A recent study by the Stanford University School of Medicine researchers has demonstrated that the part of the human brain that gives us feelings of reward and accomplishment is more activated in men than women when playing video games. This goes to explain why males are more excited by, and more likely to become hooked on, video games than females.
To complete the study the researchers designed a game involving a vertical line (the “wall”) in the middle of a computer screen. 10 balls are on the right of the wall and travel toward it. When a ball is clicked, it disappears. If the balls are kept away from the wall, the wall moves to the right and the player gains territory, if not - they lose territory. 11 men and 11 women were tested and, hooked up to scientific equipment, dynamic images of brain activity were produced to which parts of the brain were working during game play. Both men and women were motivated to win the game and understood what to do, but the men were more motivated to succeed.
The reason men were more motivated to succeed is because they are able to feel a greater sense of reward from playing the game and claiming more territory. This I think goes down to the fact that a lot of men are generally more competitive than most women and hence feel a greater sense of reward when that competitiveness is sated. The report also states that men are generally more motivated by ideas of territory and so territorial or aggression based games are more tuned to reward men playing them, such as the latest Halo or COD release or MMORPGs.
So next time your mum, girlfriend or wife wants to know why you're spending so long on that game you can explain that it's down to your neural coding! This kind of study goes a long way to explaining why men do enjoy playing games. With a monotonous and thankless 9-5, video games not only provide escapism but also a mechanism of reward. Completing a game, coming top of an online match or just making progress completes a simple learning curve - play - accomplishment cycle which gives us something we all inherently need but often don't receive - reward and accomplishment.
