This study investigated the display of “expert” behavior by outstanding video game–playing children. Seven highly proficient, video game–playing, 10-and 11-year-old children were observed in the act of teaching adult “foils” how to play one of two popular home video games. The children were also debriefed after the teaching sessions. Observation and debriefing transcripts were then analyzed for evidence of expert behaviors such as self-monitoring, pattern recognition, principled decision making, qualitative thinking, and superior memory. The findings indicate that outstanding video game–playing children frequently display the characteristics of experts as they are displayed in other domains. Differences in levels of expertise also appear to be present along a continuum from novice to expert. Further study of video game processes may inform educators about the development of expert proficiencies in children.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Bandura, A.
(1977). Social learning theory. Engelwood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
2.
Benner, P.
(1984). From novice to expert: Excellence and power in clinical nursing practice. Menlo Park, CA: Addison-Wesley.
3.
Bliss, J.
, Kennedy, R. S., Turnage, J. & Dunlap, W. P. (1991). Communality of video game performances with tracking tasks. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 73(1), 22-29.
4.
Braun, C. M.
,& Giroux, J. (1989). Arcade video games: proxemic, cognitive and content analyses. Journal of Leisure Research, 21(2), 92-105.
5.
Brougère, G.
(1999). Some elements relating to children’s play and adult simulation/gaming. Simulation& Gaming, 30(2), 134-146.
6.
Calvert, S. L.
, Watson, J. A., Brinkley, V. M., & Bordeaux, B. (1989). Computer presentational features for young children’s preferential selection and recall of information. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 5(1), 35-49.
7.
Cesarone, B.
(1994). Video games and children. Washington, DC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement.
8.
Chi, M.
, Glaser, R., & Farr, M., (Eds.) (1988). The nature of expertise. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
9.
Csikszentmihalyi, M.
(1979). The concept of flow. In B. Sutton-Smith (Ed.), Play and learning. New York: Gardner Press.
10.
Csikszentmihalyi, M.
(1990). Flow: the psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper & Row.
11.
Detterman, D.
(1993). Transfer on trial: Intelligence, cognition and instruction. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
12.
Forsyth, A. S., Jr.
,& Lancy, D. F. (1987). Simulated travel and place location learning in a computer adventure game. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 3(3), 377-382.
13.
Funk, J. B.
(1993). Video games. Adolescent Medicine: State of the Art Reviews, 4(3), 589-598.
14.
Funk, J. B.
,& Buchman, D. (1996). Children’s perceptions of gender differences in social approval for playing electronic games. Sex Roles, 35, 219-231.
15.
Funk, J. B.
, Flores, G., Buchman, D. D. & Germann, J. (1999). Rating electronic games: Violence is in the eye of the beholder. Youth & Society, 30, 283-312.
16.
Funk, J. B.
, Hagen, J. D., & Schimming, J. L. (1999). Children and electronic games: A comparison of parent and child perceptions of children’s habits and preferences in a United States sample. Psychological Reports, 85, 883-888.
17.
Gagnon, D.
(1985). Video games and spatial skills: an exploratory study. Educational Communications and Technology Journal, 33(4), 263-275.
18.
Gardner, H.
(1983). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. New York: Basic Books.
19.
Griffiths, M. D.
(1991). Amusement machine playing in childhood and adolescence: A comparative analysis of video games and fruit machines. Journal of Adolescence, 14, 53-73.
20.
Keller, J.
(1987, October). Strategies for stimulating the motivation to learn. Performance and Instruction Journal, pp. 1-7.
21.
Kolb, D. A.
(1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Engelwood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
22.
Kubey, R. W.
(1990). Television and the quality of life: How viewing shapes everyday experience. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
23.
Lintern, G.
, & Kennedy, R. S. (1984). Video game as a covariate for carrier landing research. Perceptual & Motor Skills, 58(1), 167-172.
24.
McClurg, P.
,& Chaille, C. (1987). Computer games: Environments for developing spatial cognition?Journal of Educational Computing Research, 3(1), 95-111.
25.
Michaels, J. W.
(1993). Patterns of video game play in parlors as a function of endogenous and exogenous factors. Youth & Society, 25(2), 272-289.
26.
Provenzo, E. F., Jr.
(1992, March). The video generation. American School Board Journal, pp. 29-32.
27.
Provenzo, E. F.,Jr.
(2000). Computing, culture, and educational studies. Educational Studies, 31(1), 5-19.
28.
Rabinowitz, M.
(Ed.). (1993). Cognitive science foundations of instruction. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
29.
Reiber, L. P.
(1991). Animation, incidental learning, and continuing motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83, 318-328.
30.
Reiber, L.
, Smith, L., & Noah, D. (1998, November-December). The value of serious play. Educational Technology, pp. 29-36.
31.
Reigeluth, C. M.
, & Schwartz, E. (1989). An instructional theory for the design of computer-based simulations. Journal of Computer-Based Instruction, 16(1), 1-10.
32.
Ross, S.
, & Morrison, G. (1996). Experimental research methods. In D. Jonassen (Ed.), Handbook of research for educational communications and technology. New York: Macmillan.
33.
Ryan, R. M.
, Connell, J. P., & Plant, R. W. (1990). Emotions in non-directed text learning. Learning and Individual Differences, 2, 1-17.
34.
Savenye, W.
, & Robinson, R. (1996). Qualitative research issues and methods: An introduction for educational technologists. In D. Jonassen (Ed.), Handbook of research for educational communications and technology. New York: Macmillan.
35.
Strommen, E. F.
(1993). Is it easier to hop or walk? Development issues in interface design. Human Computer Interaction, 8, 337-352.
36.
Sullivan, R. L.
(1995). Virtual reality made easy. Forbes, 155(1), 66-67.
37.
SUPER MARIO KART. Nintendo of America Inc. (1994). Redmond, WA: Author (4820 150th Ave. NE Redmond, WA 98052).
38.
SUPER MARIOWORLD. Nintendo of America Inc. (1994). Redmond, WA: Author (4820 150th Ave. NE Redmond, WA 98052).
39.
Vygotsky, L. S.
(1978). Mind in society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
40.
Walker de Felix, J.
& Johnson, R. (1993). Learning from video games. Computers in the Schools, 9(2/3), 119-133.
