Imagine being a child in 1941, taking the common entrance exam for public schools with nothing but a pencil and paper. You read: ‘Write, for no more than a quarter of an hour, about a British author.’ Today, most of us wouldn’t need 15 minutes to ponder such a question. We’d get the answer instantly by turning to AI tools like Google Gemini, ChatGPT, or Siri.
Offloading cognitive effort to artificial intelligence has become second nature, but mounting evidence suggests that human intelligence is declining. Some experts fear this trend is driven by our increasing reliance on AI. Recent research indicates that our brain power is in decline, raising concerns about the long-term implications of outsourcing our thinking to faceless algorithms.
The Decline of Human Intelligence
Studies have shown that the Flynn effect – the observed increase in IQ over successive generations – has slowed or even reversed in recent decades. In the UK, James Flynn himself found that the average IQ of a 14-year-old dropped by more than two points between 1980 and 2008. The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) has also reported an unprecedented drop in maths, reading, and science scores across many regions.
While these trends are statistically robust, their interpretations are complex. ‘Everyone wants to point the finger at AI as the boogeyman, but that should be avoided,’ says Elizabeth Dworak at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Intelligence is influenced by many variables, including micronutrients, prenatal care, education, pollution, and technology, making it challenging to isolate AI’s impact.
The Impact on Critical Thinking and Creativity
However, concerns about cognitive offloading diminishing specific cognitive skills are valid and measurable. Generative AI has allowed us to offload more cognitive effort than ever before, but this comes at a cost. Automating tasks deprives us of the opportunity to practice those skills, weakening the neural architecture that supports them. Critical thinking, in particular, is at risk. Why consider what you admire about a British author when ChatGPT can reflect on that for you?
Research underscores these concerns. A study by Michael Gerlich at SBS Swiss Business School found a significant correlation between frequent AI use and lower critical-thinking skills. Another study by researchers at Microsoft and Carnegie Mellon University found that while GenAI improved efficiency, it also inhibited critical thinking and fostered long-term overreliance on the technology.
The Need for Balance
To maintain our cognitive abilities, we need to find a balance between leveraging AI’s benefits and preserving human intelligence. As Robert Sternberg warns, we need to stop asking what AI can do for us and start asking what it is doing to us. Until we understand the long-term effects, experts like Gerlich suggest ‘training humans to be more human again – using critical thinking, intuition – the things that computers can’t yet do and where we can add real value.’
This requires a fundamental shift in how we interact with AI, starting from schools. We must learn to use AI in a way that complements our cognitive abilities rather than replacing them. By doing so, we can mitigate the risks associated with AI and ensure that our cognitive abilities continue to thrive.
