Study Suggests Gamers Collect Visual Information and Make Decisions Quicker

Hi peeps...

This does not come as a surprise. For anyone who has played video games you have to learn how to make decisions ASAP. And you have to learn to be able to take in a lot of information at any one time..

Hours spent at the video gaming console not only train a player's hands to work the buttons on the controller, they probably also train the brain to make better and faster use of visual input, according to Duke University researchers.

"Gamers see the world differently," said Greg Appelbaum, an assistant professor of psychiatry in the Duke School of Medicine. "They are able to extract more information from a visual scene."

It can be difficult to find non-gamers among college students these days, but from among a pool of subjects participating in a much larger study in Stephen Mitroff's Visual Cognition Lab at Duke, the researchers found 125 participants who were either non-gamers or very intensive gamers.

Each participant was run though a visual sensory memory task that flashed a circular arrangement of eight letters for just one-tenth of a second. After a delay ranging from 13 milliseconds to 2.5 seconds, an arrow appeared, pointing to one spot on the circle where a letter had been. Participants were asked to identify which letter had been in that spot.

At every time interval, intensive players of action video games outperformed non-gamers in recalling the letter.

www.sciencedaily.com...

I just hope they do not decide to employ the gamers to control the hundreds of thousands of drones that they want in the skies.... O.o

Peace
Fluff

Peace
Fluff

Originally posted by fluff007



I just hope they do not decide to employ the gamers to control the hundreds of thousands of drones that they want in the skies.... O.o

Peace
Fluff

Peace
Fluff

this idea has been out for a long time. at least back to the late 80's early 90's.
i can remember lots of talk about the gub, wanting to start having whole class room full of teens controling remote vehicles and aircraft, and now with the use of drones, you can bet that most if not all of the operators, are in their late teens to early twenty's, that use to play or are still playing video games.

Makes sense if you spend your time doing something over and over and over you get better at that thing you're doing.

I find the decision making thing a bit dubious. When you have to make those "on the fly" decisions in a game it's always within the confines of the games rules and control and it more often than not ends in failure. Especially in new situations. Mario doesnt have three lives for nothing.

Too bad it doesnt translate into anything useful besides operating drones.

I think the study is accurate for the most part.

I often find that video games can be quite educational and informative, if you pick the right games that is.

I am a hard core avid gamer and have played countless games of all genres pretty much.
I do feel like such things keep me on my toes, and refine my abilities in strategics and make quick decisions on the spot while taking vast amounts of information into account.

It doesn't make you perfect or anything, no one is perfect.
But it IS exercise of the mind, and makes you flex your brain muscle so to speak.
It's a work out, and it can lead to increasing one's finesse and health overall.

Of course, you could also get a mental work out doing any of a thousand other things, like reading a compelling novel that challenges your notions about life.

The reason that TV/Movies/Music do not have the same power as Video Games or Books, is because the latter force one to engage themselves and tons of hard work are required to gain any progress at all. Meanwhile TV/Movies/Music most of the time you can just sit and watch without having to challenge yourself too much, although there are exceptions to every rule of course, some films or music are very challenging.

No wonder I suk at life.

I was searching for the reason. I could never figure those games out and trust and believe I have bought at least 10 consoles for my kids.

Ha ha. I never got into it.

But I can cook dude. I can make anything and make it awesome.

Some of us have different talents.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere
Makes sense if you spend your time doing something over and over and over you get better at that thing you're doing.

I find the decision making thing a bit dubious. When you have to make those "on the fly" decisions in a game it's always within the confines of the games rules and control and it more often than not ends in failure. Especially in new situations. Mario doesnt have three lives for nothing.

Too bad it doesnt translate into anything useful besides operating drones.

I think that's why I naturally gravitate towards playing tons of different types of games, because I need to keep mixing things up and pushing myself to stay on my toes.

I typically laugh at the people who pick 1 game and play it all day every day forever. It's really sad to be honest. I cannot imagine how bored they must be.

Originally posted by GrantedBail
No wonder I suk at life.

I was searching for the reason. I could never figure those games out and trust and believe I have bought at least 10 consoles for my kids.

Ha ha. I never got into it.

But I can cook dude. I can make anything and make it awesome.

Some of us have different talents.

Chick that cooks > Video games.
Every day.

You win!!

There are upsides and downsides to most things in life. I am sure that many activities could have similar effect - free running/parkour, driving a racecar, being a soldier in war. I guess the thing about the games are, that they simulate these extreme conditions and allow us to expose us selves to these more frequently on a much smaller scale.

But on the other hand, it is not very healthy for the rest of the body to play videogames. So not sure if it is really worth it.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere

Too bad it doesnt translate into anything useful besides operating drones.

you've missed the point entirely. It's not just about twitch reactions in relation to controllers, it's the mental process as a whole. Gamers are able to take in information faster, and retrieve it faster, than non gamers.

Playing games, fps specifically, has impacted my vision, I'm able to pick up movement faster than I was in my younger years, I can spot things quick, I'm able to make mental map layouts of the area, imagine a birds eye view.

It's also made me paranoid.

"That's a perfect spot for a sniper" my wife cringes
"That's our egress route" oh please shut up she says

Originally posted by Mads1987
There are upsides and downsides to most things in life. I am sure that many activities could have similar effect - free running/parkour, driving a racecar, being a soldier in war. I guess the thing about the games are, that they simulate these extreme conditions and allow us to expose us selves to these more frequently on a much smaller scale.

But on the other hand, it is not very healthy for the rest of the body to play videogames. So not sure if it is really worth it. Besides, making decisions quicker, doesn't necessarily mean that they are making the right decisions.

Anything taken to extremes can become unhealthy.

Playing a video game by itself is not unhealthy at all.

It's when something is overdone and abused or conducted improperly that it goes downhill.

Tools can be used for good or evil, it's the wielder of that tool and what their intentions are that make all the difference.

reply to post by GrantedBail

No wonder I suk at life.

you don't suck at life Games are for everyone. I'm more interested in how the game works than playing it, but I do enjoy playing games. I like being competitive, so if I can't be out in the sun and I don't feel like drawing or playing guitar, I'll take some dog tags in battlefield 3.

As someone mentioned, games aren't "healthy" well, that's not true. If you have an unhealthy lifestyle, sure, they aren't great. But for normal people it's fine, I spend more time sitting at work than I do sitting at home playing games.

They can make decisions quicker the the outcome of their actions is represented in a digital world. I wonder if they would be as fast in the real world where their actions have real consequences?

Originally posted by PhoenixOD
They can make decisions quicker the the outcome of their actions is represented in a digital world. I wonder if they would be as fast in the real world where their actions have real consequences?

Yeah they do.

That's why they have surgeons play video games on their breaks. They actually suggest this activity.

Why?

Keeps them on their toes, improves hand eye coordination drastically, etc.
You can find a ton of articles on the Net about this.

reply to post by phishyblankwaters


Nah, I got that. But unless you're hunting antelope on foot what real use does it serve?

I wonder if these "skills" you say you have gained from sitting in front of a screen would be greater than, less than or equal to that same skill set developed by a paintball player, speed orienteering competitor, football or futball player, military infantry, competitive shooter, or any other number or outside three dimensional practitioner who relies on fast sight recognition.

Images on a screen or cards on a table are very different from the outside where lighting changes, colors blend, sounds distract and wildlife are unpredictable.

A video for all the attempts at randomization and depth perception is still basically a plotted course that is largely predictable and repeatable. The real world isnt.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere
reply to post by phishyblankwaters

 

Nah, I got that. But unless you're hunting antelope on foot what real use does it serve?

I wonder if these "skills" you say you have gained from sitting in front of a screen would be greater than, less than or equal to that same skill set developed by a paintball player, speed orienteering competitor, football or futball player, military infantry, competitive shooter, or any other number or outside three dimensional practitioner who relies on fast sight recognition.

Images on a screen or cards on a table are very different from the outside where lighting changes, colors blend, sounds distract and wildlife are unpredictable.

A video for all the attempts at randomization and depth perception is still basically a plotted course that is largely predictable and repeatable. The real world isnt.

I think you got it all backwards here.
You aren't suppose to do one thing all the time.
I highly suggest doing a lot of activities if possible.

You can play real paintball, football, and then after you go home later that night play video games.

Which is better for your mind anyways?
A game where you choose what happens, or the TV shows which basically choose everything for you?
The answer is obvious.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


There is something to say about that! Sports are the ultimate training. People who play or train or whatever physically, just might be able to snatch that controller right out of the hands of someone.

reply to post by muzzleflash


Interaction is always better for the mind than simple consumption for a number of reasons.

Granted I dont play much of anything but last I saw the industry of games was taking a hard turn toward scripted events, quick time events and cut scenes rather than open world interaction and decision making.

Even the once great open world pioneer GTA's last installment was a long arduous series of scripted events.

Consuming is easier than doing and unless something has changed games are catering to the consumers rather the doers.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere

A video for all the attempts at randomization and depth perception is still basically a plotted course that is largely predictable and repeatable. The real world isnt.

I disagree again.

The world around us is equally as predictable when you discover the patterns that are operating.
For example, I can predict with high accuracy the outcome of typical court trials over most things. Patterns were established and conventions followed, just like in video games.

The only difference is that video games are forgiving, whereas real life is not so much.
You can make mistakes and get away with it in the game world, not the real one.

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere
reply to post by muzzleflash

 

Interaction is always better for the mind than simple consumption for a number of reasons.

Granted I dont play much of anything but last I saw the industry of games was taking a hard turn toward scripted events, quick time events and cut scenes rather than open world interaction and decision making.

Even the once great open world pioneer GTA's last installment was a long arduous series of scripted events.

Consuming is easier than doing and unless something has changed games are catering to the consumers rather the doers.

I agree video games are turning into crap for the most part.

I blame allowing these business degree types to come in and make all the rules. They destroyed any hope for having well done polished games anymore that are highly replayable.

reply to post by muzzleflash


Macro events like politics or even court cases are not in the same scope.

Compare a game to a game. A match in PES compared to a real soccer match. A real 3-gun, airsoft or paintball event compared to a CoD round. On that scale the real world event will always be vastly more uncontrolled and unpredictable than the virtual one.

Not to mention that after four hours of running through the woods I feel great and after four hours of sitting in front of a screen clicking my thumbs I feel tired and sick.