New research says that video games appeal to the male urge to conquer, according to a report in the Daily Mail.

The newspaper cites a new study by Stanford Prof. Allan Reiss (left), published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research

Professor Allan Reiss, who led the research, said women got the hang of the game and understood how to win the most territory, but were not as driven as men...



After analysing the MRI data, the researchers found participants of both sexes showed activation in the brain' s mesocorticolimbic centre, the region typically associated with reward and addiction. Male brains, however, showed much greater activation. The amount increased as they gained more territory.

Reiss commented on his research:

These gender differences might help explain why males are more attracted to, and more likely to become " hooked" on, video games than females. I think it' s fair to say that males tend to be more intrinsically territorial. It doesn' t take a genius to figure out who historically are the conquerors and tyrants of our species.