it's usually a nightmare. People are nuts. I know people who won't even attempt a trip downtown. I feel like playing video games has improved my ability to think smoother under those kinds of situations.

    • 1 year ago
  • Dmerza1989
    • +1
      Dmerza1989  

    • Well maybe if i ended up in the town of silent hill, or there was a zombie outbreak resident evil style i could see it coming in handy. Oh! Or i decided to raid tombs but even then i don't have the athletic body or breast support Laura croft does. !

    • 1 year ago
sgwhites
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