The design and study of a serious game for attention training of the older adults

Abstract

In this research, we have designed a parameterizable serious game on tablet computer to study how such a system can improve the attention of the older adults. In the experiments, we have adopted two types of tests: Visual Search (VS) and Attention Network Test (ANT) as the pretests and posttests. In the game sessions, we have incorporated visual search exercises in the game to provide attention trainings for the older adults. The experimental results show that some cognitive abilities of the participants can be significantly improved, and most of the subjects are willing to continue to play the game after the experiments. The design of our serious game succeeded in achieving the goal of attention training for the older adults.