US Navy: Gamers '10 to 20%' better at fighting terror
by Xav de Matos 
on Jan 27th 2010 4:00AM
The
Office of Naval Research is currently conducting research in video game training that it says has "surprising" results in regards to military personnel reaction time and adaptability in the fight against terror. According to an article available on the Department of Defense's
official website, doctor of educational psychology and program officer Ray Perez said the research has discovered that video game players perform "10 to 20 percent higher in terms of perceptual and cognitive ability" than non-gamers.
Citing a need for soldiers to be "agile problem solvers" and "agile thinkers," Perez notes that video game training can help field adaptability and the "cognitive advances" derived from the training can last up to two and a half years.
"We know that video games can increase perceptual abilities and short-term memory," Perez said, adding games allow players to focus longer and expand the field of vision compared to non-gamers. If it means the brave men and women serving have a better chance of coming home, we're all for it.
[Via
GamePolitics]
