The Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute at the University of Cambridge has conducted a study which shows that playing a specific game in the Peak Brain Training app for eight hours during a one-month period can increase the levels of concentration in users. The game, Decoder, that was developed and tested by the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute is shown to improve attention levels in the users.
In the study, 75 healthy adults aged between 18-30 were split into three groups. One group played bingo, one played the Decoder game, and one group did not receive anything. At the beginning of the trial, they were subjected to a visual sustained attention test known as the CANTAB Rapid Visual Information Processing (RVP) test. They then played their games, or did nothing, for eight hour-long sessions over the course of four weeks. At the end of the month, the CANTAB RVP test was conducted again.
The study found that participants who played the Decoder game saw that their concentration levels significantly improved. In fact, the study showed that the improvements were equivalent to taking stimulants such as Ritalin which is a common ADHD treatment. The next test for the Decoder game is to see if it can help patients with traumatic brain injuries.
The test also found that the Decoder game can also improve concentration levels without it impacting their ability to shift attention. After being asked to turn their attention (such as between numbers and letters), the users playing Decoder had a much better performance than the group playing Bingo.
For individuals with Apple devices, the Decoder game is now available for free on the Peak Brain Training app; it is also available on the pro version too. The app developers are currently creating an Android version.
One of the members of the study, Dr George Savulich said; “Many brain training apps on the market are not supported by rigorous scientific evidence. Our evidence-based game is developed interactively and the game’s developer, Tom Piercy, ensures that it is engaging and fun to play. The level of difficulty is matched to the individual player and participants enjoy the challenge of the cognitive training.”
