What popular pastime enhances our reflexes, sharpens our vision, and helps us save perpetually kidnapped princesses? Video games, of course!
You may be wondering, “How can the thumb-fueled adventures of a pixelated plumber possibly be good for my mind?” You wouldn’t be the first! And yet, a growing body of evidence suggests that playing video games can actually have beneficial effects on our brains. Just ask researchers at The University of Rochester.
Dr. Daphne Bavelier and her team of cognitive scientists have conducted several studies exploring the effects of electronic gaming on the brain. For instance, a 2010 study published in Current Biology asserts that playing fast-paced “action” games ( e.g. Call Of Duty, Halo, or Super Mario Bros.) enhances our ability to make split second decisions.
The ability to efficiently absorb information (whether it be visual or auditory) and make a fast, informed decision is a valuable skill that video games can help cultivate. Dr. Bavelier explains, “If you are a surgeon or you are in the middle of a battlefield, that can make all the difference. Decisions are never black and white. The brain is always computing probabilities. As you drive, for instance, you may see a movement on your right, estimate whether you are on a collision course, and based on that probability make a binary decision: brake or don’t brake.”
So will all those basement hours blasting friends in Goldeneye come in handy some day? Maybe! In an earlier study, Dr. Bavelier and colleagues tested gamers’ vision – in particular their contrast sensitivity. Introducing subjects to gaming had a long-lasting, positive impact on their vision. In particular, experienced gamers had an above-average ability to distinguish between subtle shades of gray.
Dr. Bavelier told NPR, “[T]his is a skill that comes in very handy if you’re driving in fog. Seeing the car ahead of you is determined by your contrast sensitivity… We looked at the effect of playing action games on this visual skill of contrast sensitivity, and we’ve seen effects that last up to two years (after test subjects stopped gaming).”
So if you’ve never spent an afternoon crowded around the television feverishly mashing buttons with family and friends, maybe it’s time to give video games a second chance! Your eyes and brain just might thank you… not to mention the princess.
Image: PS VITA (PlayStation Vita), a Creative Commons Attribution (2.0) image from ì•„ìš°í¬ì†Œ(Auxo.co.kr)’s photostream.
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