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posted by Fnord666 on Thursday June 13 2019, @07:09AM   Printer-friendly
from the maybe-or-maybe-not dept.

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Can 'brain games' really help you improve the way your brain functions?

You've probably seen ads for apps promising to make you smarter in just a few minutes a day. Hundreds of so-called "brain training" programs can be purchased for download. These simple games are designed to challenge mental abilities, with the ultimate goal of improving the performance of important everyday tasks.

But can just clicking away at animations of swimming fish or flashed streets signs on your phone really help you improve the way your brain functions?

Two large groups of scientists and mental health practitioners published consensus statements, months apart in 2014, on the effectiveness of these kinds of brain games. Both included people with years of research experience and expertise in cognition, learning, skill acquisition, neuroscience and dementia. Both groups carefully considered the same body of evidence available at the time.

Yet, they issued exactly opposite statements.

One concluded that "there is little evidence that playing brain games improves underlying broad cognitive abilities, or that it enables one to better navigate a complex realm of everyday life."

The other argued that "a substantial and growing body of evidence shows that certain cognitive training regimens can significantly improve cognitive function, including in ways that generalize to everyday life."

[...]The most important lesson from the literature on training is this: If you want to improve your performance on a task that's important to you, practice that task. Playing brain games may only make you better at playing brain games.


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  • (Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Thursday June 13 2019, @06:05PM (1 child)

    by AthanasiusKircher (5291) on Thursday June 13 2019, @06:05PM (#855228) Journal

    Point taken, though my comment was directed less at you alone than at the thread overall and OP's hedging at invoking the word "prove."

    I've seen too many comment threads taking the form, "This study proves..." followed by several comments on how "science can never 'prove' anything..." I just get tired of seeing such discussions, which seem rather pointless and more about semantics rather than substance. I assumed you were also invoking that idea, along with the more specific point. Apologies if this was misdirected.

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  • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday June 13 2019, @06:13PM

    by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Thursday June 13 2019, @06:13PM (#855232) Journal

    Apologies if this was misdirected.

    No harm caused and otherwise an interesting point.

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford