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Study Finds Frequent Gaming Changes Your Brain

Posted by samzenpus on from the there's-something-wrong-with-my-brain dept.

Coolhand2120 writes "Gamers always felt they had more grey matter. The LA Times reports there is now proof: 'Fourteen-year-olds who were frequent video gamers had more gray matter in the rewards center of the brain than peers who didn't play video games as much — suggesting that gaming may be correlated to changes in the brain much as addictions are. European scientists reported the discovery Tuesday in the journal Translational Psychiatry. Psychologist Simone Kuhn of Ghent University in Belgium and colleagues recruited 154 healthy 14-year-olds in Berlin and divided them into two groups. Twenty-four girls and 52 boys were frequent gamers who played at least nine hours of video games each week. Fifty-eight girls and 20 boys were infrequent gamers, who played less than nine hours a week. Structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed differences in the test subjects' brains. Frequent gamers had more gray matter in a portion of the brain known as the left ventral striatum, which affects the interplay of emotions and behavior. Previous research identified striatal function as a 'core candidate promoting addictive behavior.'"

31 of 171 comments (clear)

  1. RTFA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Slashdot Headline: Study Finds Frequent Gaming Changes Your Brain
    FTA: They couldn't determine if the frequent gamers' brains grew larger as a result of playing video games or if those kids were attracted to gaming because that part of their brain was enlarged in the first place

    At least the submitter could have read the article.

    1. Re:RTFA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Slashdot Headline: Study Finds Frequent Gaming Changes Your Brain
      FTA: They couldn't determine if the frequent gamers' brains grew larger as a result of playing video games or if those kids were attracted to gaming because that part of their brain was enlarged in the first place

      At least the submitter could have read the article.

      New Slashdot Headline: Study Finds Frequent Slashdot Reading Shrinks The Part Of Your Brain That Reads Articles

    2. Re:RTFA by Bucky24 · · Score: 5, Informative

      I read this in the firehose before it was posted. To be fair to the submitter, the original summary was very different.

      --
      All the world's a CPU, and all the men and women merely AI agents
    3. Re:RTFA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

      The submitter deliberately mis-summarized the article in order to increase click-throughs. That is how slashdot works.

    4. Re:RTFA by jeyk · · Score: 4, Informative

      the only difference I can see is some formatting and the words "... the author said." at the end of the summary.

      And the headline, which originally read "Frequent gamers have brain differences, study find[s]". This is much closer to what TFA says.

  2. Old news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Any type of learning changes the way your brain works.

    1. Re:Old news... by kelemvor4 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Try watching "50 First Dates" to see what happens when your brain doesn't change from what you experience. Or "Groundhog Day", where the rest of the world doesn't change ...

      Studies will show that watching 50 first dates reduces brain mass by as much as 5% per viewing.

  3. Please correct me. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    They're all pretty young, the sample appears pretty small and the sample would seem unbalanced.

    Isn't the brain already undergoing radical changes at that age? I am not doubting there being an effect, but how does that effect pan out over time? Will a difference remain a decade later?

    How does frequent gaming affect people in their 20s, 30s, 40s, etc.?

    1. Re:Please correct me. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      I hate to nitpick, but unless you have seen their data you can't say the sample is too small. The necessary sample size depends on the variance - if it's small a small sample is good enough, if not you'll need to compensate with a larger sample (or there will be a greater chance of the conclusion being wrong). This is a fact and part of Statistics.
      Although there could be some value in researching what is the effect for different ages, that would be more expensive. It may be worth publishing what they have and leave that for future research.

    2. Re:Please correct me. by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 5, Insightful

      > How does frequent gaming affect people in their 20s, 30s, 40s, etc.?

      I can answer that for someone ~ 40. (I've been gaming since the early 80's)

      I used to be a extreme hard-core gamer -- typically putting in 80 hrs every 2 weeks playing L4D, TF2, BF:BC2, Diablo 2. Yes, 80 hours. (When you're single, you can play 2-3 hrs every night, and 8-10 hrs on Sat & Sun =) Before that I played UO and WoW for 4 years each.

      I decided to do a radical experiment this summer -- no gaming for 1 month.

      The results really surprised me.

      I found that with extreme gaming my mind was effectively overclocked by ~ 10x. I was _always_ having thoughts -- my mind was constantly racing, jumping from thought to though. I was _extremely_ bored waiting for people to finish up their sentence. When they were only 10% started talkig I was already processing what they were going to say, my response, and already thinking about 2 other interesting things. My sense of time whenever on the computer was completely accelerated. A few hours would seem like minutes.

      With no gaming I found my mind was effectively under-clocked by ~ 1/2, but that I was more efficient! I could actually go 5 - 10 mins without any thoughts whatsoever. It was almost as good as when I used to meditate. When I was on the computer my sense of time was extremely more accurate and was able to manage my time very efficiently. I found I was actually interested in what people were saying, and wouldn't mind if they took a while to formulate their thoughts. I found myself calm, and able to stay focused, no matter what the subject was. For a while now, I've had one wish in life: "To never be bored" -- this certainly came dam close! One could get lost in every moment and really savor life.

      With the sharp contrast I can definitely attest that extreme gaming & Internet can be a very bad mental addiction. It is ironic that physical drugs (caffeine, alcohol, etc,) are harder to get on, but harder to get off. Mental addictions are extremely easy to get started on, but thankfully easier to get weaned off of.

      Going forward -- I'm in a bit of a dilemma. I really _love_ gaming and spending time with all my online gaming friends. I also see the "harmful" effects, so there is only one solution: These days I'm trying to be more balanced. Only a few hours a week of FPSers -- and spend more time with real-life friends, and doing other activities, such as getting out more, going to the gym, etc.

      I would highly recommend everyone do a personal experiment. This is the _only_ way to truly _know_ how gaming effects you. If you find you are not effected, then great! If you found you are, then that is good as well because now that you armed with information you have choice on what to do differently. Either way you learnt something.

      Cheers

    3. Re:Please correct me. by 9jack9 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      > How does frequent gaming affect people in their 20s, 30s, 40s, etc.?

      I can answer that for someone ~50.

      At times, I've spent 60-80 hours a week playing games, back in my 20s, 30s, and 40s. It can be done. There are 168 hours in a week. If you work 40, that leaves 128. Assume 10-20 hours for eating, commuting, calling for pizza. That leaves 108. If you sleep 6 hours a night that's still 70 hours left. If you trim a few hours of sleep, or take a take a day off from work, you can get near 80. I would binge on a game for a few months then give it up. A year or two later I'd do it again.

      At 60-80 hours a week, whatever you're playing becomes reality, or pretty darn close to it. I used to play DragonRealms. Awesome game. There were a few months where that's where I lived. Even if I were walking around the real world I was playing in my head. Reality was a gray pale lifeless place.

      I tried rationing. Turns out for me it's not much fun a few hours a week. YMMV. But for me, if I'm not all in, it's just not as much fun.

      Mostly I stay clean these days. Mostly . . . .

  4. Training those reflexes.. by ackthpt · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Ever find yourself in a public place, like a mall or stadium and the little thought flashes through your mind, "I just need the really big gun and I could clear this place out." or "I wonder how much gold I could get clearing this place out" Fortunately some little sanity barrier prevents you.

    Found ideas like that in my mind after epic gaming sessions. Don't play those kinds of games now so those thoughts haven't popped up in years. I hope they're gone for good, I didn't like the idea I could even visualise something like those thoughts.

    Now I wonder how much wood I need, with that port near by, to build another settlement.

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    1. Re:Training those reflexes.. by Dyinobal · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I think perhaps you should seek help. I don't have those sorts of thoughts. Mine is mostly, how long till I can get out of here and play more skyrim.

    2. Re:Training those reflexes.. by dingen · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I was playing a lot of Red Dead Redemption when that came out a while back. One day during that time, I was driving to work and stopped for petrol on the way. Two young, shabby-looking foreign tourists approached me and asked for a lift. I wasn't going where they wanted to go, so that didn't work out. But I also noticed they weren't planning their trip very well because I saw them using an awful crappy small map, which didn't include the required detail to really plan a decent route to begin with. So I went into the shop to pay for my petrol and I bought a decent map of the area along with it, which included both the current location and the place they told me they were looking to go to. Before returning to my vehicle, I handed the hitchhikers the map, which I hoped would help them out a little bit. Now you have to understand, I am not the kind of person who would do such a thing regularly. I don't think I'm a mean person or anything, but I'm no saint for sure. I don't help out random strangers on a regular basis, if at all. But after handing over the map, I was thinking to myself: "This will really boost my honor!", which is one of the primary game mechanics in RDR, rewarding the player for decent behaviour in the game world. After realizing my frequent playing of the game might have actually manipulated me into doing some good in real life, I came to the conclusion that maybe frequent gaming isn't such a bad thing per se.

      This is a true story, I swear.

      --
      Pretty good is actually pretty bad.
    3. Re:Training those reflexes.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      i wish i can grep, less, awk, search in real life.

    4. Re:Training those reflexes.. by Ocker3 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I think it all depends on the kinds of game you play, and how you play them. After playing World War II Online (MMO FPS) a LOT, I used to hear panzers in the distance when walking around the city. In the game, ATGs and infantry, even other tanks (when your commander's hatch was open) were paranoid about hearing other tanks coming, so you could either hide or ambush them. Sometimes I do feel like pulling out a game's gun and just wasting an entire area full of people, but it's usually because I'm unhappy/frustrated and want to blow off steam. Mostly I just wish people would get out of my way on the roads, so I can get to where I'm going. I don't wish I had a bazooka to blow them up like when I was a kid, I just wish they'd Move!

    5. Re:Training those reflexes.. by dingen · · Score: 3, Informative

      How is that relevant to what I'm trying to say? I'm sure there are lots of folks who would have picked those guys up and brought them where ever they wanted to go, just like there are lots of folks who would have walked around them as quickly as possible, because they look a bit scruffy. Different people do different things. So what? That's not the point.

      The point is, I'm positive I wouldn't have helped these people if it weren't for that game I was playing. I'm not saying that to tell a story about what sort of a person I am, I'm saying that to tell a story on how frequent gaming can actually change your behavior for the better. That's at least what I experienced.

      --
      Pretty good is actually pretty bad.
    6. Re:Training those reflexes.. by znerk · · Score: 4, Interesting

      After months of spending hours on IRC as an adolescent, I found myself wishing "real" (spoken) conversation had a scroll-back buffer... does that count?

      --
      This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.
    7. Re:Training those reflexes.. by dingen · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I'm just saying the effects of frequent gaming aren't all bad. You're trying to spin that to "you need a video game to get your morale compass straight, because normal non-gamers are all good samaritans". I don't get that. I don't think it's true either, because those two hitchhikers were standing there at the gas station for a few hours at least by the looks of it and apparently nobody helped them out, as they were still trying to figure out how to get around using their crappy little map. And either way, even if it is true that most people are natural inclined to go out of their way to help everyone they encounter, but I'm some horrible human being who isn't like that... What's wrong about me becoming a little nicer to my fellow man because of a game I played? Why do you feel it is needed to point out that that's a sad thing?

      --
      Pretty good is actually pretty bad.
    8. Re:Training those reflexes.. by Chrisq · · Score: 3, Interesting

      and sometimes sed

      And occasionally "init 6"

    9. Re:Training those reflexes.. by tttonyyy · · Score: 3, Funny

      i wish i can grep, less, awk, search in real life.

      I'd settle for just 'screen' so that in those long boring meetings I can leave myself sitting and nodding the right responses, while actually I'm disconnected off somewhere else having fun.

      --
      biopowered.co.uk - catalytically cracking triglycerides for home automotive use since 2008. Just say no to big oil!
    10. Re:Training those reflexes.. by Terrasque · · Score: 5, Interesting

      When I was taking driving lessions, we had some training for slippery roads. Which involved driving an obstacle course on an oiled road.. The obstacles were some human-like dolls that was hanging from some crane-like system.

      In that period, I was also playing Carmageddon 2 a lot. It had fun open-world'ish levels, and pretty good car physics for that time. And it was fun :) I've also played OutRun a lot earlier, and some Need for Speed too.

      So, I was driving down the track, and the obstacles were moved in via remote control. The car started to slip, and .. the best way to describe it is that it felt like some switch flipped over in my mind, and my thinking went something like this : "Obstacle 1 and 2, mapped out in a 3d overview of that part of the track. Distances, car's speed, road grip, size & weight estimated.. *calculating* .. Route found, execute.." and I flew through them perfectly, at high speed.
      The driving instructor just sat there, mouth agape. When he managed to cloe it again, the first words were "Where the hell did you learn to drive like that?" -- which is when I realized that my mind had gone into "gaming mode" more or less. And that it seemed to do rather well in the real world, too, in that occasion. When I think about how inaccurate it is (how many times do you miscalculate in games?), how the goals are skewed there (hitting something at high speed is a minor slowdown, not instant death. And speed is king), it's not a comfortable thought..

      Still, it have popped up a few times, and on some of those occations it has saved my bacon. So it's not really as bad as I feared. It mostly happen when the normal brain goes "Oh shit! PANIC TIME" - and at those times it's welcome with something that can dispassionately gather and process data at high speed, and come up with solutions. Of course, sometimes those solutions are not exactly sane.. ("Shoot a rocket at the fucker", or "hitting him in that part of the car will make him skid out of the road") .. So it needs an extra sanity check before it can be used.

      --
      It's The Golden Rule: "He who has the gold makes the rules."
  5. Sampling Problem? by RobinEggs · · Score: 3, Interesting

    So the survey included twice as many boys as girls in the treatment group, and three times as many girls as boys in the control group?

    That seems like a serious flaw. Men are widely considered more impulsive and more likely to have addiction problems in general, both in popular perception and in some research results. What if men's brains simply respond more to games and other dopamine-related activities (i.e. potentially addictive stuff) than women's?

    I hate to be that guy who asks a possibly moronic, self-congratulatory question about sample size, basic method, etc., but I still think it's hard to statistically control the basic differences between men and women with such massively skewed gender samplings.

    1. Re:Sampling Problem? by PraiseBob · · Score: 4, Informative

      I'm guessing if you found this serious flaw with about 10 seconds of thought, the researchers who devoted months of study to this problem probably considered it as well. They did after all differentiate between the male and female counts, and didn't lump them together as 76 vs 78 kids.

  6. Misleading headline by ilsaloving · · Score: 4, Informative

    The article says that it's not clear if playing games changes the brains, or if kids with those structures tend to game more.

    Sensationalism? What sensationalism? I see no sensationalism here!

  7. Overlooking the most important finding. by Nidi62 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Close to 100 girls actually admitted they play video games!

    --
    The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
  8. Headline is flat wrong by madprof · · Score: 5, Informative

    The study did NOT find that gaming changes your brain.
    Slashdot editors - please RTFA when you get sent a submission!

    It found a correlation between certain brain physiology and gaming but they state fairly carefully:
    "Whether the volumetric differences in ventral striatum between frequent and moderate video game players are preconditions that lead to a vulnerability for preoccupation with gaming or whether they are a consequence of long-lasting activation during gaming can not be determined with a cross-sectional study."

    They're not claiming causality here. They're claiming a correlation in their findings. Not ruling it out, but they're definitely not saying they found one causes the other. So the headline is completely wrong.

  9. So... Gamers are addicts? by Local+ID10T · · Score: 4, Insightful

    ...gaming may be correlated to changes in the brain much as addictions are.

    Can't...sleep...must...keep...leveling...

    Sound familiar to anyone?

    --
    "You want to know how to help your kids? Leave them the fuck alone." -George Carlin
  10. Plasticity by feidaykin · · Score: 5, Informative

    How timely, I just read a blog post about brain plasticity. Basically, the list of activities that do not alter the brain is probably much shorter than the list of activities that do. The human brain is constantly rewiring itself. Here's an article about a study that shows brain plasticity may be even more radical than we thought, possibly even reprogramming the genomes of individual neurons: http://blogs.nature.com/news/2011/11/genome.html

    --

    "To confine our attention to terrestrial matters would be to limit the human spirit." -Stephen Hawking

  11. Re:I disagree. by Nidi62 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Like most kids and pre-teens will do, they will bitch like crazy if you try to move them and make them go outside, but only because nobody put them on a track to do things outside. You can't expect someone to enjoy an activity intended to be enjoyable when nobody ever showed them why they can or should enjoy it.

    I played football in college and you know what I noticed? Pretty much every single football dorm room/apartment had at least 1 video game console. We would get done with practice, go back to the room after spending hours outside, and play Madden, or golf, or marathon CoD zombie sessions. We spent a lot of time and energy outside, and found that video games were a great way to have fun and relax at the same time without expending extra physical energy.

    --
    The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
  12. In related news... by Kristian+T. · · Score: 5, Funny

    Heart medication causes heart attacks.

    A study finds that people on heart medication are 3 times more likely to suffer a sudden heart attack, than other people. The conclusion is obvious.

    --
    Run with the lemmings, and you'll get your feet wet.