The brain retains plasticity throughout the lifespan, bringing the hope that we may delay and reverse some of cognitive and memory troubles common in old age. The goals of this research program are to understand how variables within social computing environments improve older adult cognition, what properties of a virtual environment are critical, and empirically test these properties in interventions with older adults. Further, we will learn how demographic variables (such as age and isolation) relate to success in a cognitive intervention. The applied output will be design guidelines for a class of cognitive games for older adults and a new social computing environment.

Anne McLaughlin is an assistant professor of Psychology at North Carolina State University. Her work in understanding the cognitive benefits of video games, especially for older players, is supported by the National Science Foundation. More information can be found at www.gainsthroughgaming.org and www.lacelab.org