Something weird is happening in America. We live in an era where information flows faster than ever, where Google can answer any question in milliseconds, and where AI can write your essays, solve your math problems, and even craft your emails. Yet somehow, we’re getting dumber.
I know that sounds harsh, but hear me out. Last month, I watched my neighbor’s teenager ask Siri what 15% of $80 was while standing at a restaurant. Not a complex calculus problem – basic mental math that any high schooler should nail in about three seconds. But why bother when your phone can do it for you?
This isn’t just about one kid. Recent research is painting a pretty concerning picture of where we’re headed. A study by Michael Gerlich at SBS Swiss Business School has found that increased reliance on artificial intelligence (AI) tools is linked to diminished critical thinking abilities. We’re essentially outsourcing our brains to machines, and the muscles of critical thinking are starting to atrophy. And even look at the IQ tests https://iq-global-test.com/ that have become even simpler, and they adapt to the population because of their nature and the Flynn effect.
The Great Cognitive Offload
What’s happening isn’t exactly rocket science. Psychologists call it “cognitive offloading” – basically, when we let external tools do our thinking for us. Your grandfather might have memorized dozens of phone numbers; you probably know three. He could navigate across town without GPS; you might get lost driving to your own grocery store without Google Maps.
The difference now is the speed and scope of this offload. Recent findings revealed a significant negative correlation between frequent AI tool usage and critical thinking abilities, mediated by increased cognitive offloading. We’re not just outsourcing memory anymore – we’re outsourcing analysis, reasoning, and even creativity.
I see this everywhere. Students turning in essays that are clearly AI-generated but somehow miss obvious factual errors that any human reader would catch. Coworkers who can generate impressive PowerPoints but can’t explain the logic behind their own recommendations. Friends who share articles on Facebook without reading past the headline, let alone fact-checking the source.
When Information Becomes Weaponized
Here’s where things get really troubling. You’d think that in an age of unprecedented access to information, we’d be harder to fool. Logic says that when everyone has the world’s knowledge in their pocket, propaganda and misinformation would lose their power.
You’d be dead wrong.
Disinformation shaped views about the candidates, affected how voters saw leader performance, and generated widespread media attention during the 2024 election cycle. “Misinformation will be more effective inside insular communities and harder to detect,” experts warned, and they weren’t kidding.
The problem isn’t lack of access to good information – it’s that we’ve lost the skills to distinguish good information from garbage. When you can generate a convincing-sounding article with AI in minutes, when deepfakes can put words in anyone’s mouth, and when social media algorithms feed you exactly what you want to hear, critical thinking becomes more important than ever. And that’s precisely when we’re losing it.
The Paradox of Choice
Walk into any American bookstore and you’ll find entire sections dedicated to self-improvement, productivity hacks, and “life optimization.” We’re obsessed with being better, faster, more efficient. Yet somewhere along the way, we decided that thinking hard about things was inefficient.
Why struggle through a complex article when someone on TikTok can summarize it in 60 seconds? Why debate ideas with friends when your echo chamber will validate your existing beliefs? Why learn to code when AI can write the program for you?
This isn’t progress – it’s intellectual outsourcing. And like most outsourcing, it comes with hidden costs. Studies focused on Millennial and Gen Z workers in the U.S., U.K., Germany, and Japan, found that many people reported burning out and struggling to make ends meet even as they become more dependent on technological assistance.
The Social Media Intelligence Trap
Social media promised to democratize knowledge and connect brilliant minds across the globe. Instead, it created a system where the loudest voice wins, not the smartest one. Complex nuance gets crushed under the weight of viral soundbites. Expertise becomes just another opinion.
I’ve watched friends who are genuinely intelligent people – doctors, engineers, teachers – share obviously fake news stories because the headline aligned with their worldview. The same people who can diagnose rare diseases or design bridges somehow can’t spot a fabricated quote or a manipulated photo.
The platforms themselves aren’t helping. Since 2021, the largest social media companies have been cutting the teams tasked with moderation to the bone. Meanwhile, bad actors have gotten more sophisticated, using AI to create more convincing fake content at unprecedented scale.
The Cost of Convenience
There’s nothing inherently wrong with using tools to make life easier. Calculators didn’t destroy mathematics, and word processors didn’t kill writing. But there’s a difference between using tools to enhance our capabilities and letting them replace our capabilities entirely.
The research suggests we’re crossing that line. As technology has played a bigger role in our lives, our skills in critical thinking and analysis have declined, while our visual skills have improved, according to UCLA research. We’re getting better at processing images and videos – perfect for scrolling through Instagram. We’re getting worse at the deep, sustained thinking that democracy and innovation actually require.
What Does “Smart” Even Mean Anymore?
This brings us to the uncomfortable question: in 2025, what does it mean to be intelligent? Is it knowing facts? Google knows more facts than any human ever could. Is it solving problems? AI can solve many problems faster than we can. Is it creativity? Well, have you seen what ChatGPT can write?
Maybe intelligence isn’t about what you know or even how fast you can process information. Maybe it’s about wisdom – knowing what questions to ask, understanding context and nuance, recognizing when you’re being manipulated, and having the patience to think things through even when there’s an easy answer available.
If that’s the case, then being truly smart might be more countercultural than ever. It means choosing to read the whole article instead of just the headline. It means sitting with uncertainty instead of grabbing the first answer Google serves up. It means having conversations with people who disagree with you instead of blocking them.
The Road Back
I’m not suggesting we return to the Stone Age or give up our smartphones. Technology isn’t the enemy – intellectual laziness is. The solution isn’t to avoid AI and social media; it’s to use them as tools rather than crutches.
This means asking ourselves harder questions: Before I share this article, do I actually understand what it’s saying? Before I let AI write this email, do I know what I’m trying to communicate? Before I dismiss that opposing viewpoint, have I actually tried to understand the reasoning behind it?
It means teaching our kids – and ourselves – that the goal isn’t to find the fastest answer, but to find the right answer. That sometimes the best response to a question is “I don’t know, let me think about that.” That being wrong and learning from it is more valuable than being right because an algorithm told you what to say.
The irony is thick: in an age when being smart should be easier than ever, it’s becoming a radical act. But maybe that’s exactly what makes it worth fighting for. In a world of quick fixes and instant answers, deep thinking becomes a superpower. In a sea of misinformation and manipulation, critical thinking becomes a form of resistance.
So yes, being smart is still cool – maybe cooler than ever. It’s just gotten a lot harder to do.