Comparison of mental rotation ability, attentional capacity and cognitive flexibility in action video gamers and non-gamers

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

Nowadays, video games have become the most popular form of entertainment. For this reason, it is crucial to investigate the positive and negative consequences of gaming. The action genre is the most played amongst gamers and is interesting for cognitive psychology research because gaming requires many perceptual and cognitive abilities. The present study examined the association between playing action video games and the ability to mentally rotate objects, track multiple objects, and switch between tasks. Using a sample of emerging and young adults (18–37 years old), we compared non-gamers (N = 81) and action video gamers (N = 82). Results showed that playing action video games was related to better mental rotation ability and higher attentional capacity. Although gamers switched between tasks faster than non-gamers, the groups did not differ in switching costs, which are an important indicator of cognitive flexibility. The results suggest that playing action video games is positively associated with information processing speed, attention, and visuospatial abilities, and suggest a possible use of such games to improve these abilities.

• Language: English
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: PEF - Faculty of Education
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Submitted for review: 15.03.2022
• Article acceptance date: 16.03.2022
• Publication date: 01.04.2022
• Year: 2022
• Number of pages: 14 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 16, no. 2
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-136363
• UDC: 159.952:004
• ISSN on article: 1802-7962
• DOI: 10.5817/CP2022 - 2 - 8
• COBISS.SI-ID: 105968131
• Publication date in RUL: 26.04.2022

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Cyberpsychology
• Shortened title: Cyberpsychology
• Publisher: Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University
• ISSN: 1802-7962
• COBISS.SI-ID: 515798041

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.
• Licensing start date: 16.03.2022

Secondary language

• Language: Undetermined
• Keywords: miselna rotacija, kognicija, kognitivna fleksibilnost

Projects

• Funder: ARRS - Slovenian Research Agency
• Project number: P5-0110
• Name: Psihološki in nevroznanstveni vidiki kognicije