No Evidence of Expectancy Effect on Visuospatial Attention in Cognitive Training with Action Video Games

This study assessed whether the expectation of cognitive improvement due to action video game playing could affect visuospatial attention. All the 140 participants underwent a pre- and post-testing, or just a post-testing, of the Useful Field of View (UFoV) task in a single experimental session. Prior to the post-test, Placebo Group 1 watched a video inducing expectation of game-related effects on cognition, while Control Group 1 watched a control video, both followed by a 10-minute session of a virtual reality action video game. Placebo Group 2 and Control Group 2 underwent the same procedures, except for the pre-test (i.e., Solomon four-group experimental design). Although experimental manipulation induced expectation in Placebo Group 1 compared to Control Group 1, there were no differences of performance in the UFoV task. A comparison of Placebo Group 2 and Control Group 2 assessed an expectancy effect in the absence of a pre-test, and the results showed that the manipulation did not induce expectation, which was not observed in performance as well. A comparison among all experimental conditions in the post-test evidenced a carry-over effect caused by practice and suggests that performance in the placebo group may be benefited or intensified by a pre-testing. In summary, our results do not support previous investigations in the literature claiming that an expectancy effect may account for attentional gains in cognitive training studies.