Study: Videogames significantly improve human eyesight

by Stevie Smith - Mar 30 2009, 15:30

The pendulum argument for and against videogames takes a swing into the ‘for’ camp this week following the emergence of U.S. study that claims action-based gaming software can improve human eyesight.

According to the study, which was conducted by the University of Rochester in New York, adult participants exposed to a first-person shooter training program received a significant increase in their ability to notice subtle shading differences in the colour grey.

While not immediately apparent in terms of how the study’s findings positively benefit human eyesight once removed from videogame interaction, study author Daphne Bavelier believes such gaming could potentially help road users who struggle with driving at night.

“Normally, improving contrast sensitivity means getting glasses or eye surgery – somehow changing the optics of the eye,” commented Bavelier. “But we’re found that action video games train the brain to process the existing visual information more efficiently, and the improvement last for months after game play stopped.”

Available in its entirety in the journal Natural Neuroscience, the U.S. study involved a total of 22 adult students split into two groups; one playing Call of Duty 2 and Unreal Tournament 2004 – both of which are fast paced shooters; and the other playing The Sims 2 – a life-management game with a much calmer gameplay speed.

After amassing some 50 hours of game interaction spread across nine weeks, those exposed to the frenetic first-person shooter titles had a 43 percent improvement average when isolating different shades of grey. Those playing The Sims 2 showed no improvement whatsoever.

Explaining that intense game pacing changes the brain pathways responsible for visual processing, forcing it to adapt as the human visual system is pushed to its limit, the study also noted that seasoned gamers with considerable experience playing action titles received a sizable 58 percent improvement in their grey shade capabilities.

Looking beyond possible applications and benefits associated with night driving, the study also suggested that similar action-paced videogame software could be utilised as a way of correcting eyesight problems alongside existing scientific and medical technology.

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