The Effect of Computer Games on Memory (DP IB Psychology): Revision Note

The effect of computer games on memory

• We live in an increasingly complex, technology-driven world with access to information that would have been unimaginable only a few decades ago

• Cognitive load theory suggests that excessive exposure to technology can overwhelm cognitive resources, leading to impaired memory and thinking

• There are generational differences:

  • Digital immigrants are those born before widespread internet and personal computer use

  • Digital natives are those born after these technologies became established.

• One perspective argues that digital natives depend too heavily on continuous access to technology, impairing their cognitive processes

• Another view is that modern technologies can actually enhance cognition in both digital natives and digital immigrants

Positive influence of digital technologies

• Hyperconnectedness: constant access to multiple streams of information and communication (e.g., internet use, computer action games)

• Computer games:

  • Involve multitasking (switching between scenarios, reacting quickly to threats and rewards)

  • This may sharpen cognitive functions such as attention, processing speed, and working memory

• Metacognition:

  • Task switching in games can encourage metacognitive awareness (thinking about how we think)

  • Practising metacognition may improve memory, problem-solving, and flexible thinking

• One argument for the positive influence of digital technologies is the idea of ‘hyperconnectedness’

  • This means that an individual can be connected to multiple forms of information and communication, such as surfing the internet or playing computer action games 

Research which supports the effect of computer games on memory

Blacker et al. (2014)

Aim:

• To investigate the extent to which action computer games may improve visual working memory (VWM)

Participants:

• A self-selecting sample of 34 male university students (mean age = 20 years)

Procedure: 

• The participants were randomly allocated to one of two conditions of the independent variable:

  • Condition 1: participants were asked to play active games, e.g., Black Ops games, Call of Duty, Modern Warfare using single-player mode

  • Condition 2: participants were asked to play a non-active game (The Sims strategy game); this was the control condition

• Participants in each group were asked to train (i.e., play the game and practise the skills involved) for over 30 hours across a continuous stretch of 30 days

• Prior to the training period the participants were assessed using a self-report (0-9 rating scale) which asked them how motivated they were to complete a visual working memory (VWM) task

• After the training period was over, the participants were asked to complete another self-report which asked them about how engaged they had been in the VWM task (e.g., their level of enjoyment and absorption in the game)

Results: 

• The researchers found no significant differences in levels of self-reported motivation and engagement between the two groups on either the tasks or the VWM assessments

• The participants who trained using the action game demonstrated significant improvement on one measure of VWM capacity (a change control task which involves switching attention quickly), a small improvement on a colour wheel test and no improvement on a complex span task compared with those who trained on the Sims game

Conclusion:

• Action computer games may directly improve VWM, or improve it through the enhancement of selective attention

Evaluation of the effect of computer games on memory

Strengths

• The study has good application as it highlights the responsivity of the VWM to training, which could be used in educational settings where improving cognitive skills is a key objective

• The procedure took place over 30 hours, which means that the participants were able to immerse themselves in whichever game they were playing across time

  • This makes the findings more valid than they would be if a snapshot design had been used

Limitations

• There is no way of knowing if the participants stuck strictly to the 30-day practice period

  • Some of them may have practised the game more and some less, which would decrease the reliability of the findings due to a lack of consistency across conditions

• The study shows what happened – the improvement in VWM on one measure – but it cannot explain why it happened; thus, it lacks explanatory power

Link to concepts

Perspective

• There is some concern that technology-based laziness, (which could come from playing too many computer games or over-use of technology generally) may result in less neuroplasticity

  • This would mean that neuroplasticity is put on 'pause' and, instead, neural pruning would proliferate in the parts of the brain that gaming uses the most

  • E.g., the hippocampus for both memory and spatial navigation

• An over-reliance on gaming may also negatively impact social interactions

  • Research has shown that people who spend more time gaming lose some ability to recognise faces, as screens interfere with the ability to interpret emotion in face-to-face encounters

Responsibility

• When researching the impact of gaming, it is essential that researchers screen their participants prior to the process to ensure that none of the sample have a gaming addiction (or be vulnerable to developing one)

• There is a fine line between enjoying gaming and depending on it and the researchers have a duty of care to establish this line rather than exacerbating an existing problem