Does constantly playing chess make a person smarter?

I've just started playing again after about a year of not playing it. I've been playing every chance I get; at home with my sweet wife or on several computers I have, at work with co-workers, I keep a portable in my pocket so I can play if I have to wait in a line somewhere....I play all the time now. I have fallen in love with the game all over again.

To answer your question, I'm sure my thinking patterns have improved since I've been playing. I've caught myself doing things a little more orderly than usual. And I think I've become more observant in general. And just the fact that people tend to naturally improve as they play more games should be an indication that they are indeed building stronger brain matter. If I'm not mistaken, I believe in some countries playing chess regularly is a military requirement that builds strategic skills.

Puzzling out solutions on all types of games--very beneficial. Sudoku, Crosswords puzzles, chess, Go (weiqi), Xiangqi, Rubik's Cube... may all be somewhat benificial to ones thinking power. I wouldn't limit it to just playing "Chess". I feel that exercising different thinking patterns will only be benificial to the creative problem solving process to logic problems.

On the other hand while puzzles may be great for the logic part of the brain. When dealing with people, logic does not always prevail over pure psychological emotion. If you like chess... or strategic gaming... try reading Sun Tzu's Art of War. It may help your game aswell as give you some insight in the psychology of people.

playing chess all the time make you smarter? that is half an asumption, if you play bad chess with bad players than you are not getting smarter, if you play and than take an ACTIVE role in seeing where you made a misstep and realize the flaw than yes you can get smarter. but playing chess alone won't make you smarter and neither will reading books without critical analysis. You can actual become smarter at almost any activity as long as you apply yourself to making youself better and understanding the action and reactions of this world.

Chess is a logic and strategy game, which appeals to the logic centres of your brain. As you get better at chess, your mind will learn to make logical connections and develop strategy faster and more effectively.

There's a huge list of skills that you can improve by getting better at chess and other logic games:

- Chess develops memory. The chess theory is complicated and many players memorize different opening variations. You will also learn to recognize various patterns and remember lengthy variations.

- Chess improves concentration. During the game you are focused on only one main goal -- to checkmate and become the victor.

- Chess promotes imagination and creativity. It encourages you to be inventive.

- Chess teaches independence. You are forced to make important decisions influenced only by your own judgment.

- Chess develops the capability to predict and foresee consequences of actions.

- Chess teaches that success rewards hard work. The more you practice, the better you'll become. You should be ready to lose and learn from your mistakes.

- Chess develops the scientific way of thinking. While playing, you generate numerous variations in your mind. You explore new ideas, try to predict their outcomes and interpret surprising revelations. You decide on a hypothesis, and then you make your move and test it.

Since logic is one of the measures used in calculating IQ - yes, on paper, getting better at chess will make you smarter (thought technically only in the sense that it will raise your IQ), but more important than a number on paper are the attributes you can improve by playing the game. You certainly won't get the same benefits from chess as you will from reading, but it's well worth it.

You can also try other logical thinking games like Sudoku.

Not if you overdo it. That would just make you a chess nerd. But as a reasonable amount of exercise for the brain, sure.

of course.. Since chess is a strategy game, it involves thinking and when one thinks, our neurons <brain cells>become functional and we would be able to use them, and even use those hidden neurons that we never knew we had!so in short, the more we use our brain, the more intelligent we become!

no you get get smarter for just playing chess

YES!! I play it and it involes thinking. I love it. When I get beat. I do it again.