Enhancing perceptual and attentional skills requires common demands between the action video games and transfer tasks

Abstract

Despite increasing evidence that shows action video game play improves perceptual and cognitive skills, the mechanisms of transfer are not well-understood. In line with previous work, we suggest that transfer is dependent upon common demands between the game and transfer task. In the current study, participants played one of four action games with varying speed, visual, and attentional demands for 20 h. We examined whether training enhanced performance for attentional blink, selective attention, attending to multiple items, visual search and auditory detection. Non-gamers who played the game (Modern Combat) with the highest demands showed transfer to tasks of attentional blink and attending to multiple items. The game (MGS Touch) with fewer attentional demands also decreased attentional blink, but to a lesser degree. Other games failed to show transfer, despite having many action game characteristics but at a reduced intensity. The results support the common demands hypothesis.

Keywords: action video games; selective attention; training; transfer.

Figure 1

Sample trials for visual search set sizes 8, 16, and 24.

Figure 2

Changes (Δ) in T2 detection accuracy rate for each training group following training. Asterisks denote statistical significance at p < 0.05. Error bars denote 95% CI.

Figure 3

Detection sensitivity (d′) for 8 target 0 distractor condition from pre to post-training for each training group. Asterisk denote statistical significant change at p < 0.05. Error bars denote 95% CI.