The billion dollar question: Under what conditions can brain training result in real-world benefits?

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Does any­one care if “brain games” actu­al­ly work? (For­tune):

“The cog­ni­tive fit­ness mar­ket — loose­ly defined as non-inva­sive neu­rotech­nolo­gies that mon­i­tor or enhance cog­ni­tion — is booming…The “brain game” indus­try is already a bil­lion dol­lar mar­ket, and will reach the $6 bil­lion mark with­in the next five years says Sharp­Brains, a neu­ro-well­ness mar­ket research firm.

But key ques­tions remain: Do these pro­grams live up to the hype? Does neu­ro­science, the sup­posed foun­da­tion of so many of these tech­nolo­gies, back up the idea that the right app can reduce the risk of cog­ni­tive decline? And with such a boom­ing mar­ket in play, does any­one — con­sumer or investor — even care if they do?…

Alvaro Fer­nan­dez, co-founder and ana­lyst for Sharp Brains…says the debate has caused some con­ster­na­tion among con­sumers and investors alike…So mov­ing for­ward, the real ques­tion cog­ni­tive train­ing com­pa­nies need to answer is: Under what con­di­tions is a par­tic­u­lar brain train­ing appli­ca­tion more like­ly to trans­fer into real-world ben­e­fits? The com­pa­nies that can defin­i­tive­ly (and empir­i­cal­ly) answer that for their users — and their investors — will look very bright.”

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