The experimental analysis of problematic video gaming and cognitive skills: A systematic review

A meta-analysis of the impact of technology related factors on students' academic performance

Introduction

The relationship between students' smartphone addiction, social media use, video games play, and their academic performance has been widely studied, yet the existing literature presents inconsistent findings. This meta-analysis synthesizes current research to provide a comprehensive examination of the impact of these technologies on academic achievement.

Methods

A total of 63 studies (yielding 64 effect sizes) were included, encompassing a sample of 124,166 students from 28 countries. The meta-analysis utilized correlation coefficients and sample sizes, reporting results based on the random effects model. Key statistics such as the Fisher's Z value, confidence intervals, and heterogeneity (Q) test results were considered, and publication bias was assessed using Begg and Mazumdar's rank correlation test, with the Kendall Tau coefficient determining bias significance.

Results and discussion

The meta-analysis revealed a small but statistically significant negative association between smartphone use, social media use, video game playing, and students' academic performance [Q(64) = 2501.93, p < 0.001, d = -0.085]. It is concluded that increased use of these technologies was associated with poorer academic outcomes, potentially impacting key cognitive skills essential for academic success. The implications for educational psychology research and future research directions are discussed.

Effects of excessive violent video game playing on verbal memory: an event-related brain potentials study

The goal of the study was to investigate temporal dynamics of excessive violent game playing. We compared behavioral data and event-related potentials (ERPs) of excessive video game players (EVGPs, n = 21) and non-players (NPs, n = 21) using a classical learning, cued recall and recognition paradigm, featuring violent and non-violent words. During the recognition phase, EVGPs performed better for violent words, but worse for non-violent words compared to NPs. Also, EVGPs showed slower reaction times than NPs when responding to new violent words. We found significant group differences in parietal P300 and FN400 amplitudes. The EVGP group showed larger P300 amplitudes for violent words, and more negative FN400 amplitudes for new violent words compared to NPs. The results imply that EVGPs differ from NPs in their cognitive and ERP responses to violent and non-violent verbal stimuli. The cognitive processes of EVGPs are consistent with a model of attention and memory bias rather than with desensitization to violence.

The Potential Interaction Between Time Perception and Gaming: A Narrative Review

Compromised time control is a variable of interest among disordered gamers because time spent on videogames can directly affect individuals’ lives. Although time perception appears to be closely associated with this phenomenon, previous studies have not systematically found a relationship between time perception and gaming. Therefore, the purpose of this narrative review is to explore how gaming disorder may be associated with time perception. It has been found that gamers exhibit a stronger attentional focus as well as an improved working memory compared with non-gamers. However, gamers (and especially disordered gamers) exhibit a stronger reaction to gaming cues which—coupled with an altered emotion regulation observed among disordered gamers—could directly affect their time perception. Finally, “'flow states”' direct most of the attentional resources to the ongoing activity, leading to a lack of resources allocated to the time perception. Therefore, entering a flow state will result in an altered time perception, most likely an underestimation of duration. The paper concludes that the time loss effect observed among disordered gamers can be explained via enhanced emotional reactivity (facilitated by impaired emotion regulation).

Behavioural and neuro-electrical correlates of cognitive performance in young mobile gamers of endless runner and match three genres

Video game players have been shown to significantly out-perform non-video game players on a wide range of cognitive tasks. Exposure to specific genres of video games may also have a significant bearing in impacting certain task-specific domains of cognition. However, there is limited availability of scientific literature exploring the role of mobile game sub-genres on the cognitive abilities of an individual. The present study was therefore conducted to assess and compare the impact of playing either endless running video games (ERGs) or match three video games (MTGs) on behavioral and neuro-electrical correlates of cognitive performance in young adults, by using reaction time (RT) and P300, respectively. The ERG group included 45 male:female (M:F) ratio = 38:7 and the MTG group included 39 (M:F = 21:18) subjects who played ≥5 h/week of each respective video game genre in past 6 months. The ERG group had better behavioral performance in comparison to the MTG group, as indexed by their significantly faster visual reaction time (VRT). The ERG subjects also had significantly lower P300 amplitudes as compared to MTG subjects. However, no difference in either auditory reaction time (ART) or P300 latency could be ascertained between the two groups. These results suggest that not only were ERG players able to make faster decisions and performed better in visuo-motor tasks but, also had better optimization of neural resources in them as compared to the MTG players. The current data supports the notion that not only exposure to video games but also the nature (i.e. genre) of mobile game play determines the extent to which neural processes concerned with attentional orientation, information processing and cognitive control are influenced.