Action gamers make better drivers, soldiers, surgeons

Mr Bloat

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/09/14/action_games_make_you_a_finer_human_being/

Staeside brain experts say that their latest research indicates that playing action video games makes people more able to make correct decisions quickly under time pressure - potentially turning them into superior drivers, soldiers or surgeons.

"It's not the case that the action game players are trigger-happy and less accurate: They are just as accurate and also faster," says cognitive researcher Daphne Bavelier. "Action game players make more correct decisions per unit time. If you are a surgeon or you are in the middle of a battlefield, that can make all the difference."


Bavelier and her colleagues have proved this by carrying out a study in which a group of people who had not played video games previously were set to play either action offerings Call of Duty 2 and Unreal Tournament or slo-mo strategy yawnfest The Sims 2.

Afterwards, the study participants were asked to perform tasks against the clock in which they had to look or listen, decide what was happening and answer a simple question - for instance, is an erratically-moving group of dots migrating left or right. The action-games group were able to give answers significantly faster than the strategists, with no loss of accuracy.

According to Bavelier and her colleagues, the process of playing fast-moving action games trains the brain's natural processes of "probabilistic inference", the means whereby it can build a decision by rapidly and constantly collecting pieces of information.

"The brain is always computing probabilities," explains Bavelier. "As you drive, for instance, you may see a movement on your right, estimate whether you are on a collision course, and based on that probability make a binary decision: brake or don't brake."

The researchers' new study, Improved Probabilistic Inference as a General Learning Mechanism with Action Video Games, can be read here by subscribers to the journal Current Biology. ®

Further vindication that gamers are the next evolutionary step of mankind.

cherryghost

It's lies. I took inspiration from Ace Attorney. I took a law degree so I could shout OBJECTION! during random cross-examinations.

Did NOT go down well.

Jonny7

People who can't run 10 feet make better soldiers? awesome

Jazzy

and of those players, it was the ones playing UT that were best tbh

Agricola

Jonny7 wrote: »

People who can't run 10 feet make better soldiers? awesome

Thats is a gross misconception about gamers. Most can run as much as 30 feet before the shooting pains start!

chin_grin

MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM BUCKET! BUCKET! MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

kendragon

"Its up to you soldier... get over that wall and take out the two guards then plant the charge... there is a family sized bag of cheetos in it for you."

Nehaxak

So many foot soldier type wars would just go on forever if gamers were real soldiers as 99% of them would be spawn camping sniper bastards waiting for someone to break cover and go take a piss.

Scram

compelete crap...

SeantheMan

Would you let a 15yr old American operate on you ?

Point concluded

cherryghost

Jazzy wrote: »

and of those players, it was the ones playing UT that were best tbh

Yes, the US Army always win because of their instant respawn

Farcear

cherryghost wrote: »

It's lies. I took inspiration from Ace Attorney. I took a law degree so I could shout OBJECTION! during random cross-examinations.

Did NOT go down well.

This is also my current ambition!

(You have to remember to point dramatically as you do it!)

Jazzy

cherryghost wrote: »

Yes, the US Army always win because of their instant respawn

they win because they can control the battlefield, read the enemies moves faster, react quicker and generally have more depth to how they make war

cherryghost

Jazzy wrote: »

they win because they can control the battlefield, read the enemies moves faster, react quicker and generally have more depth to how they make war

Plus they can double sidestep.

Ciaran500

SeantheMan wrote: »

Would you let a 15yr old American operate on you ?

Point concluded

The average age of a game player is well above 15

Jazzy

cherryghost wrote: »

Plus they can double sidestep.

27.5 seconds on the 50 armor is pretty handy too

super_sweeney

i hate to say it but on average most 15 year olds can't afford to game properly hence why they can still run more than 30 meters . as for the rest of us everyone is just jelous noobs who get owned

robby^5

What does hundreds of hours of playing Mario Bros 3 get me? I'm definately not qualified to be a plumber

Dave_The_Sheep

robby^5 wrote: »

What does hundreds of hours of playing Mario Bros 3 get me?

You mean you can't use that to get laid?

super_sweeney

thats brilliant. maybe a go-kart racer

SeantheMan

In Fairness...I HONESTLY and 100% believe that I am totally capable of not only surviving, but thriving in any kind of post apocalyptic future.

Be it in post Nuclear war or zombie infested ....thanks to fallout/left4dead/resi etc

kowloon

I fear the man that can rocket jump in real life.

super_sweeney

hey i am sure i could be a professional football player with all the fifa i play or maybe a pro race drive with all the grid. possibilities are endless to me i think