Entre o medo e a esperança: um estudo sobre os usos e sentidos do treinamento cerebral no Brasil

Abstract

The main goal of the present doctoral thesis is to analyze the uses and meanings of the practices of cerebral training in Brazil. This type of training, also known as cognitive training and cerebral gymnastics, is related to the guided practice of specific exercises and games to preserve or improve cognitive skills and/or cognition in general. The main objective of this work is to map and analyze the definitions attributed to cerebral training companies and their clients to their brain training activities. To achieve this goal, we analyzed two groups of data: a) textual information available on the official websites of three Brazilian franchises focused on brain training (Super, Super Cérebro e Ginástica do Cérebro), as well the leading Brazilian virtual platforms (Supera Online, NeuroForma, Afinando o Cérebro e Mente Turbinada); b) transcriptions of semi-structured interviews with ten regular consumers of these companies, ages from 22 to 87 years. After analyzing the contents available on the websites and interviews, we could observe that the aims of brain training are connected. Besides the search for fun and sociability on the client's side, there are a series of fears and hopes. Among fears, we could stand out as the ones connected to the possibility of developing a future Alzheimer's disease or any other type of dementia state that could harm their cognitive functions and, consequently, lead them to lose their autonomy and become dependent on others. On the other hand, the search for brain gymnastic activities is related to the hope to revert or interrupt the "cognitive decline" and avoid the development of dementia. However, on their side, the companies encourage their clients and potential clients, through their advertising websites, different ways to trigger their hopes, especially the hope of a future when they develop cognitive capacities in different parts of their lives. We could claim that what connects the message released and these types of products, bought and sold, is hope. We finally point out that the techniques of brain training are technologies of hope since the companies of the field use them to foment their clients and potential clients the belief that it is possible to achieve, in the present, some preservation and improvement of cognitive skills, to prevent some diseases as Alzheimer and to lengthen their life expectancy healthily, enjoying autonomy and independence.