A cure for game addiction
A few weeks ago, I commented on technology from Applied Cognitive Engineering. They offer a computer game adapted for training basketball players. The technology, Cognitive Simulation, is derived from a technology originally developed for the Israeli Air Force.
Now consider two more items from a report on Video Game Training by David Kushner
Dr. James Rosser Jr. of the Advanced Medical Technologies Institute at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York: "Surgeons who play video games three hours a week have 37 percent fewer errors and accomplish tasks 27 percent faster."
NASA senior research scientist Dr. Alan Pope hooked gamers up to an EEG machines to monitor the brain activity and adjusted the controllers so that maximum steering control was only available if the player produced a particular brainwave showing intense concentration. The results: gamers, including some with ADD, improved their concentration skills.
Concentration is probably another name for focusing on important information. And for ignoring useless information. And for knowing the difference. The evidence here suggests that these skills are useful, trainable by computer games, and measurable by EEG. One could use the measurements to evaluate the effectiveness of various computer games in developing the skill.
How well such skills would transfer to other tasks would also require investigation. But given that you can measure effectiveness directly, you could work first on improving the effectiveness of the game in developing the skill. Then a test of transfer would get you more information.
How would this cure game addiction? Simple. We call it training. That’s good for you. Maybe you can get really engaged in things that are good for you. But the headlines won't call it addiction. Therapists won't offer to cure you. Senators won't try to protect you from it.
Now can we cure the media of name addiction?
The stated learning objectives of this system were
- Decision-making
- Execution
- Shot selection
- Team play
- Movement anticipation & Pattern recognition
- Heightened court sense Peripheral vision
Now consider two more items from a report on Video Game Training by David Kushner
Dr. James Rosser Jr. of the Advanced Medical Technologies Institute at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York: "Surgeons who play video games three hours a week have 37 percent fewer errors and accomplish tasks 27 percent faster."
NASA senior research scientist Dr. Alan Pope hooked gamers up to an EEG machines to monitor the brain activity and adjusted the controllers so that maximum steering control was only available if the player produced a particular brainwave showing intense concentration. The results: gamers, including some with ADD, improved their concentration skills.
Concentration is probably another name for focusing on important information. And for ignoring useless information. And for knowing the difference. The evidence here suggests that these skills are useful, trainable by computer games, and measurable by EEG. One could use the measurements to evaluate the effectiveness of various computer games in developing the skill.
How well such skills would transfer to other tasks would also require investigation. But given that you can measure effectiveness directly, you could work first on improving the effectiveness of the game in developing the skill. Then a test of transfer would get you more information.
How would this cure game addiction? Simple. We call it training. That’s good for you. Maybe you can get really engaged in things that are good for you. But the headlines won't call it addiction. Therapists won't offer to cure you. Senators won't try to protect you from it.
Now can we cure the media of name addiction?
posted by Selby Evans at 10:47 AM
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