Mental health professionals have long debated about what can help the thinking in older adults. A article published in HealthDay News January 15, 2009, “Video Gaming Improves Cognitive Function in Adults,”examines this issue. The article reports on a study published Psychology and Aging. The researchers studied 40 adults, “…who were divided into two groups. One group received training in "Rise of Nations" -- a nation-building and territorial expansion video game -- while the other group received no training. Participants were assessed in several parameters of their executive control functions prior to, during and after video game training.” And the results? “…video game training improved the performance of the study participants on a number of tests. The adults gained significant improvements in executive control functions. These functions included task switching, working memory, visual short-term memory and reasoning, the researchers report. However, the video game had no impact on the ability of the participants to recall a list of words in order or enumerate lists, the investigators found. Importantly, improvements in an individual's performance in the game positively correlated with improvements in task switching.” The researchers conclude that “…these findings are meaningful because they show that multi-dimensional training can affect many individual components of cognitive function…This study has implications for the enhancement of executive control processes of older adults." Based on our expertise and experience in treating older adults, we offer several tips on how to improve one’s thinking. First, if you or your family suspects that you may have a problem with cognitive functioning then seek a cognitive evaluation from a qualified mental health professional. Second, if your evaluation shows that you have some mild cognitive impairment, seek treatment from a cognitive specialist who can help you improve your cognitive performance. Third, seek the support of family and friends in helping you keep cognitively active by playing challenging video games.
The Bottom Line: The results of this study strongly support the conclusion that playing video games may improve cognitive function in older adults.
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Sources: National Institute of Mental Health, See blogposts in Psychiatric Disorders: General and Psychiatric Disorders: Aging
Reference: HealthDay News January 15, 2009, “Video Gaming Improves
Cognitive Function in Adults.”
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Dr. Jeffrey Speller Dr. Tanya Korkosz
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