DECISION-MAKING GAMES: EFFECTS ON FUTURE DECISIONS OF ADOLESCENTS

I propose research that examines whether decision making video games have positive effects on the everyday decision of adolescents. The research will be conducted on 30 adolescents/young adults, ages 18-24, who have very little gaming experience. Subjects will complete a survey examining their decision-making capabilities, problem-solving ability, and their mental speed. They will be randomly placed into two groups of 15, the experimental and the control. The experimental group will participate in an online decision-making game, Imprisoned and Alter Ego, for a total of five hours over a three-week period. The control group will not play any online games. I will then retest all the subjects. I hypothesize that moderate play of decision-making games by adolescents and young adults can improve the decision-making abilities in their everyday lives as well as enhance their problem-solving skills, and increase the speed of their thought processing capabilities.