Battle lines redrawn: war games 'boost intelligence'

Published on Sunday 6 September 2009 22:12

VIDEO war games are banned by many parents for their violence, and Facebook is prohibited by offices everywhere for distracting workers.

But both could both help improve memory and enhance a key element of intelligence vital to success in life. An expert from the University of Stirling has suggested in new research out today that strategy games, as well as the Facebook networking site and solving Sudoku puzzles, help "working memory", or the ability to remember and use information.

But Dr Tracy Alloway suggested text messaging, micro-blogging on Twitter and watching YouTube were all likely to weaken working memory. She said classic games such as Tetris might be more useful than more recent technology, such as Nintendo's Brain Training series.

Dr Alloway believes working memory to be far more important to success and happiness than IQ. Her team developed a programme to increase the performance of children aged 11 to 14 at a school in Durham.

After eight weeks, the children saw ten-point improvements in IQ, literacy and numeracy tests. A number who started off close to the bottom of the class ended up near the top.

"It was a massive effect," said Dr Alloway, who gave the Joseph Lister Award Lecture yesterday about her work at the British Science Festival at the University of Surrey in Guildford.

Video games that involve planning and strategy, such as those from the Total War series, may also train working memory, Dr Alloway believes.

She said: "I'm not saying they're good for your socialisation skills, but they do make you use your working memory. You're keeping track of past actions and mapping the actions you're going to take."

Dr Alloway said the "instant" nature of texting, Twitter and YouTube was not healthy for working memory, something which can help candidates in job interviews.

She said: "Those using longer and more creative sentences showed fewer signs of memory loss. It isn't the programme Facebook itself that is helpful, but it's letting people meet in person which improves memory.

"On Twitter, you receive an endless stream of information, but it's very succinct. You don't have to process that information."

She added that strategy board games would have the same effect as their video equivalents in challenging the brain. Dr Alloway added that there was evidence linking television viewing with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, while extensive texting was associated with lower IQ scores. However, Paul Allen, editor of ComputerActive magazine, questioned the study and said technology like Twitter was "too new" to make conclusions about.

He said: "It sounds very spurious. I don't see a correlation between the length of a message you send someone and the effect on memory. It could be a really interesting Twitter message."

Last week, researchers in New Mexico suggested playing Tetris for 30 minutes a day, for three months, made your brain grow in specific areas and become more efficient in other parts.