Short-term effects of an action video game on attention

Abstract

This study was carried out to examine whether an action video game had short-term effects on selective attention and temporal attention, as measured by the Attentional blink, Simon task and Stroop task. The design was experimental in which the participants (N = 20) completed 1 hour of action video game playing or reading in a book on two occasions, separated by 7 days. All participants completed both conditions. The design was randomized, counterbalanced and with cross-over trials. A Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and a non-parametric Friedman test of differences among repeated measures were conducted. Furthermore, data was analyzed with the Mann-Whitney U Test, with no significant results. These results are discussed from the perspective of two attentional theories; Broadbents filter theory and Kahnemans capacity theory, in addition to studies of action video games related to attention. The non-significant results might depend on several methodological factors regarding the chosen action video game, the amount of video game playing and the attentional measures. The study contributes to the research field of action video games.