Do action video games improve perception and cognition?

Walter R Boot, Daniel P Blakely, Daniel J Simons, Walter R Boot, Daniel P Blakely, Daniel J Simons

Abstract

Frequent action video game players often outperform non-gamers on measures of perception and cognition, and some studies find that video game practice enhances those abilities. The possibility that video game training transfers broadly to other aspects of cognition is exciting because training on one task rarely improves performance on others. At first glance, the cumulative evidence suggests a strong relationship between gaming experience and other cognitive abilities, but methodological shortcomings call that conclusion into question. We discuss these pitfalls, identify how existing studies succeed or fail in overcoming them, and provide guidelines for more definitive tests of the effects of gaming on cognition.

Keywords: cognitive training; perceptual learning; transfer of training; video games.

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