It appears from the available evidence that attention is significantly improved by modern video games, as was postulated earlier. Attention capacity, response time, spatial response, and meta-level processing (i.e., strategizing about attention) were all improved in those who play video games. This result is important because it provides some measure of protection against the view that video games are bad for children, and it also provides an indication of where video games may help people.
There are many types of people who may wish to improve their attentional capabilities, and video games may be the answer. On one extreme, there are people who need to push the envelope on what the human mind can do. These are the racecar drivers, military personel, jet and commercial aviation pilots. These are the people with jobs for which a distraction could be fatal. Even driving a normal car may be fatal, and
``Action video gamers tend to be more attune to their surroundings while performing tasks like driving down a residential street, where they may be more likely to pick out a child running after a ball than a non-video gamer.''[13]On the other extreme, there are people whose attentional capabilities are severely diminished, such as those with ADHD or schizophrenia. These people may greatly benefit from games that help them develop their attention capabilities, perhaps even to the level of normal functioning people. After all,
``...10 days of training on an action game is sufficient to increase the capacity of visual attention, its spatial distribution and its temporal resolution.'' [8]For this reason, the authors are glad that their original opinions have held true. We believe our original hypothesis turned out to be correct because it is fundamentally the intuitive view on the subject for those of us who are gamers. Certainly, no gamer wishes to think games bad for them, and in this case, the facts support the opinion. Despite reading the unrelated research on aggression that supports denying video games to children until they reach maturity, Steve still believes that his lack of a console in his early years was a bad thing. In this, his opinion is as much a function of the facts as it is his own biased views. Chris's opinions are, if anything, stronger because now he has the research to partially support his stance on video games. Finally, Paul is just glad his potential as a game developer will not be terribly hindered by ethical qualms, however he is slightly troubled by the unrelated studies on aggression. In this, his opinion is not as strong as it once was.