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Research - Cognitive flexibility

“Information processing speed (IPS) is a measure of the efficiency of cognitive function. It is assessed using timed tests that typically challenge relatively simple cognitive operations.” (Information Processing Speed. 2011.)

Cognitive flexibility can be improved through the use of video games. This skill can be developed and used both in the virtual world and the living world. Increasing this skill can have a beneficial effect on learning to understand certain circumstances or problems. The speed of information processing refers to the amount of time somebody can interpret incoming information and the speed in which they decide on what to do next.

For example, when a player is playing a video game they must adapt to the environment that surrounds them. They must adjust to any sudden changes in the goal of the level or the game as a whole. There may be a change in the story that requires the user to make a sudden choice (A betrayal of an ally etc.) or a change in the environment that affects health making the player decide to escape the area swiftly (poisonous Gas etc.). Developing this skill allows the player to increase the rate in which the brain can switch from and understand one task from another. The story may contain a part that requires quick and hurried decision to save one person over another. The mind has to quickly weigh out the positives and negatives of a certain situation and come to a final decision on what will be the best outcome for the progression through the rest of the game.

A paper by the Queen Mary University of London studied the brains response and effects of video games. The results Show:

 "Our paper shows that cognitive flexibility, a cornerstone of human intelligence, is not a static trait but can be trained and improved using fun learning tools like gaming.

Creative problem solving and 'thinking outside the box' require cognitive flexibility. Perhaps in contrast to the repetitive nature of work in past centuries, the modern knowledge economy places a premium on cognitive flexibility.

The volunteers who played the most complex version of the video game performed the best in the post-game psychological tests. We need to understand now what exactly about these games is leading to these changes, and whether these cognitive boosts are permanent or if they dwindle over time. Once we have that understanding, it could become possible to develop clinical interventions for symptoms related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or traumatic brain injuries, for example." (Glass, B. 2013)

This study found that there was an increase in strategic thinking when playing video games. Especially strategic games where the player has to plan ahead and consider what his/her actions may bring. This could also be included within story based games as the user must think ahead to the future as any decision made at that time could have an effect in the rest of the storyline.

Other areas that have been improved in studies are improved attention. This has increased learning capabilities for both children and adults. Without having a strong attention span learning capabilities are greatly decreased as the learner is unable to process the information, both visually and audibly. Response inhibition is the increase in ignoring any form of distraction when being attentive towards a certain person. If there was a noise from a different room or something going on outside the room, the person who sustains attention has a greater response. An example of this in a game scenario would be attempting to pick a lock on a door or a safe, whilst there is a sound of an enemy approaching closer and closer. Players who cope with these situations better have a better response inhibition and are generally a lot calmer when under pressure.