Abstract
Background: While there is now a large amount of research investigating whether brain training applications and games are effective or not, there is less research on the expectations, attitudes, and habits of potential users of brain training programs. Previous research suggests that people generally have positive beliefs about the effectiveness of brain training which are not dependent on their level of experience of brain training. However, this research has primarily focused on western participants. Methods: In the present study, a questionnaire was used to investigate the attitudes and habits of Japanese consumers towards brain training. The final sample contained responses from 818 people. In addition to descriptive statistics, correlation coefficients were calculated to determine if there were relationships between variables relating to participants' beliefs about brain training and experience of using brain training. Results: Participants had positive beliefs about the effectiveness of brain training. However, these beliefs were only weakly correlated with their level of experience of using brain training, both in terms of the number programs used (Pearson's r = 0.163) and duration of use (Pearson's r = 0.237). The most widely used brain training program (used by 52.93% of participants) was made by Nintendo for the handheld Nintendo DS games console. Conclusions: The research presented here supports previous findings which suggest that people's beliefs about the effectiveness of brain training software are not strongly related to their experience of using such software.
Highlights
There has been much interest in so-called “brain training” (BT) applications and games
The results of the present study suggest that a high rate of Japanese consumers have positive perceptions of the potential benefits of BT apps and games, comparable to or higher than the rate in US consumers (Torous et al, 2016)
These results suggest that Japanese consumers and US consumers have broadly similar attitudes and expectations regarding BT apps and games
Summary
There has been much interest in so-called “brain training” (BT) applications and games (the terms “brain training” and “cognitive training” are treated as synonyms in this paper) These programs are typically marketed to consumers as enjoyable, interactive experiences that, if used regularly, are claimed to improve a range of cognitive skills, such as attention, memory, and multitasking ability (Simons et al, 2016). Conclusions: The research presented here supports previous findings which suggest that people's beliefs about the effectiveness of brain training software are not strongly related to their experience of using such software
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