How can gaming improve cognitive function?
After coming home from a long day at work, it feels so good to play our favourite game to unwind. Gaming engages our brains and creates an immersive experience. We don't even feel tired while playing them, even after working all day! Gaming requires skill, no doubt, but have you ever wondered why it makes us feel good? We think that a person affixed on their screen to play a game is wasting their time or they are addicted to playing games, but there are many studies with strong proof that suggest that playing games improves brain function and boosts cognitive ability. Various studies have made it evident that playing games regularly is beneficial for the human brain..
After years and years of extensive research and studies, a few observations gradually started surfacing. One major breakthrough in this area was achieved by the National Institute of Health, which conducted an online experiment with 496 people where the participants completed six cognitive tests and a playing practice questionnaire.
Along with this the study also compared the cognitive skills between the people who played games regularly and the people who don’t play games at all. It was observed that people who play games had healthier brain that people who don’t play any games at all.
When the scientists conducted video game training sessions for the participants, it was also observed that playing video games improved attention, visuospatial, and working memory skills. They made the participants play a few popular games. The individuals who played Call Of Duty for more than 28 hours had a better visual working memory performance. Along with this, there were more findings like;
A Gym For The Brain
Are you a fitness freak? Then, you are in for some good news. Just like working out keeps our bodies healthy, playing games is like a simple workout for our brains, a mental exercise that strengthens our brains and improves memory. While playing games, we have to consume information at lightning speed and make last-minute decisions. Remember playing PUBG? Last-minute flanks and attacks on the enemies are the highlights of that game. Ah, the good ol’ days! Perhaps this is why we were able to keep calm and stimulate our brains even during the pandemic.
Visual Awareness
Action, Adventure and role-playing games that require complex mapping and navigation boost the visual awareness and improves our sense of direction. While creating the strategy, the players also have to plan out their area of movement within the virtual landscape, predict movements of the opponents abilities. Various studies have shown that people who played such game had a faster reaction time than the average population.
Increased Focus
A few games require the players to constantly look at the game and keep planning out a strategy due to their faced paced and competitive nature. These games also test the multi-tasking ability of the individual, which can improve management skills. The games that create a sense of urgency reflect how the person would respond to a real-life situation. This can lead to better decision-making and a stronger fight-or-flight response through the adrenaline rush, which can help in increasing our focus.
Improved Memory
A few games require the players to remember things to move forward and win. Story-based games and puzzle-games force the players to remember cues from the story and keep giving subtle hints to the players to help them figure out a way. When the games are saved midway and a gamer comes back to continue the game, the player has to recall their previous checkpoints to proceed further in a more effective manner that ultimately improves memory.
Gamers = Problem Solvers
Situation-based games where the players have to make a decision quickly improve their problem-solving skills. The players are presented with difficult do-or-die situations in the games where they have to find a quick solution to a complex problem. Whenever there is a complexity in the characters of the game, the players have to analyze multiple scenarios, explore options and make calculated decisions to help them win the game. This can rapidly boost the critical thinking of gamers due to surprising situations and unpredictable challenges.
Choosing the right kind of games is also important. We must refrain from playing brain-rot games and instead incline more towards games that improve our boost our thinking ability. While all this research suggests that playing games is beneficial, it’s also important to consider that anything in excess can be harmful. We must remember that moderation is the key to enjoying these games. We should not engage in games in such a way that we stop living our lives, stop interacting with others or get addicted to them. Being mindful about time is extremely important. As long as we as gamers continue to time-bound games while setting limits for ourselves, gaming is a precious and rewarding gift for our brains.
