A Deconstruction of Expertise and Performance Through Arcade Games

Abstract

High levels of performance in video games may share the same underlying foundation for transfer with high levels of performance in musical instruments. The aim of this study was to examine the phenomenon of expertise by studying its underlying processes through eye movements during video game tasks. We compared three distinctly different groups (N = 30 adults) across a training and testing period: 1) people with experience in video games; 2) people with experience playing musical instruments, but no experience with video games; and 3) a control group with no experience with either computer games or musical instruments. Results showed that the musician group distinguished themselves through their pattern of eye movements, showing improvements in visual prediction and performance on par with experienced video game players. While the control group also showed overall improvement in performance and increased eye movements, only the group of musicians performed at the level of experienced video game players. Findings challenge previous assumptions that consider expertise as an isolated and task-specific ability that cannot be generalized to other areas and have significant implications for how we understand the development of expertise and general learning.