Action Real-Time Strategy Gaming Experience Related to Enhanced Capacity of Visual Working Memory

Citation

Yao Y, Cui R, Li Y, Zeng L, Jiang J, Qiu N, Dong L, Gong D, Yan G, Ma W & Liu T (2020) Action Real-Time Strategy Gaming Experience Related to Enhanced Capacity of Visual Working Memory. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 14, Art. No.: 333. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2020.00333

Abstract
Action real-time strategy gaming (ARSG)—a major genre of action video gaming (AVG)—has both action and strategy elements. ARSG requires attention, visual working memory (VWM), sensorimotor skills, team cooperation, and strategy-making abilities, thus offering promising insights into the learning-induced plasticity. However, it is yet unknown whether the ARSG experience is related to the development of VWM capacity. Using both behavioral and event-related potential (ERP) measurements, this study tested whether ARSG experts had larger VWM capacity than non-experts in a change detection task. The behavioral results showed that ARSG experts had higher accuracy and larger VWM capacity than non-experts. In addition, the ERP results revealed that the difference wave of the contralateral delay activity (CDA) component (size 4–size 2) elicited by experts was significantly larger than that of non-experts, suggesting that the VWM capacity was higher in experts than in non-experts. Thus, the findings suggested that prolonged ARSG experience is correlative with the enhancement of VWM.

Keywords
action real-time strategy gaming; action video gaming; change detection task; contralateral delay activity; visual working memory capacity

Journal
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience: Volume 14