Why Dota 2 players are smarter than regular people: study findings

When it comes to computer games, one would normally think of the entertainment they provide. However, computer games can also have some developmental function. One of the most important parameters, in terms of assessing the development of a person's personality, is decision skills, which are explored through a number of psychological tests. This paper will focus on how strategy games such as Dota 2 affect the individual's decision-making skills with focus on findings in the reseach by Darrell A. Worthy from Texas A&M University.

Criteria for the assessment of decision-making ability

There are two main measures used for the study:

• Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) 

• Iowa Decision Making Test (IGT)

With the CRT, one could infer about disputativeness, which is the inclination to take intuitive assumptions. This measure is useful in determining the level of self-reliance on perceptions. The higher the coefficient of CRT, the more independent the individual is in solving problems.

IGT is applied to measure the decision-making capabilities of individuals. It is emulated through an economic game. The maximum number of moves is 100. The score achieved indicates the amount of currency ascribed to the player at the end of the game.

Dissecting the role of Dota 2 in shaping an individual’s decision making

As part of the research, we organized an anonymous questionnaire of 337 Dota 2 players. We divided participants into groups based on MMR rating mentioned by each group and correlated average CRT scores with average IGT scores per group.

Characteristics of the study participants in relation to studied variables

Among the 337 study participants, the overwhelming majority, 322 were male. Though we had three women partakers in the experiment, 11 others however preferred non-disclosure of their gender.

Participants observed in the study averaged 23 years. Gamers that stood out in the study included teenager participants of 16 years and a 36-year old veteran gamer.

In as much as we consider the number of matches played as well as the average MMR, it is appropriate to say that the study included a wide range of professional players and also some casual players who only log in from time to time.

Cognitive Reflection Test

It was Shane Frederick who developed and published the cognitive reflection test (CRT) in the year 2005 with the specific aim of estimating the reflective thinking bias of a decision maker who in most situations has to suppress his/her reflex responses in order to make rational decisions. There are concise and easy to understand questions in this test, but each question has a catch that needs attention and self-control.

The CRT narrows the ability to answer in accordance with dual process theory of reasoning which divides activity within verbal material to two systems.

• System 1 is defined as an embodied or mental process that is fast, automatic, or intuitive and that does not require effort to invoke and is what people routinely use in order to make decisions.

• System 2 is the set of processes that often demand explicit effort and allows the thinker to reflect on the analysis.

The aim of the CRT is to measure how well a person is able to switch his/her response from an instinctive judgement to a judgement that is more rational and appropriate.

A basic procedure for carrying out the test

The subjects of the CRT include some questions that are aimed at assessing the reflexion and the analysis of the upper intelligent systems. For instance, try to compress the head “In the center of a lake, there is a lily plant. Its size increases two fold every day. After 48 days, the plant covers the entire lake. How many days will it take to cover half of the lake?” Most will guess twenty four days, the two more accurate answer would be forty seven days because highly undersized the lily expands itself each day.

Respondents need to tackle the quiz without submitting to the unscrupulous urge to take up the most obvious albeit incorrect answer.

Scientific Rationale

The CRT has become one of the cognitive assessment methods which is used for investigating cognition and measures of a critical thought as well as a viable task performance which is the analytical task. The test results are also related to a general mental capabilities and IQ.

Analyzing the results

The CRT results indicated that participants with a higher level of Dota 2 were better with the CRT test. It may be said that success in Dota 2 is associated with higher skills of analytical reasoning and metacognitive skills. This finding underscores the more complicated relationship between playing difficult video games and the mental abilities necessary to perform effectively in tasks that are intricate and call for deep thoughts and consideration.

Iowa Decision Test

The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) is an interesting experiment carried out by a group of researchers, Antonio Damasio and Antoine Bechara in University Iowa, since the early 1990s. Damasio and his team intended it to assess the level of cognitive dysfunction in patients suffering from cortical lesions. Then the test turned out to be popularized as an assessment of decision making, to be more precise, which processes occur when facing risk and uncertainty.

The IGT is based on the somatic marker hypothesis of Damasio and therefore, variation in decisions within the IGT is integrated with emotional fluctuations. This is usually modified by somatic markers where though there may have existed varied options sought in a situation, there were clear cues triggered by one option in past events that are known to increase chances of better results.

Test administration

In the IGT, the players draw four decks of playing cards named A, B, C and D, in order to win as much virtual money as possible. In the beginning of the test, each participant is allocated some money (for example $2000) and they are expected to earn more by selecting any of the cards in a span of 100 tries.

Decks A and B classify as being 'unfavorable' due to the fact that although they offer sizeable wins, they also entail a great deal of loss which means losses oriented towards the long run. In comparison, Decks C and D are rendered as “advantageous” because, despite offering lesser winnings, they also present lesser losses leading to gains over time. Many participants do not know what decks are earning them money or entirely what decks they are losing on. This makes them to have no other option but to wait and learn e from their experiences and altering their approaches as the task goes. One key element of the IGT is that in this case, the participants’ ability to play the ‘uncertain information’ aspect and to strategize and refrain from going for temporary blood in exchange for long term stability is tested.

Scientific Rationale

The IGT has an even wider application in neuropsychology and other cognitive sciences because it takes into consideration how human beings behave under the conditions of uncertainty and risk. Applicability of the test has been proved suitable in identifying impaired decision making in subjects suffering from brain injury, psychiatric illness and other clinical conditions.

Analyzing the results

The results of the study make it clear that even within the confines of this test, those players who havea higher skill in Dota 2, expressed by their Medals and the MMR, do much better in theassessment. One possible explanation of this above line is what IGT test results depict that, the skills acquired when playing Dota 2 which in this case is evaluating risks and the choices made in the risks help in other aspects more than just Dota 2. Nonetheless, it is also possible that players of Dota 2, to start with, come to Dota 2 with better decision making skills which explains their performance in the test as well as the game.

Conclusions

Analyzing the results of the study shows the direct impact of playing Dota 2 on the development of a person's cognitive abilities, including decision-making ability. This game allows not only to have fun but also to pump up one's mental abilities quite well.