Competitive versus cooperative #exergame play on Cognitive Function

Montpellier in Game - 2010 - Ambiance - P1420981 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For at-risk ethnic minority adolescents, exergaming helped them lose weight (over 10 weeks) and improved executive function skills when compared to a control group. Although there have been many studies in exergaming, most of it has centered around physiological outcomes, but this is one of only a handful of studies that measured cognitive function over a period of time.  This study is from Amanda's 2010 dissertation from Georgetown.


Abstract
Exergames are videogames that require gross motor activity, thereby combining gaming with physical activity. This study examined the role of competitive versus cooperative exergame play on short-term changes in executive function skills, following a 10-week exergame training intervention. Fifty-four low-income overweight and obese African American adolescents were randomly assigned to a competitive exergame condition, a cooperative exergame condition, or a no-play control group. Youths in the competitive exergame condition improved in executive function skills more than did those in the cooperative exergame condition and the no-play control group. Weight loss during the intervention was also significantly positively correlated with improved executive function skills. The findings link competitive exergame play to beneficial cognitive outcomes for at-risk ethnic minority adolescents.

Staiano, A., Abraham, A., & Calvert, S. (2012). Competitive versus cooperative exergame play for African American adolescents' executive function skills: Short-term effects in a long-term training intervention. Developmental Psychology, 48 (2), 337-342 DOI: 10.1037/a0026938

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