Investigating cognitive control benefits in expert video game players.

Abstract

As the popularity of video games increases, a growing literature has begun to examine the association of video game play with cognitive processes. An advantage in cognitive control ability for video game players (VGPs) compared to nongamers (nVGPs) has been suggested by a number of recent studies. Miyake et al. (2000) identify three separable components of cognitive control: ability to shift mental set, updating and monitoring of working memory, and ability to inhibit automatic responses. In three sets of experiments, we investigated claims of a benefit in cognitive control for VGPs compared to nVGPs. Chapter 2 used two task switching paradigms to examine the ability to shift mental set, finding no difference in cognitive control between VGPs and nVGPs when baseline differences in response speed were accounted for. In Chapter 3, a series of nback experiments to investigate working memory demonstrated that VGPs display an advantage in spatial processing, but not in cognitive control. Chapter 4 assessed group differences using three measures of inhibitory control: flanker, Stroop, and go no-go tasks. The results of these experiments suggest that VGPs may rely more on automaticitybased response strategies than do nVGPs, but no group differences in cognitive control were evident. Overall, the results of this dissertation dispute a growing literature that assumes a cognitive control benefit for VGPs compared to nVGPs. Although VGPs reliably show faster performance on a range of tasks used to assess cognitive control (e.g., task switching paradigms), when examined with careful methods, these observed differences in performance are not attributable to differences in cognitive control ability.