Hardcore gamers have HYPERCONNECTED BRAINS

The brains of compulsive gamers are wired differently, study finds
And that's a good and a bad thing.

DAVID NIELD 1 JAN 2016

According to scans of nearly 200 adolescent boys, the brains of compulsive video gamers are wired differently from the norm. Researchers have found evidence of hyperconnectivity between certain areas of the brain, as well as increased levels of distractibility.

The study focused on boys aged 10 to 19 seeking professional help for Internet gaming disorder - the condition has been listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as needing further research, and typically involves gamers who give up sleeping and eating in order to keep playing. Brain scans of those with the disorder were compared with another group of boys who aren't addicted to video games to see how the neural activities matched up.

The MRI scans found enhanced coordination in the 'salience network' part of the gamers' brains: that's the area responsible for identifying what's important and focusing the body's resources on it. In everyday life, it could be stepping out of the way of an approaching car; in the video game world it could mean dodging a hail of digital bullets.

"Hyperconnectivity between these brain networks could lead to a more robust ability to direct attention toward targets, and to recognise novel information in the environment," said lead author Jeffrey Anderson from the University of Utah. "The changes could essentially help someone to think more efficiently."

The scientists also found increased coordination between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and temporoparietal junction in the brain, which is a more troubling finding - links like this are associated with schizophrenia, Down's syndrome, and autism, and are also found in people with poor impulse control. This could point to hardened video gamers being more easily distracted and less self-disciplined.

Right now though, we don't know whether years of playing video games have caused these changes, or whether these differences in the brain's internal wiring came first and then led to the participants being drawn towards gaming. Further research and performance tests are necessary before a clearer picture emerges of the long-term effects of excessive video gaming on the mind.

"Most of the differences we see could be considered beneficial," says Anderson. "However the good changes could be inseparable from problems that come with them."

The academics behind the new research say it's the most comprehensive study yet of the differences in the brains of compulsive video gamers - it joins a growing body of research looking at how this part of our digital lifestyles could be affecting our physical and mental health in both positive and negative ways.

The findings have been published in the journal Addiction Biology.

Source --> http://www.sciencealert.com/the-brains-of-compulsive-gamers-are-wired-differently-study-finds

According to this research, hardcore gamers think very efficiently but are more prone to poor impulse control.

What do you think?

zap zap zap

Your vote has been cast.

Gamers are generally type A personality, unless you play FarmVille .

What about forumers？

Actually when think efficiently, it's kinda true that you then tend to act / react faster than normal ppl and therefore have poor impulses? Cos your brain is firing up so fast...

TheSpinster wrote:Gamers are generally type A personality, unless you play FarmVille .

What about forumers？

It's true they can hoot games no day no night huan...

Sofero wrote:Actually when think efficiently, it's kinda true that you then tend to act / react faster than normal ppl and therefore have poor impulses? Cos your brain is firing up so fast...

High efficiency is good by itself, but their concern is the poor discipline. Games are obviously engineered to be sexciting and addictive, but real life skill learning is usually very tedious and boring with requiring a lot of patience and perseverance.

Up for moar gamerz!

Hmm

I don't game a lot

But i do mostly play racing games

Battlefield 3 for a year or so

Good times

Traditionally play game hardcore has no future

Nevereatrice. wrote:Traditionally play game hardcore has no future

What about competitive gaming?