University of Warsaw
Warsaw International Studies in Psychology
Faculty of Psychology
Bartosz Sobczyk
Student’s book no. 271017
Effects of Video Games Experience
on Visual Attention
Master’s degree thesis
Psychology
Thesis written under the supervision of
Dr. Grzegorz Pochwatko
Polish Academy of Sciences
Warsaw, November 2013
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 2
Oświadczenie kierującego pracą
Oświadczam, że niniejsza praca została przygotowana pod moim kierunkiem i
stwierdzam, że spełniła ona warunki do przedstawienia jej w postępowaniu o nadanie tytułu
zawodowego.
Data Podpis kierującego pracą
Statement of the Supervisor on Submission of the Thesis
I hereby certify that the thesis submitted has been prepared under my supervision and
I declare that it satisfies the requirements of submission in the proceedings for the award of a
degree.
Date Signature of the
Supervisor
Oświadczenie autora pracy
Świadom odpowiedzialności prawnej oświadczam, że niniejsza praca dyplomowa
została napisana przeze mnie samodzielnie i nie zawiera treści uzyskanych w sposób
niezgodny z obowiązującymi przepisami.
Oświadczam również, że przedstawiona praca nie była wcześniej przedmiotem
procedur związanych z uzyskaniem tytułu zawodowego w wyższej uczelni.
Oświadczam ponadto, że niniejsza wersja pracy jest identyczna z załączoną wersją
elektroniczną.
Data Podpis autora pracy
Statement of the Author on Submission of the Thesis
Aware of legal liability I certify that the thesis submitted has been prepared by
myself and does not include information gathered contrary to the law.
I also declare that the thesis submitted has not been the subject of proceedings
resulting in the award of a university degree.
Furthermore I certify that the submitted version of the thesis is identical with its
attached electronic version.
Date Signature of the Author of the thesis
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 3
Streszczenie
Celem ninejszej pracy jest rozszerzenie badania Green i Bavelier (2006b), w którym
wykazano, że osoby grające w gry typu First Person Shooter (FPS) osiągają lepsze wyniki
od osób nie grających w gry wideo (Non-Video Game Players - NVGP) w zadaniu
badającym zdolność uwagi wzrokowej mierzonej paradygmatem "śledzenia wielu
obiektów". Mechanika strategii czasu rzeczywistego (Real Time Strategy - RTS) jest
zbliżona do tego zadania, dlatego stawiam hipotezę, że gracze RTS osiągną lepsze wyniki
zarówno od grupy FPS, jak i NVGP. Ponadto zwiększyłem liczebność próby aby umożliwić
generalizację wyników. Wyniki nie potwierdzają przewagi graczy FPS nad NVGP. Grupa
RTS osiągnęła lepsze wyniki, niż NVGP podczas śledzenia trzech i czterech obieków. W
porównaniu do grupy FPS, grupa RTS oceniła zadanie jako bardziej podobne do gier, w
które grają oraz osiągnęli lepsze wyniki w śledzeniu trzech obiektów. Wyniki i przyczyny
ich otrzymania są dyskutowane.
Słowa kluczowe: procesy poznawcze, uwaga wzrokowa, śledzenie wielu obiektów, gry
wideo
14.4 Psychologia
Wpływ Doświadczenia w Grach Komputerowych na Uwagę Wzrokową
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 4
Table of Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 7
1.1. Importance of Technological Advancement and Video Games ....................... 8
1.2. Current Research on Improvement of Cognitive Abilities ............................... 9
1.2.1. Cognitive abilities and far transfer ............................................................. 9
1.2.2. Improvement in cognitive abilities through video game training ............ 10
1.2. Fields of Improvement .................................................................................... 11
1.2.1. Sampling .................................................................................................. 11
1.2.2. Gameplay time ......................................................................................... 12
1.2.3. Genre and display time ............................................................................ 12
1.2.4. Object-based attention ............................................................................. 13
1.3. Video Games Genres and Their Players ......................................................... 15
1.3.1. First person shooters ................................................................................ 15
1.3.2. Real-time strategy .................................................................................... 17
1.3.3. Who are video game players .................................................................... 19
2. Research Problems .................................................................................................. 20
2.1. Hypothesis #1.................................................................................................. 22
2.1.1. Hypothesis #1a ......................................................................................... 22
2.2. Hypothesis #2.................................................................................................. 22
2.2.1. Hypothesis #2a ......................................................................................... 22
2.3. Hypothesis #3.................................................................................................. 22
2.3.1. Hypothesis #3a ......................................................................................... 22
2.4. Manipulation check ......................................................................................... 23
3. Method .................................................................................................................... 23
3.1. Participants ...................................................................................................... 23
3.1.1. Genre and mean gameplay time ............................................................... 24
3.1.2. Age ........................................................................................................... 25
3.1.3. Gender ...................................................................................................... 25
3.2. Materials ......................................................................................................... 25
3.2.1. Multiple objects tracking ......................................................................... 25
3.2.2. Hardware .................................................................................................. 27
3.2.3. Lab environment ...................................................................................... 28
3.3. Design ............................................................................................................. 28
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 5
3.4. Procedure ........................................................................................................ 28
4. Results ..................................................................................................................... 30
4.1. Hypothesis #1.................................................................................................. 30
4.1.1. Hypothesis #1a ......................................................................................... 31
4.2. Hypothesis #2.................................................................................................. 32
4.2.1. Hypothesis #2a ......................................................................................... 32
4.3. Hypothesis #3.................................................................................................. 33
4.3.1. Hypothesis #3a ......................................................................................... 34
4.4. Manipulation check ......................................................................................... 35
5. Discussion ............................................................................................................... 36
5.1. Verification of Hypotheses #1 and #1a ........................................................... 36
5.2. Verification of Hypotheses #2 and #2a ........................................................... 37
5.3. Verification of Hypotheses #3 and #3a ........................................................... 37
5.4. Manipulation check ......................................................................................... 38
5.6. Summary ......................................................................................................... 39
5.7. Methodological Observations ......................................................................... 40
5.8. Closing Remarks ............................................................................................. 41
References ................................................................................................................... 43
Appendix A ................................................................................................................. 50
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 6
Abstract
The aim of this thesis is to expand the study by Green and Bavelier (2006b), in which they
showed players of first-person shooter (FPS) video games outperforming non-video game
players (NVGPs) in visual attention abilities task as measured by the multiple objects
tracking paradigm. Mechanics of real-time strategy (RTS) games are similar to this task;
therefore I hypothesised that RTS players will outperform both FPS and NVGP groups.
Additionally I increased the sample sizes in order to allow generalization of the results. This
study failed to replicate the previous results of Green and Bavelier; however RTS players
outperformed NVGPs at tracking three and four moving objects simultaneously.
Furthermore, RTS players assessed the MOT task as more similar to the video games they
play when compared to FPS players, and also outperformed them at tracking three objects
simultaneously. These results indicate that RTS players are able to simultaneously track
multiple moving items more efficiently when compared to FPS players and NVGPs. Possible
explanations of these findings are discussed.
Keywords: cognition, visual attention, multiple objects tracking, video games
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 7
1. Introduction
During past two decades the development of computer technologies was unlike ever
before. Instead of using paper maps we can now use GPS systems in our cars to not only
lead us to our destination but also select the road with least traffic. Our mobile phones are no
longer a size of a suitcase, and are even capable of directing us to restaurants which we are
likely to enjoy most. New devices outperform their predecessors at incredible rates; the
processing power of the fastest computers 20 years ago cannot even be compared to the
mobile devices we carry in our pockets today. These devices are often used as form of
entertainment which is not as passive as e.g. television or theatres, but requires interaction
and attention. Studies have shown that video gameplay can lead to improvement in various
abilities, such as spatial visualization (Dorval & Pepin, 1996), visual short-term memory
(Boot, Kramer, Simons, Fabiani, & Gratton, 2008), multi-tasking (Green & Bavelier, 2006a)
or various executive functions (Chisholm & Kingstone, 2012; Colzato, van Leeuwen, van
den Wildenberg, & Hommel, 2010; Karle, Watter, & Shedden, 2010). Interestingly, abilities
gained through gameplay can also correlate with professional skills, such as laparoscopic
surgical manoeuvres (Rosser, et al., 2007). Authors of various studies published so far based
their sampling on action video game players, which is only one of many genres on games
market. The rationale behind it remains unclear because there is no scientific analysis of in-
game content and its potential relationship to cognitive abilities. More attention paid to other
genres may lead to clearer understanding of the effects that game mechanics have on our
cognition.
In this thesis I will review the most recent literature on differences between video
game players’ and non-video game players’ cognitive abilities and the magnitude of
improvement after video game trainings. I will also identify the methodological flaws
present in some past studies, propose improvements, and implement them in a design
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 8
concentrated on identifying cognitive abilities differentiating types of video game experience
and its influence on cognitive performance.
1.1. Importance of Technological Advancement and Video Games
Current trends drive technology to be more natural to humans and human
functioning. New devices, such as Google Glass, are being developed so we will no longer
be forced to use traditional displays and instead immerse ourselves in augmented reality. We
can watch films, documentaries or sport events on high resolution stereoscopic displays
which can now be found in every electronics market. Access to highly immersive virtual
environments will soon be much easier for regular consumers due to a newly developed
stereoscopic head mounted display called Oculus Rift (Oculus VR, 2013). Such
advancements are no longer limited to a wealthy audience or researchers only, but are
getting more available every year.
Rapid development of such inventions has made it possible for a large number of
electronic devices around us to be capable of running video games. Personal computers,
gaming consoles, television sets, laptops, tablets, mobile phones, electronic watches, or in-
flight entertainment support games of various complexities.
Since games started to become a common form of entertainment, their mechanics
found in video games were found to be beneficial in real life contexts. Mobile applications,
corporate management systems, or marketing campaigns are often designed with
implementation of various mechanisms extracted from classical personal computers (PC) or
console video games. This process is known under a relatively new term “gamification”,
which means “use of game design elements in non-game contexts” (Deterding, 2011).
The reason why “gamifying” approach has become widely implemented is the
increase of intrinsic motivation in end-users or participants (Hsu & Lu, 2004). This approach
can also find its application in the field of cognitive psychology and benefit people seeking
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 9
cognitive improvement. People play games because it gives them pleasure and satisfaction,
unlike classical cognitive training tools. If game mechanics can be extracted and
implemented in other contexts, it is worthwhile to look closer at video game players’
cognitive benefits and find a way to apply them to trainings and rehabilitation.
1.2. Current Research on Improvement of Cognitive Abilities
1.2.1. Cognitive abilities and far transfer
A far transfer of abilities is traditionally defined as “transfer to a dissimilar context”
– an improvement in one ability as a result of training other ability (Barnett & Ceci, 2002).
It has been hypothesised that working memory capacity and reasoning abilities (such as fluid
intelligence – Gf ) are associated with each other (Kyllonen & Christal, 1990; Engle, 2002)
and can share capacity limits (Halford, Cowan, & Andrews, 2007). Jaeggi proposed that
intensive working memory training should benefit Gf (Jaeggi, Buschkuehl, Jonides, &
Perrig, 2008). Her results showed that improvement in Gf was linearly correlated with time
spent on working memory training (when compared to pre-training measures) which utilized
the “dual n-back” paradigm. The results obtained by Jaeggi and colleagues have been
replicated in a following study (Jaeggi, et al., 2010); however, not all similar trainings were
as successful (Thompson , et al., 2013). Jaeggi’s studies also received criticism regarding a
number of methodological flaws present in their designs, such as differences in procedures
applied to four groups in the original study or varying time limits across groups (Redick, et
al., 2012).
When Redick et al. (2012) replicated the study with randomized samples and placebo
control, they concluded that “despite significant improvements on the training tasks, subjects
showed no positive transfer to fluid intelligence, multitasking, working memory capacity,
crystallized intelligence, or perceptual speed tasks.”
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 10
1.2.2. Improvement in cognitive abilities through video game training
Recent research shows that an improvement in cognitive abilities can be obtained by
implementing video game trainings, where participants commit their time to gameplay rather
than taking part in particular cognitive tasks. Since a milestone publication in Nature by
Green and Bavelier (2003) where they observed video game players (VGPs) outperforming
non-video game players (NVGPs) in a number of visual attention tasks, over 60 peer-
reviewed papers have been published with focus on potential cognitive benefits stemming
from video game experience.
We now know that VGPs obtain higher scores than NVGPs on various tests of
cognitive abilities, such as multiple objects tracking (Green & Bavelier, 2006b; Boot,
Kramer, Simons, Fabiani, & Gratton, 2008; Dye & Bavelier, 2010) or task switching (Basak,
Boot, Voss, & Kramer, 2008; Colzato, van Leeuwen, van den Wildenberg, & Hommel,
2010; Cain, Landau, & Shimamura, 2012; Green, Sugarman, Medford, Klobusicky, &
Bavelier, 2012; Strobach, Frensch, & Schubert, 2012). While some studies yielded mixed
results for other cognitive tests, such as flanker compatibility (Green & Bavelier, 2007;
Durlach, Kring, & Bowens, 2009; Irons, Remington, & McLean, 2011; Cain, Landau, &
Shimamura, 2012), useful field of view (Green & Bavelier, 2006a; Feng, Spence, & Pratt,
2007; Murphy & Spencer, 2009) or intentional blindness and repetition blindness tasks
(Murphy & Spencer, 2009), a clearer picture has also been obtained by a number of training
studies where NVGPs were exposed to video game training. Researchers found that it is
possible for NVGPs to improve their performance in cognitive ability tasks after relatively
short video game trainings. These improvements were also found to last for several weeks or
months after trainings (Feng, Spence, & Pratt, 2007; Li, Polat, Makous, & Bavelier, 2009).
Additionally, recent findings suggest that far transfer might have its roots in genetic
predispositions through levels of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which is a
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 11
neuromodulator that underlies cognitive processes (Colzato, van Muiden, Band, & Hommel,
2011). It is therefore still debatable if all players can improve their cognitive abilities from
video gameplay to the same degree, however because of the general trend of increase in
performance at various cognitive tasks, it is important to investigate this field in more
detailed contexts.
1.2. Fields of Improvement
The research conducted so far suffers from lack of attention to game mechanics and
an arbitrary classification of what makes person a gamer. Genres of games also differ from
each other, but researchers either concentrate on just one or combine all players in one
group. Additionally, playing on various devices might also influence the process of cognitive
training. Therefore I will address some of the flaws present in the current peer-reviewed
papers and suggest solutions, which will provide basis for the research design of this study.
1.2.1. Sampling
The authors of many of the studies – although they provide most necessary statistical
information – attempt to generalize obtained effects for the entire population based on small
and not representative groups. The sample sizes of 8-15 per group might not be sufficient for
reliable statistical analysis (Cohen, 2008) when other sampling issues take place, such as
unbalanced groups or inclusion of males only due to difficulties in finding female players,
while keeping the control group dominated by females (for exapmles see: Green & Bavelier,
2006a; Green & Bavelier, 2006b; Green & Bavelier, 2007; Feng, Spence, & Pratt, 2007;
West, Stevens, Pun, & Pratt, 2008; Boot, Kramer, Simons, Fabiani, & Gratton, 2008; Li,
Polat, Scalzo, & Bavelier, 2010; Hubert-Wallander, Green, Sugarman, & Bavelier, 2011).
For this reason I propose a large gender balanced sample of 30 participants per group.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 12
1.2.2. Gameplay time
One major flaw of current research on video game players (VGPs) is arbitrary
assessment of who is a game player and who is not. It is common for researchers to put the
cut-off-line at between 3 and 4 days per week within the past six months without specific
time requirement (Green & Bavelier, 2006a; Green & Bavelier, 2006b; Colzato, van
Leeuwen, van den Wildenberg, & Hommel, 2010), 7 hours per week for at least past 6
months (Murphy & Spencer, 2009), also 7 hours per week, but for at least past two years
(Boot, Kramer, Simons, Fabiani, & Gratton, 2008), or “action video games at least 4 days
per week for a minimum of 1 h per day for the previous 6 months” (Green & Bavelier,
2003). However, researchers so far have treated all of these criteria liberally by assessing
frequency but not duration or going as low as 3 hours per week (Green & Bavelier, 2006a;
Colzato, van Leeuwen, van den Wildenberg, & Hommel, 2010; Chisholm, Hickey,
Theeuwes, & Kingstone, 2010; Karle, Watter, & Shedden, 2010; Irons, Remington, &
McLean, 2011; Chisholm & Kingstone, 2012; Green & Bavelier, 2006b). It is difficult to
assess where the cut-off should lay; however, playing for less than half an hour a day can
hardly be described as constant use of something as involving, such as watching movies,
driving a car or sports training. Video gameplay is a form of entertainment media similar to
watching television. In Poland over 80 percent of people watch television every day and 50
percent watch it over two hours a day (Central Statistical Office, Social Surveys and Living
Conditions Statistics Department , 2012). I therefore propose for this thesis a minimum
gameplay time of 7 hours per week within past 6 months as a minimal criterion for
classification as a video game player.
1.2.3. Genre and display time
Most studies have failed to report types of games played and/or devices used, or have
tested only action video game players. It is however extremely important for our
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 13
understanding of cognitive processes to determine both the types of games (which utilize
different skills and cognitive abilities) and the type of devices. Genres also differ from each
other (which is discussed in detail in the next section). There is a tremendous difference
between low-action adventure games and heavily packed first person shooting (FPS) or real
time strategy (RTS) games. The number of objects requiring attention and actions required to
be performed in a limited time are components which can heavily weigh on performance in
tests of cognitive abilities. Elderly training with RTS games have already shown
improvement in executive control functions (task switching, visual short-term memory,
working memory) (Basak, Boot, Voss, & Kramer, 2008).The differences between devices
may also directly influence the experience and gameplay, e.g. field of view when playing on
mobile phone differs from when playing on portable gaming device or PC or large TV set
(which is typical for gaming consoles).
I therefore propose the inclusion of only participants playing on large displays (PC
and console) because the field of view they experience in games is larger and more likely to
stimulate visual attention. I also propose use of FPS and RTS players only in order to
identify most beneficial environments from two of the most popular genres.
1.2.4. Object-based attention
When trying to understand how video game players allocate attentional resources
with multiple objects present, some studies have showed that VGPs perform better than
NVGPs in enumeration task (Green & Bavelier, 2006b). In this task participants are asked to
observe multiple quickly flashed squares and determine their number; however, other results
of replication study did not yield such results (Boot, Kramer, Simons, Fabiani, & Gratton,
2008).
In their research Green and Bevalier (2006b) aimed to verify whether the processing
of multiple objects at the same time can be facilitated by video gameplay. They implemented
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 14
the multiple objects tracking paradigm to address this question. In this task they were asked
to track various number of circles moving within the field of view. This task requires
allocating attention to a number of objects within the field of view and tracking their
changing position for a short period of time. Their results showed that VGPs were able to
track approximately two more objects when compared to NVGPs. Additionally, they found
that NVGPs trained with action video games can improve their performance at MOT. In a
cross-sectional study, Boot, Kramer, Simons, Fabiani and Gratton (2008) replicated the main
effect of group where VGPs significantly outperformed NVGPs; however, they failed to find
a significant result for longitudinal groups.
Tasks in which participants are asked to visually track multiple objects at the same
time require allocation of visual attention to multiple items. This task differs from other
attentional tasks, as it requires connecting attention to targets and maintaining this
connection in an environment rich of distractors (Cavanagh & Alvarez, 2005). Therefore it
informs how (to how many targets) the attention can be divided within the field of view in a
rich, changing environment. Selection, tracking and encoding are important functions
required for many everyday activities (such as driving a car on a busy road or playing
football) and specialist occupations (e.g. air traffic control, overseeing swimmers by a
lifeguard). The possibility of training them may be extremely beneficial for patients
suffering from impaired cognitive functioning who seek neurorehabilitation as a result of
their disorder or trauma. Additionally, the ability to track multiple objects decreases with age
– young individuals can easily track 4 moving objects at the same time, while elderly is
capable to track on average only 3 objects simultaneously (Trick, Perl, & Sethi, 2005). It is
therefore important to evaluate the possibility of video game training as a motivating tool for
improvement of visual attention especially also for the elderly. In this study I propose to
extend the study of Green and Bavelier (2006b) by replicating their MOT procedure with
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 15
addition of real time strategy players as they may show larger improvements in performance
than first person shooting game players.
1.3. Video Games Genres and Their Players
There are different ways to classify video games based on various criteria. In past
research games classified as action genre were at least questionable, as its definition was
based on Green & Bavelier’s (2006a) description: “(games) that have fast motion, require
vigilant monitoring of the visual periphery, and often require simultaneous tracking of
multiple targets”. This general description can match most of the genres available on the
market, which led to classifying as action VGPs all participants playing anything from
Counter-Strike (first-person shooter) or Grand Theft Auto series (third-person action-
adventure) to Marvel vs. Capcom (fighting) or even Super Mario Kart (racing game).
Most commonly, games are classified into certain genres based on their type of
gameplay as opposed to differences in their audio-visual or narrative components (Apperley,
2006). Unlike other forms of fiction, such as books, films or plays, video games are
classified independently from the setting or world they present. With more games being
created many borders between genres tend to overlap. As a result, a simplified classification
was proposed for this study’s recruitment (for details see Appendix A) and two genres were
selected for the purpose of this study.
1.3.1. First person shooters
Commonly known as FPS, this type of game simulates combat from the first person
(egocentric) perspective of a player-controlled protagonist. The perspective of a soldier is
intended to elicit a feeling of presence, or “feeling of being there” (Lombard & Ditton,
1997), in the environment and participating in the action as it would look like in real life.
Although many FPS games provide players with single-player experience where opponents
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 16
and allies are controlled by artificial intelligence algorithms, this genre is mostly experienced
in multiplayer mode (with other players). These two modes do not differ much on a first
look, but differ in consequences of undertaken actions. Activities required from a player
differ between the modes both by qualitative and quantitative means.
In single player the protagonist is most commonly led by a scripted linear scenario
and mistakes usually do not have many consequences aside from necessity to replay the
failed part. Player is often supported by other computer-controlled soldiers and is not
required to be aware of their location.
In multiplayer mode motivation is often dependent on mistakes which are punished
by a waiting period to re-join the game, lower scoring points and decrease in team progress.
This mode is usually preferred by frequent FPS players (because each game provides novel
or different experience) and it often requires higher motor coordination skills, observing a
map in a corner which displays surroundings (Figure 1), making decisions about directions
of attack, controlling resources (ammunition) and controlling body movement, often
communicating with other players at the same time through voice or in-game chat.
Additionally there are various multiplayer modes available in games, ranging from “free for
all” where player has to shoot all other players, team death-match where two teams compete
between each other in number of killed enemies, to more objective based, where one team
defends certain area from other team or has to steal an object protected by another team.
Although these activities are complex in some ways, tracking multiple objects is
required mostly incidentally. The field of view of the protagonist is restricted and limited by
the number of objects which can appear in front of him. Therefore, most of the time the
focus remains in the centre of the screen where the reticule is displayed, with occasional
saccades (switching point of fixation from one position to other) to corners with map display
or gear summary.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 17
Figure 1. Screenshot from Battlefield 3 gameplay (Psygeist, 2012).
1.3.2. Real-time strategy
The real-time strategy genre is commonly known as RTS, but often is also
incorrectly generalized as “strategy games”. In this genre action of the game is continuous
(as opposed to turn-based strategies, where time restrictions are of lower importance). In this
genre player typically sees the game from top-down (allocentric) perspective where multiple
animated elements of the game are presented on the screen simultaneously. Classical RTS
consists of three components: managing resources (such as blue crystals on Figure 2),
developing infrastructure (cubical building), as well as developing army and performing
military operations. All these activities often take place within a single “screen” which leads
to a necessity of observing multiple, often moving, objects within the field of view at the
same time and remaining updated at all time. This genre is characterized by high frequency
of various actions to which the player has to react. During the game the time spent on
activities is important; therefore players usually control the progress of other game elements
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 18
with help of peripheral vision, while focusing on one point of attention. Because of that, this
genre resembles the multiple objects tracking paradigm more than first person shooting
games
Figure 2. Screenshot from Starcraft 2 gameplay (HuskyStarcraft, 2013).
Similarly to FPS, RTS games are commonly played in a multiplayer mode. The
differences between single and multiplayer modes usually narrow down to the level of
difficulty, where playing with human opponent is usually considered more challenging due
to less predictable behaviour.
To summarize, the difference between these two genres with regard to multiple
objects paradigm is rooted in their core mechanics. In FPS games player has narrower field
of vision and moves across the map with actions performed only when the stimulus is
present just in front of him. In RTS games player oversees the map from above, controls
multiple units and resources simultaneously, and has to be aware of complex and detailed
environment.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 19
1.3.3. Who are video game players
In recent TNS OBOP report (2011), in Poland 31% of females and 39% of males
declared that they played a game within a past month. The current mean age of video game
players is around 35 years old, where 32% of players are under 18 years old, 32% is aged 18-
35 years and 36% has 36 years or more; with mean of 15 years of gameplay experience
(Entertainment Software Association, 2013). While gamers age, they tend to play less
frequently, which they commonly explain as lack of sufficient time rather than disinterest. It
is therefore important to work on and create tools which would be able to stimulate cognitive
abilities based on mechanisms derived from video games, but at the same time being less
time consuming. Motivating people to train and improve by decreasing the required training
time and allowing access through devices of everyday use (e.g. mobile phones) can result in
much easier access to cognitive improvement. In order to achieve this goal, it is important to
identify key elements of video games which are possible to extract and implement into
training tools.
When asked about types of games played (Draszanowska, Gańko, Samołyk, Sroka,
& Strzałkowska, 2012), males listed their preferences for racing games (46%), logic games
(43%), action (43), strategy (41%), adventure (38%), or sport (36%), however they did not
report any information regarding the frequency or preference of one genre over another.
Females on the other hand listed most commonly logic games (70%), followed by adventure
(46%) and strategy (27%). These differences in preferences are key to understanding how
video games are classified, which ones appeal to either gender, and who can be addressed
with trainings based on components extracted from a particular genre.
During past ten years demographics of players changed and teenagers back then now
continue their hobby as adults. In that time research on cognitive abilities and video games
expanded and resulted with more publications than ever before. Most of the research
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 20
concentrated on tests of cognitive abilities: processing speed, mental flexibility, executive
functions, and other attentional processes. Both cross-sectional and training studies have led
to conclusion that some benefits experienced by video game players can be achieved by
NVGPs after sufficient training regime. Since combining the motivational factor of video
game environments with their potential cognitive benefits has already been considered an
alternative to classical cognitive trainings, now it is time to make sure that such tools will be
created on grounds of scientific research. It is therefore important to understand who the
people playing video games are and whether there is something specific about this group
before attempting to replicate or measure benefits of this group .
The possibility of creating a more efficient cognitive training paradigm is important
not only for persons seeking self-improvement for professional or personal reasons, but are
also a key factor for patients with cognitive impairments. Aside from neurorehabilitation
issues, current developed and developing countries struggle with the aging of their societies.
In order to counter the effects of cognitive aging (such as decrease in working memory
capacity or perceptual/processing speed), an efficient and motivating form of cognitive
training can substantially benefit the elderly and later days of current adults' lives.
2. Research Problems
Recent literature on visual attention and video gameplay is based mostly on either a
broad group of video game players or focuses on action video game players as a niche.
Hubert-Wallander, Green and Bavelier (2011) in their review point out that “studies have
shown, for example, that visual attention remains unchanged after training on strategy games
like Rise of Nations.” This statement refers to a training study conducted on older adults
where cognitive changes were observed after 23.5h training regime (Basak, Boot, Voss, &
Kramer, 2008). Even though participants training with strategy games did not improve on
some executive control and visuospatial tasks, they showed improvements in executive
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 21
control functions: task switching, working memory, visual short-term memory, reasoning.
The purpose, and yet one of the limitations of this study is its restricted elder sample. Failing
to reproduce some of the effects observed in younger population informs us about different
learning capacity between these groups. However, it does not explain if there are changes
among current players and if so – how they compare with other genres’ frequent players.
Lastly, they did not utilize the multiple objects tracking paradigm which out of various
visuo-spatial attention tasks seems to be most closely related to real time strategy games.
In order to address this gap, this thesis will address following research questions:
Can playing games benefit the ability to track multiple objects
simultaneously?
Does playing real time strategy games benefit multiple objects tracking
more than playing first person shooters?
Are real time strategy games similar to multiple objects paradigm more
than first person shooters?
If action video game players are indeed better at tracking three, four and five circles
at the same time when compared with non-video game players, as presented by Green and
Bavelier (2006b), in this study the FPS group should outperform the NVGP group when
three, four or five circles have to be tracked. If the assumption, that the MOT task is more
similar to classical RTS mechanisms than to mechanics of FPS games is true, then not only
RTS players should outperform FPS players, but also outperform the NVGP group. Finally,
a manipulation check will be done by asking the participants after the procedure whether
MOT mechanics are more similar to RTS games compared with FPS games.
With the purpose of addressing these questions a study with RTS and FPS players
has been conducted. As a control group participants with no video gameplay experience
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 22
were tested. The following hypotheses were formulated in order to address the research
questions:
2.1. Hypothesis #1
First Person Shooter players will perform significantly better at Multiple Objects
Tracking compared with Non-Video Game Players as measured by overall accuracy.
2.1.1. Hypothesis #1a
When difficulty increases at three, four and five simultaneously moving objects,
First Person Shooter players will perform significantly better at Multiple Objects Tracking
compared with Non-Video Game Players.
2.2. Hypothesis #2
Real-Time Strategy players will perform significantly better at Multiple Objects
Tracking compared with First Person Shooter players as measured by overall accuracy.
2.2.1. Hypothesis #2a
When difficulty increases at three, four and five simultaneously moving objects,
Real-Time Strategy players will perform significantly better at Multiple Objects Tracking
compared with First Person Shooter players.
2.3. Hypothesis #3
Real-Time Strategy players will perform significantly better at Multiple Objects
Tracking compared with Non-Video Game Players.
2.3.1. Hypothesis #3a
When difficulty increases at three, four and five simultaneously moving objects
Real-Time Strategy players will perform significantly better at Multiple Objects Tracking
compared with Non-Video Game Players.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 23
2.4. Manipulation check
Real-Time Strategy players will report that Multiple Objects Tracking task is more
similar to the games they primarily play compared with First Person Shooter players.
3. Method
In everyday life, when walking in the city or looking at a landscape, we observe a
montage of many objects at the same time. We carry out saccades (quick movement of eyes
from one point of focus to another) and fixate (briefly pause) on points of interest (Goldstein,
2008). However, we also pay attention to objects which are not in our direct line of sight. We
are able to identify them quickly without focusing on each one separately (Kosslyn, 1996).
Visual attention is a cognitive process of concentrating on selected elements within
the visual field while ignoring others (Martin, Carlson, & Buskist, 2007). The multiple
objects tracking (MOT) paradigm was pioneered by Zenon Pylyshyn (Pylyshyn & Storm,
1988). It is a technique used to study how multiple moving objects are tracked by the visual
system independent of eye movement.
Alterations in visual attention and perceptual processes as well as visuo-motor
coordination can be an effect of video gameplay (among both adults and children), as shown
by numerous researchers (Gopher, Well, & Bareket, 1994; Greenfield, DeWinstanley,
Kilpatrick, & Kaye, 1994; Dorval & Pepin, 1996; Clark, Fleck, & Mitroff, 2011; Green,
Sugarman, Medford, Klobusicky, & Bavelier, 2012; Strobach, Frensch, & Schubert, 2012).
3.1. Participants
All participants in this study were recruited via an online screening questionnaire
from gumtree.pl announcement website, and from students of University of Social Sciences
and Humanities. All participants received monetary compensation for taking part in this
study (10zl). Additionally, afterwards they could have taken part in other procedures carried
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 24
out that day in the laboratory, which allowed them to receive additional compensation (20zl).
All signed informed consent forms in which they also declared to be over 18 years old, not
being under influence of alcohol or any psychoactive substances, and that are able to read
and understand Polish language fluently. None of the participants were colour-blind for red
and green and all of them had good or corrected vision.
A total of 90 participants were recruited from 1864 volunteers. The main aim of the
study was to compare performance between FPS, RTS and NVGPs. In order to recruit
persons playing predominantly one type of video game, participants were recruited based on
several strict criteria.
3.1.1. Genre and mean gameplay time
Participants were assigned to either one of three groups: VGPs playing primarily
First Person Shooters (n=30), VGPs playing primarily Real Time Strategies (n=30) and
NVGPs (n=30). In order to be assigned to either of VGP groups participants had to declare
their weekly mean time committed to this particular genre as minimum of seven hours a
week in past 6 months.
For example, in order to make sure that participants are primarily FPS players they
could not play RTS more than 5h per week and vice versa. Other genres were controlled for
and did not influence the selection during recruitment process. In order to create an
appropriate sample, NVGP group members could not play more than 2h a week FPS and
RTS in total (for details see table 1) and more than 5h a week of all genres in total.
Table 1
Gameplay time across the groups
Group
Hours spent playing
FPS games per week
Hours spent playing
RTS games per week
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 25
M SD M SD
FPS group 18.83 6.55 0.70 1.51
RTS group 1.87 1.83 19.10 8.62
NVGP group .50 .82 .20 .55
3.1.2. Age
All persons taking part in the study had to be at least 18 years old. In order to
decrease a possibility of aging processes significantly skewing the results, participants’ age
limit has been set to 35 because it should include the middle 1/3 of gaming population, but
also to limit the possible effects of cognitive aging on the performance in test (Basak, Boot,
Voss, & Kramer, 2008; Cebeza, et al., 2004). Mean ages of participants within each category
were as follows: MFPS = 22.13, SD = 3.93; MRTS = 22.23, SD = 4.50 and MNVGP = 25.40, SD =
4.40.
3.1.3. Gender
In order to control for possible differences, gender has been controlled for during the
recruitment process. Each group had 2 female members. It should be noted that only 2
female players meeting recruitment criteria for each gamers’ category could be found (which
keeps them balanced across the samples). Since they were recruited from a large sample of
over 1800 volunteers, it is possible that such gender composition might be close to
representative of the population and therefore it is more likely to compose an ecologically
valid sample.
3.2. Materials
3.2.1. Multiple objects tracking
For the purpose of this study special software was created. The specifications were
based on the task used in a study by Green and Bavelier (2006b). In this procedure
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 26
participants were seated with their eyes approximately 65 centimetres away from the screen
and the distances and sizes of objects on the screen were calculated to match the angular
values as in the original study. Participants fixated at the centre ring (.25°) on the screen and
pressed spacebar in order to proceed to the next trial. During each trial a circular grey
background (r=10°) was displayed with 16 circles (.5°) moving towards random directions at
rate of 5°/s. With minimum separation between the circles of .5°, when contacted they would
repel each other.
As demonstrated on figure 3, at the beginning of each trial a random number of
circles (1-7) turned colour to red, while the rest remained black. Participants’ task was to
attend to the red circles, which after 2 seconds changed colour back to black, and track their
position. At this point all of the 16 circles were coloured black. After 5 seconds of all circles
moving towards random directions, one circle changed colour to yellow. Participants’ task
was to respond whether the yellow circle was originally highlighted in red. The answer was
given by either pressing the “Z” button (yes) or “M” button (no) on keyboard.
Each number of simultaneously highlighted circles (between one and seven) was
presented randomly 10 times with correct “yes” response” and 10 times with correct “no”
response, thus the total number of trials was 140. Despite the fact, that no differences in
accuracies were expected in conditions with 1 or 2 highlighted circles, these conditions
remained in the procedure. If participants would answer randomly they would be likely to
achieve accuracy of around 50%. If they would answer either “yes” or “no” to all of the
trials, their accuracy would also be close to 50%. Such discrimination may not be possible in
more difficult conditions, as the likelihood of answering correctly should decrease together
with increasing number of circles.
In order to familiarize participants with the procedure, before the experiment started,
participants took part in three practice trials, where 1, 2 and 3 objects were highlighted.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 27
Figure 3. Multiple Objects Tracking. 1. Trial starts. 2. While focused on the centre ring,
some of the circles change colour to red. 3. Circles return to their original colour and move
randomly within the gray circle. 4. One circle is highlighted and participant responds with
“Z” (yes) or “M” (no) on the keyboard. 5. Participant receives feedback. 6. Participant
continues to the next trial.
3.2.2. Hardware
The MOT task was displayed on 22 inches (diagonally) ViewSonic VX2268wm
LCD monitor with refresh rate of 100Hz. The display was 60cm away from the participants’
eyes. Participants responded to the test using a mechanical keyboard. JVC HA-NC250
headphones with active noise cancellation were used in order to minimize disruption.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 28
3.2.3. Lab environment
All participants were tested in the same laboratory at the same work station. The
height of the chair was adjustable. There was no distraction caused by noise from the
outside. The room was illuminated throughout the entire procedure.
3.3. Design
A 3 (FPS / RTS / NVGP) x 7 (no. of circles to track) factorial design was used.
Participants were assigned to their groups by the time of gameplay in either FPS or RTS or a
lack of thereof. Groups were matched in age (18-35) and gender (balanced across the
groups) in order to decrease a possibility of these factors affecting the results. Mean
gameplay time was controlled for to make sure that an extreme (over 40h/week of declared
gameplay time, which is equivalent to full-time job) player will not affect the results.
Correct and incorrect responses were recorded for all trials where 1-7 circles were
highlighted. A mean score of 20 trials for each of 1-7 circle cases was calculated, resulting in
7 dependent variables. While
A final check has been done to verify whether the task was more similar to the games
FPS and RTS players usually play.
3.4. Procedure
Participants were recruited through online screening questionnaire designed to
identify participants appropriate for either of the three groups. Questions about age, gender,
education, video game habits and contact details were gathered.
Participants who completed the questionnaire and met the recruitment criteria were
individually scheduled for the study. All of the sessions took place in the Virtual Reality
Laboratory (VRLab) of the Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences.
Participants filled in a consent form and were informed that they are allowed to discontinue
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 29
the experiment at any given time without repercussions. Additionally, they were informed
that the group they belong to should achieve higher scores. This attempt to equalize the
motivational levels has been derived from Strobach, Frensch and Schubert’s (2012)
recruitment procedure, where the advertisement of their study was promoted by two types of
flyers addressed to VGPs and NVGPs separately. This manipulation has been implemented
as a response to Boot, Blakeley and Simons’s (2011) critique. They argued that players
recruited because of their gaming experience to a study, where the tests are game-like, may
expect to perform better. Such expectation, as a result, may influence the performance on the
test. The influence of mind-set has already been shown to influence the results of visual
acuity tests (Langer, Djikic, Pirson, Madenci, & Donohue, 2010). Participants were also
informed that their results will not be analyzed individually and they will not receive an
overall accuracy score. Afterwards, participants sat down in front of the computer, adjusted
their seat and were asked to remain in that position for duration of the study. Participants
were informed that in case of any questions or doubts they should not proceed further with
the experiment but ask the experimenter for assistance. Once they put headset on, they read
instruction and when ready preceded to three practice trials. After three training trials they
were informed that the total number of trials to follow is 140 and in order to initiate the next
trial, they have to press spacebar.
Each MOT procedure lasted around 30-35 minutes. Upon completion, participants in
FPS and RTS groups were asked to assess how similar the test was to the type of game they
play most. They provided answers on a paper-based seven-level Likert scale answer sheet
where 1 meant “not at all” and 7 meant “very much”.
Afterwards participants were thanked and informed of real hypotheses of the study.
They received their compensation and confirmed it with their signature. The entire procedure
was carried out with respect to APA ethical guidelines.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 30
4. Results
In this study all answers were coded as 0 (incorrect) and 1 (correct). For each circle
condition 10 correct answers were “yes”, and 10 correct answers were “no”. Scores for each
circle condition were added together and divided by the number of times they occurred (10
“yes” and 10 “no” resulting in total of 20). Therefore separate mean accuracies of each
participant for each number of circles were placed on a scale from 0 (0% correct) to 1 (100%
correct). The mean accuracy across all trials was calculated by addition of all individual
accuracies for all responses and divided by the number of occurrences (7 circle conditions x
20 “yes” and “no” = 140).
During the study, data of two FPS players was lost due to technical difficulties.
Additionally, two outliers (belonging to the RTS group) were found by analysis of z-scores
at 2.5 standard deviations threshold. Their mean accuracies were lower than means of any of
the groups (M = .58, M = .64). Throughout the experiment it has been noted that they did not
pay attention to the instructions and kept looking away during trials. One failed to track
neither of 1, 2 nor 3 circles during practice trials, the second one kept answering “yes” to
most of the trials. None of the female participants were outliers and their scores did not
significantly differ from males in any of the groups (ps > .5); therefore female and male data
were analyzed together. Following accuracy analyses were conducted on 28 FPS players, 28
RTS players and 30 NVGPs. An overall main effect of groups: FPS: M = .791 , SD = .055;
RTS: M = .823, SD = .044; NVGP: M = .782, SD = .054; F(2,83) = 4.91, p = .01 was
observed.
4.1. Hypothesis #1
A one-way analysis of variance was run to determine the effect of video game
experience of action video game players on performance in multiple objects tracking test of
visual attention. Seven measures of accuracy for number of circles 1-7 were assessed.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 31
Participants were assigned into two groups based on their video game experience: if they
played primarily FPS games, they were assigned to FPS group. If they met the requirements
of NVGP group as described in methods section of this thesis, they were assigned to NVGP
group.
In order to test hypothesis #1, results for samples of 28 FPS players and 30 NVGPs
were analyzed. There was homogeneity of variances, as assessed by Levene's Test of
Homogeneity of Variance (p > .05). No main effect of group was observed F(1,56) = .349, p
= .557.
4.1.1. Hypothesis #1a
Individual analyses for each number of circles indicated a no significant or marginal
differences between groups (Figure 4).
Figure 4. Mean accuracy of FPS and NVGP groups for each number of circles on a scale
from 0 (0% correct responses) to 1 (100% correct responses). Error bars represent standard
errors.
0,55
0,6
0,65
0,7
0,75
0,8
0,85
0,9
0,95
1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Co
rre
ct r
esp
on
ses
Number of circles
FPS
NVGP
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 32
4.2. Hypothesis #2
A one-way analysis of variance was run to determine the effect of video game
experience of action video game players on performance in multiple objects tracking test of
visual attention. Seven measures of accuracy for number of circles 1-7 were assessed.
Participants were assigned into two groups based on their video game experience: if they
played primarily FPS games, they were assigned to FPS group, if they played primarily RTS
games, they were assigned to RTS group
In order to test hypothesis #2, results for samples of 28 FPS players and 28 RTS
players were analyzed. There was homogeneity of variances, as assessed by Levene's Test of
Homogeneity of Variance (p > .05). Main effect of groups was observed F(1, 54) = 5.721, p
= .02.
4.2.1. Hypothesis #2a
Individual analyses for each number of circles indicated a significant advantage (p =
.038) for RTS players (M = .900, SD = .0667) over FPS players (M = .852, SD = .099) only
for three circles to track (Figure 7).
Additionally, there was marginally significant advantage (p = .066) for RTS (M =
.679, SD = .093) over FPS group (M = .625, SD = .119) for seven circles to track.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 33
Figure 5. Mean accuracy of FPS and RTS groups for each number of circles on a scale from
0 (0% correct responses) to 1 (100% correct responses). Error bars represent standard errors.
* p = .038
4.3. Hypothesis #3
A one-way analysis of variance was run to determine the effect of video game
experience of action video game players on performance in multiple objects tracking test of
visual attention. Seven measures of accuracy for number of circles 1-7 were assessed.
Participants were assigned into two groups based on their video game experience: if they
played primarily RTS games, they were assigned to RTS group. If they met the requirements
of NVGP group as described in methods section of this thesis, they were assigned to NVGP
group.
In order to test hypothesis #3, results for samples of 28 RTS players and 30 NVGP
players were analyzed. There was homogeneity of variances, as assessed by Levene's Test of
0,55
0,6
0,65
0,7
0,75
0,8
0,85
0,9
0,95
1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Co
rre
ct r
esp
on
ses
Number of circles
FPS
RTS
*
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 34
Homogeneity of Variance (p > .05). Main effect of groups was observed F(1, 56) = 9.610, p
= .003.
4.3.1. Hypothesis #3a
Individual analyses for each number of circles indicated a significant advantage (p =
.011) for RTS players (M = .900, SD = .067) over NVGP group (M = .840, SD = .101) for
three circles to track, a significant advantage (p = .004) for RTS players (M = .829, SD =
.075) over NVGP group (M = .752, SD = .113) for four circles to track. It has not been
hypothesized, however a significant advantage (p = .033) for RTS players (M = .679, SD =
.093) over NVGP group (M = .620, SD = .111) for seven circles to track was found (Figure
7).
Additionally there was marginally significant advantage (p = .069) for RTS players
(M = .991, SD = .024) over NVGP group (M = .977, SD = .034) for one circle to track and
marginally significant advantage (p = .066) for RTS players (M = .752, SD = .125) over
NVGP group (M = .693, SD = .112) for five circles to track.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 35
Figure 6. Mean accuracy of RTS and NVGP groups for each number of circles on a scale
from 0 (0% correct responses) to 1 (100% correct responses). Error bars represent standard
errors. * p = .011, ** p = .004, *** p = .033
4.4. Manipulation check
An independent-samples t-test was run to determine if there were differences in
similarity of MOT and games played either by RTS or FPS players. Mean scores were not
normally distributed, as assessed by Shapiro-Wilk's test (p < .05); however, the independent-
samples t-test still can be considered robust because it does not substantially affect Type I
error rate. The assumption of homogeneity of variances was violated, as assessed by
Levene's Test for Equality of Variances (p = .019). The Multiple Objects Tracking task was
more similar to games played by RTS players (M = 6.10, SE = .194) than FPS players (M =
5.00, SE = .299 ) as presented on Figure 6. This difference was statistically significant, t
(49.681) = -3.084, p = .003.
0,55
0,6
0,65
0,7
0,75
0,8
0,85
0,9
0,95
1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Co
rre
ct r
esp
on
ses
Number of circles
RTS
NVGP
*
**
***
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 36
Figure 7. Declared mean similarity of Multiple Objects Tracking task for each players group
(FPS and RTS) on a scale from 1 (not similar) to 7 (very similar). Error bars represent
standard errors.
5. Discussion
The purpose of this thesis was to address the research findings on video games and
visual cognition. I tried to verify whether video games can benefit the ability to track
multiple objects simultaneously over time, whether there is a difference between two of most
popular genres (FPS and RTS) and whether there is a similarity of RTS games and MOT
task.
5.1. Verification of Hypotheses #1 and #1a
Contrary to the results presented by Green and Bavelier (2006b), no presence of
main effect of group and lack of significant differences in performance across all difficulty
conditions indicate that FPS players do not outperform NVGPs in their ability to track
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Me
an s
imila
rity
of
MO
T to
gam
es
pla
yed
FPS
RTS
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 37
several objects simultaneously over time. These results contradict the findings of Green and
Bavelier, however for the purpose of this study participants had to play more hours per week
and primarily FPS games in order to be classified as action video game players. Green and
Bavelier did not provide any information about means and standard deviations of mean
gameplay time in their sample, therefore it is possible that their results might have been
influenced by sampling. In order to decrease the possibility of that happening, I increased the
sample sizes three times compared to the original study. Failing to replicate the original
study suggests that action VGPs do not outperform NVGPs in MOT task and the first
hypothesis cannot be supported.
5.2. Verification of Hypotheses #2 and #2a
The results showed difference in advantage of RTS over FPS players for three
simultaneously tracked circles only. When tracing more or less than three circles, RTS
players were not significantly better than FPS players. Therefore the hypothesis is partially
supported, because the results show an advantage of RTS players in tracing three moving
items.
5.3. Verification of Hypotheses #3 and #3a
When RTS players were compared to the NVGP group, on average they performed
better at tracing three or more circles simultaneously. As expected, the cases with three and
four circles showed significant differences between the groups. Surprisingly there was also
an advantage of RTS players in tracing seven items. Such result was not expected not only
because tracing that many objects should be very difficult for everyone, but also because
there was only a marginal advantage of RTS group at five circles and no advantage at six
circles.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 38
However, these results support the hypothesis that in general RTS players are able to
track more items simultaneously when compared to NVGPs, but the advantage fades when
five objects need to be tracked.
5.4. Manipulation check
A main finding of this hypothesis is that MOT task is perceived by RTS players as
more similar to the games they play, when compared with FPS players, which supports the
hypothesis #2. Therefore it is more likely that due to familiarity of MOT mechanics, RTS
players will outperform FPS players.
Table 2
Summary of differences in mean accuracies between compared groups for each difficulty
level (measured in no. of circles tracked).
Difficulty FPS vs. NVGP FPS vs. RTS* RTS vs. NVGP*
1 circle − − −
2 circles − − −
3 circles − RTS better a RTS better
b
4 circles − − RTS better c
5 circles − − −
6 circles − − −
7 circles − − RTS better d
Note. Only statistically significant results are presented.* - significant main effects of group.
a denotes p = .038.
b denotes
p = .011.
c denotes p = .004.
d denotes p = .033.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 39
5.6. Summary
The results show that differences between RTS, FPS and NVGPs in the ability to track
multiple objects simultaneously differ from what we knew so far. The advantages do not
support previous claims of the original study that action video game players outperform non-
players (Green & Bavelier, 2006b). As presented in table 2, the overall results indicate that
there is a limit in advantage from playing RTS games. Even though the RTS group
performed better than NVGPs at tracking seven objects, the advantages seem to disappear
earlier, at tracking five items.
It is important for the future research to not only pay more attention to game genres
when designing the studies, but also begin investigating possible advantages of playing
various types of games. This study concentrated on measuring the accuracy at MOT task,
however investigating reaction times and manipulating the speed of objects’ movement may
provide more details on differences in visual attention among players of different genres.
Similar approach, where researchers pointed out that not all video games are equal and may
yield various independent cognitive benefits, has already been taken by Boot, Kramer,
Simons, Fabiani, and Gratton (2008), but they did not report any in-depth analysis with
separation by game genre. This study concentrated on effects of RTS video games, where
players are required to keep numerous items in short-term memory, visually follow multiple
moving objects simultaneously, process presented information and make concious decisions
at the same time. These tasks all together are more complex than for example puzzle games
(Green & Bavelier, 2006a; Green & Bavelier, 2006b; Green & Bavelier, 2007; Feng, Spence,
& Pratt, 2007), or life simulation games (Li, Polat, Scalzo, & Bavelier, 2010; Green,
Sugarman, Medford, Klobusicky, & Bavelier, 2012) which are often used as control groups’
training tasks. These results show that while investigating cognitive benefits of video games,
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 40
researchers must first understand mechanisms of more video game genres and do not treat all
of them as equal.
5.7. Methodological Observations
Based on prior research by Green and Bavelier (2006b) we know that eye-movement
from the centre greater than 1° happens fairly rarely (c.a. 6%) and was consistent across
groups, however due to lack of appropriate equipment, no eye-tracking check has been done.
One of the limitations of this study was lack of appropriate equipment which would
support participants’ heads in steady position. Such device would assure that the angle of
view would remain standardized across the participants.
When studying video games, the main limitation of cross-sectional design is lack of
control over video game experience during childhood and throughout adolescence. Video
game players usually start playing games earlier in their life, which means that they have
thousands of hours of gameplay experience with video games. For this reason studies on
video games may give different results when concentrated on training either children or
adults inexperienced with video games. Another disadvantage of the cross-sectional design is
the fact that it is impossible to explain whether the group, which outperformed others, did so
because they benefited from their experience, or rather they are more likely to play video
games simply because it is easier for them and they can outmatch others thanks to higher
initial skill levels.
Additionally, an important observation is a number of RTS players who (after the
experiment session was over) described the MOT task as “fun”. Such claims were not as
common in FPS or NVGP groups. It supports the results of RTS players judging it as more
similar to the form of entertainment of their choice; however it could have also influenced
their performance due to increased familiarity of the tasks’ rules. In order to minimize the
differences in motivation between the groups, a manipulation has been has been
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 41
implemented, where participants of both groups were told prior to the study, that they should
perform better. They were informed that this is not a diagnostic study and their results will
only be analyzed on a group level; however it is still possible that participants who do not
enjoy competition could feel more pressure on themselves, which could affect their
performance. This could especially be the case of NVGPs, who might not play games simply
because of its common competitiveness.
5.8. Closing Remarks
Researching video games and their effects on cognitive performance is interesting
because classical cognitive trainings are recently found not to be as effective as thought
before. If their elements of fun and intrinsic motivation could help the society to slow down
the process of cognitive aging, the benefits would be a step forward in use of modern
technologies.
The results of this thesis show that research on cognitive improvement and video
games should not be narrowed to players of action video games only. In this study only the
multiple objects tracking paradigm was implemented, while investigating visuospatial
abilities of gameplay requires more encompassed sets of studies. Nevertheless, results of this
study indicate the need for more accurate replication of previous researches. Moreover,
research done so far concentrates mostly on samples of FPS gamers or video game players in
general. The rationale behind it is unclear because not a single study attempted to analyze
elements of particular genres and their similarities to various cognitive tasks.
Research on cognitive improvements through video gameplay is very important in
the context of changes which modern societies undergo. We play games on numerous
devices; children from early years are more familiar with electronic interfaces than with
handwriting, thus taking advantage of these changes may provide revolutionary benefits. It is
too early to fully study the generations brought up on video games, but perhaps in upcoming
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 42
years we will be able to explain the correlation between the cognitive skills and video games,
and apply them in more scientifically controlled trainings. Such trainings might also play a
vital role in neurorehabilitation of patients seeking cognitive improvement.
It is important to verify if video games indeed improve cognitive skills and these
correlations are not present because, for example, people with good cognitive abilities are
better at games and therefore play them. Additionally, future research should investigate not
only improvements in laboratory tasks, such as MOT, but also observe improvements in
everyday life tasks, such as ability to notice multiple road signs while driving, find persons
of interest from within a crowd or play various types of sports. This task is very specific and
differs from other attentional tests used by researchers. It answers a very particular question
of the limit, as to how many connections with targets can be maintained simultaneously,
while they are not only in motion, but also among distractors which are also changing its
position (Cavanagh & Alvarez, 2005). However, more in-depth studies are required to
investigate individual abilities required for successful multiple objects tracking. Only then
we will understand if video gameplay benefits both visual memory and tracking, or if it one
of these components. Finally, we still cannot pin exact functions to precise game mechanics.
Studies, where the result of gameplay experience is observed will not address this issue.
Therefore, implementing eye-tracking procedures, tasks variations, and manipulating with
the mechanics themselves is required for successful identification of game elements which
can potentially benefit cognition.
Since this field of research is relatively new and growing, it is my hope that the study
I presented will help in finding the optimal benefits of video games, which might later be
applied in contexts more ambitious than simple entertainment.
EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 43
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EFFECTS OF VIDEO GAMES ON VISUAL ATTENTION 50
Appendix A
Table 1.
List of game genres and examples used during the recruitment process.
Genre Examples
First Person Shooter Call of Duty, Counter-Strike, Battlefield
Platform Mario, Donkey Kong, Rayman
Fighting Street Fighter, Tekken, Virtua Fighter
Adventure Zelda, Tomb Raider, Uncharted
Turn-Based Strategy Civilization, Heroes of Might and Magic,
Total War Series
Real Time Strategy StarCraft, Command & Conquer, Age of
Empires
Role-Playing Games Elder Scrolls, Final Fantasy, Fallout
Racing Need for Speed, Gran Turismo, Forza
Puzzle Angry Birds, Portal, Lemmings
Multiplayer Online Battle Arenaa
League of Legends, Dota 2, Warhammer
Online, World of Tanks
Note. a Multiple Online Battle Arena games were treated separately from Real Time Strategies due to
differences in mechanics and types of operations required during gameplay.
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