Working memory
Can Social Card Games Boost Brain Power in Older Adults?
Open access · cc by · source: Europe PMC
Playing specially designed card games in a social group improves cognitive control in healthy older adults compared to standard board games or waiting on a list.
Key findings
Only the cognitive training group showed a significant improvement in overall executive control, with a large effect size of 0.19. The active control group showed only a marginal trend of improvement, and the waitlist control group showed none. No group saw selective improvements in delayed memory or abstract reasoning, meaning the training benefits did not transfer to unrelated cognitive tasks.
Methodology
The researchers divided 69 healthy older adults into three groups of 23 participants each. One group received 8 weeks of training using custom card games designed to exercise mental control, meeting twice a week for sessions lasting 75 minutes. Another group played commercial board games for the same duration to act as an active control, while a waitlist control group did not change their routine.
Limitations
This study cannot show if these mental benefits persist over the long term because the researchers did not conduct a follow-up assessment. Because the training was conducted in a social group setting, the study cannot isolate the benefits of the card games from the positive effects of social interaction itself. Additionally, the small sample size of 23 people per group limits the study's ability to detect smaller cognitive changes or generalize the findings to a broader population.
How this study connects
Role on claims
Each row is a claim on a concept or method page where this paper supports, challenges, or qualifies the statement. Roles are hand-checked — not a model guess.
Structured cognitive training, including social card games and preschool-based play programs, can successfully train and improve executive functioning and working memory.
Evidence for the claim as stated.
Working memory training using games generally fails to expand core cognitive capacity or transfer to general intelligence, although it can improve task-specific attention-focusing strategies.
Evidence for the claim as stated.
Multi-component cognitive training, such as playing custom card games, enhances general executive control in healthy older adults, though these benefits may not transfer to unrelated cognitive skills like delayed memory or abstract reasoning.
Evidence for the claim as stated.
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