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RESEARCH CENTER FOR INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT PROBLEMS of NAS of Ukraine (KHARKIV, UKRAINE)

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Liburkina L. M.

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The Cognitive Potential of Esports Athletes As a Dual-Use Resource: The Neurophysiological Dimension and Integration into the National Security System
Mazai A. H.

Mazai, Anton H. (2026) “The Cognitive Potential of Esports Athletes As a Dual-Use Resource: The Neurophysiological Dimension and Integration into the National Security System.” Business Inform 8:64–74.
https://doi.org/10.32983/2222-4459-2026-8-64-74

Section: Foreign Experience

Article is written in Ukrainian
Downloads/views: 12

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UDC 351.86

Abstract:
Existing studies report selected differences in psychomotor speed, visuospatial attention, executive control and decision-making among competitive players, but do not explain how these characteristics can be converted into a verifiable human-capital resource for national security. Far skill transfer, the economic feasibility of public programmes, institutional responsibility and the protection of neural data remain insufficiently examined.The article aims to conceptualise the cognitive potential of esports athletes as a conditional dual-use resource and to develop a governance model for its integration based on evidence, voluntary participation, interagency coordination and public accountability.The study combines an analytical review of peer-reviewed research published in 2024–2026, comparative institutional analysis, structural-functional and risk-based approaches, conceptual modelling and functional comparison of esports and security-related occupational tasks.A dual-use cognitive resource is defined as a set of measurable competencies emerging in a civilian digital ecosystem that can acquire public value only after transfer to a specific occupational scenario has been validated. A conditional transfer matrix is developed for sensorimotor speed, visuospatial attention, executive control, time-constrained decision-making, team coordination and self-regulation. A five-level governance model is proposed, covering evidence validation, institutional coordination, voluntary pilot programmes, ethical safeguards, and evaluation with public accountability.Instead of treating esports athletes as a ready-made personnel reserve, the study proposes an evidence chain: «competence – occupational scenario – validation – micro-credential – public return assessment».The model can support voluntary interagency pilots, standardised assessment protocols, secure simulation platforms and performance indicators for public investment.Scaling is justified only after causal relationships, skill retention, safety and economic feasibility have been confirmed; membership in the esports community must never substitute for professional selection.

Keywords: esports; cognitive potential; human capital; dual-use resource; national security; public governance; neurophysiology; skill transfer.

Tabl.: 2. Bibl.: 18.

Mazai Anton H. – Postgraduate Student, Department of Public Management, Administration, and Social Work, Shupyk National Healthcare University of Ukraine (9 Dorohozhytska Str., Kyiv, 04112, Ukraine)
Email: [email protected]

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