Primerjava kognitivnih sposobnosti pri igralcih akcijskih videoiger in posameznikih, ki videoiger ne igrajo

Podlogar, Neža (author), Podlesek, Anja (mentor)

Videoigre so dandanes povsod med nami, napovedi pa kažejo, da bodo v prihodnosti vse bolj razširjene. Iz tega razloga je ključno raziskati morebitne pozitivne in negativne posledice igranja videoiger. Najbolj popularna zvrst so akcijske videoigre, ki so tudi najbolj zanimive z vidika kognitivne psihologije, saj igranje zahteva veliko zaznavnih in kognitivnih sposobnosti. Raziskovanje, kako igranje lahko vpliva oziroma ali je povezano s kognicijo, je v porastu, kljub temu pa v Sloveniji to še ni raziskano področje. V magistrskem delu preverjamo povezanost med igranjem akcijskih videoiger in sposobnostjo mentalne rotacije, sledenja več objektom in preklapljanja med nalogami. Na vzorcu odraslih (18–37 let) smo primerjali neigralce videoiger (N = 81) in igralce akcijskih videoiger (N = 82). Rezultati so pokazali, da je v slovenskem vzorcu igranje akcijskih videoiger pomemben napovednik sposobnosti mentalne rotacije in krajših reakcijskih časov pri nalogi preklapljanja. Čeprav so igralci akcijskih videoiger hitreje preklapljali med nalogami pri vseh pogojih, pa se skupini nista razlikovali v stroških preklapljanja, ki so glavni pokazatelj kognitivne fleksibilnosti. Povezava z obsegom pozornosti ni bila jasna, statistično pomembne razlike med igralci in neigralci so bile opazne po izključitvi enega udeleženca, ki je od povprečja svoje skupine izstopal za več kot 3 SD. Rezultati nakazujejo, da je igranje akcijskih videoiger pozitivno povezano z določenimi kognitivnimi sposobnostmi, vendar zahtevajo nadaljnje presečne in eksperimentalne študije, ki bi dale več informacij o vzrokih in mehanizmih izboljšanja sposobnosti.

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: akcijske videoigre, prostorska sposobnost, mentalna rotacija, obseg pozornosti, preklapljanje med nalogami
• Work type: Master's thesis/paper
• Organization: FF - Faculty of Arts
• Year: 2019
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-111537
• Publication date in RUL: 03.10.2019

Secondary language

• Language: English
• Title: Comparison of cognitive skills in action video game players and non-gamers

Abstract

Nowadays, video games are all around us, and predictions suggest they will become even more widespread in the future. For this reason, it is crucial to investigate the possible positive and negative consequences of playing video games. The most popular genre of video games is action, which is also the most interesting for cognitive psychology research, since playing requires many perceptual and cognitive abilities. Research into how gaming can influence or relate to cognition is on the rise; however, this topic has not yet received much attention in Slovenia. Our research examines the connection between playing action video games and the ability to mentally rotate objects, track multiple objects, and switch between tasks. On a sample of adults (18–37 years old) we compared non-gamers (N = 81) and action video game players (N = 82). The results show that playing action video games is an important predictor of mental rotation ability and faster reaction times in task switching. Even though action video game players switched between tasks more quickly than nongamers in all conditions, the groups did not differ in the switching cost, which is a major indicator of cognitive flexibility. The effect on attention span was not so clear; statistically significant differences between action gamers and non-gamers were noticeable after excluding one participant who deviated from the mean of their group by more than 3 SD. The results indicate that playing action video games can have positive effects on certain cognitive functions, but require further cross-sectional and experimental studies to provide more information on the causes and mechanisms of cognitive enhancement.

• Keywords: action video games, spatial ability, mental rotation, attention span, task switching