Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28303097›Full record

ReviewFrontiers in human neuroscience2017

Language Learning Enhanced by Massive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) and the Underlying Behavioral and Neural Mechanisms.

Yongjun Zhang, Hongwen Song, Xiaoming Liu, Dinghong Tang, Yue-E Chen, Xiaochu Zhang

Erratum issuedAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Frontiers in human neuroscience, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Yongjun ZhangSchool of Foreign Languages, Anhui Jianzhu UniversityHefei, China; Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Information Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of ChinaHefei, China.
Hongwen SongSchool of Humanities and Social Science, University of Science and Technology of China Hefei, China.
Xiaoming LiuSchool of Foreign Languages, Anhui Jianzhu UniversityHefei, China; School of Humanities and Social Science, University of Science and Technology of ChinaHefei, China.
Dinghong TangSchool of Foreign Languages, Anhui Jianzhu University Hefei, China.
Yue-E ChenSchool of Foreign Languages, Anhui Jianzhu UniversityHefei, China; School of Public Affairs, University of Science and Technology of ChinaHefei, China.
Xiaochu ZhangCenter for Biomedical Engineering, School of Information Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of ChinaHefei, China; School of Humanities and Social Science, University of Science and Technology of ChinaHefei, China; CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, School of Life Science, University of Science and Technology of ChinaHefei, China; State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; Center of Medical Physics and Technology, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of SciencesHefei, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Massive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) have increased in popularity among children, juveniles, and adults since MMORPGs' appearance in this digital age. MMORPGs can be applied to enhancing language learning, which is drawing researchers' attention from different fields and many studies have validated MMORPGs' positive effect on language learning. However, there are few studies on the underlying behavioral or neural mechanism of such effect. This paper reviews the educational application of the MMORPGs based on relevant macroscopic and microscopic studies, showing that gamers' overall language proficiency or some specific language skills can be enhanced by real-time online interaction with peers and game narratives or instructions embedded in the MMORPGs. Mechanisms underlying the educational assistant role of MMORPGs in second language learning are discussed from both behavioral and neural perspectives. We suggest that attentional bias makes gamers/learners allocate more cognitive resources toward task-related stimuli in a controlled or an automatic way. Moreover, with a moderating role played by activation of reward circuit, playing the MMORPGs may strengthen or increase functional connectivity from seed regions such as left anterior insular/frontal operculum (AI/FO) and visual word form area to other language-related brain areas.

Indexed as

behavioral mechanisminteractionlanguage learningMassive Multiple Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs)neural mechanismreward

Identifiers

PMID28303097
PMCPMC5332359

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.