A study links the practice of video games in children to cognitive improvements, in particular for attention and memory.
Video games can have beneficial effects on the brains of the youngest: this is the conclusion of a study called Association of video games with cognitive performance in children, published by JAMA Network.
Benefits for attention and memory
” Results from this case-control study of 2,217 children showed improved cognitive performance in children who played video games compared to those who did not”say the researchers.
Clear differences in blood oxygen levels were associated with video game play, and child gamers had higher levels of activity in parts of the brain associated with attention and memory.
In practice, young people in the study who played video games performed more successfully on tasks associated with memory and impulse control than those who did not play games at all.
The video game better than television?
This is not the first study to deliver such conclusions, but its scope gives even more weight to the idea that video games can be beneficial to younger generations. The scientists nevertheless warn that they are highlighting a trend here and that they have not yet been able to identify evidence of a direct causal relationship between the practice of video games and improvements. cognitive.
Bader Chaarani, the lead author of the research, adds that he did not distinguish between video game genres. Nonetheless, he noticed that the majority of kids gravitated toward fast-paced shooters and action-adventures rather than slower-paced logic games.
He also feels that gaming is probably no worse than watching TV, if not better. Asked by CNN, Jenny Radesky, director of behavioral and developmental pediatrics at the University of Michigan Medical School, recalls that many studies link video games to mental well-being.
Source : CNN
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