When many people think of video games, they imagine kids zoning out for hours without interacting with friends or thinking critically. But video gaming can help develop core cognitive abilities like concentration, problem-solving and even math skills. Video games are full of puzzles, challenges, and rules that players must learn to navigate and overcome, which requires problem-solving skills. They also improve hand-to-eye coordination.
Develops Creativity
Video games often involve solving puzzles and challenges, exercising working memory, making quick decisions and strategizing. These are skills that teachers know can be beneficial in the classroom. But video games also stimulate creativity and social interactions. Some adults worry that gaming leads to violent behavior or sedentary lifestyles, but these fears are misplaced. Research has shown that gaming helps improve cognitive and creative abilities, including hand-eye coordination, reaction times and spatial awareness. It also boosts attention span and encourages the development of multitasking skills.
Most games also encourage creativity, whether creating a character and story for role-playing games or being rewarded for using creative strategies in competitive gaming. A recent study found that people who play video games are also more creative in their daily lives. But the researchers acknowledge that this finding may be partly a result of their instructions to gamers to be as creative as possible, which may have limited their ability to think outside the box.
Improves Visual-Spatial Skills
Video games provide players with various visual and audial stimuli to take in, interpret and react quickly. They also involve the coordination of a player’s hands with their eyes and have been shown to increase sensorimotor skills, such as hand-eye coordination. In addition, you can get a cheap Xbox One controller to improve your reaction time by training the brain to respond more quickly without sacrificing accuracy. Many games also require players to monitor many issues simultaneously, including their avatar’s health and inventory, the time remaining on a level or task and possible incoming challenges or threats. Studies show that gaming can train the brain to multitask, increasing areas of the cortex associated with processing sensory information and separating relevant from irrelevant data. Many games also allow players to experiment with different strategies and learn from their mistakes in a safe environment. In addition, some games encourage players to research specific topics better to understand their gameplay and the world around them.
Improves Memory Skills
Video games require players to rapidly analyze, process and react to visual and audial stimuli. They must also juggle multiple issues, such as a game’s time limits, their avatar’s health and inventory, and possible incoming challenges or threats. These issues often change and evolve throughout a game, which requires the player to reassess their plan of attack constantly. This constant reassessment and adaptation require both short- and long-term memory. Research has shown that video game players have better working memory and cognitive skills than non-gamers, even as they age. This improvement in working memory may be related to video games involving repeated task practice. Players also learn to overcome obstacles by trial and error, a useful life skill.
Most video games incorporate problem-solving, a key learning tool for many subjects. There are types of problem-solving that combine memorization and analysis with creativity. It’s a great way to build logical reasoning, critical thinking and teamwork. Some video games also help improve manual skills such as hand-eye coordination and pattern recognition. Even in physical rehabilitation, certain video games have assisted stroke sufferers in regaining control of their hands.
Improves Attention
Video games are fast-paced environments with constant visual and audial stimuli that players must interpret, react to, and respond to. Studies show that video game play can train people to process information quickly without sacrificing accuracy. This quick-thinking skill can be useful in many real-world situations, such as when responding to a sudden change in the classroom environment or working to solve an unforeseen problem. Some more complex role-playing games are designed like puzzles with multiple levels and solutions that may take hours to resolve. Similarly, strategy games can help students learn how to make decisions on the fly and use various problem-solving methods to succeed. The ability to maintain attention has also been improved by video game play. In one study, researchers showed that kids who played more action video games were better able to control their attention than their peers who did not play as much. However, this advantage did not last throughout the test, and children’s performance declined as soon as they stopped playing video games. More specifically, action video gamers were better able to track multiple objects and rapidly switch between them than their non-video gaming counterparts. Scientists believe improving attention skills is due to the repeated practice of visual tasks requiring impulse control and memory. It is consistent with the finding that children who play more action video games have stronger visible areas in their brains.
