A worrying trend is emerging globally: our cognitive skills are in decline.
From struggling to concentrate to losing problem-solving abilities, people of all ages are showing signs of decreased intelligence.
Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on education, these patterns have been present since the mid-2010s, painting a concerning picture of a world growing less sharp by the day.
This decline in cognitive skills is visible across various benchmarks.
For example, the University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future study has documented a significant drop in the concentration abilities of 18-year-olds in America.
Similarly, troubling data comes from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which measures the learning skills of 15-year-olds worldwide.
Both studies point to young people battling shorter attention spans and weakening critical thinking capabilities.
While it’s easy to point fingers at the COVID-19 pandemic for this situation, the evidence suggests that this problem predates the global crisis.
The decline in our cognitive abilities has been evident since at least the mid-2010s. This implies that the root cause of this issue goes beyond just educational disruption caused by the pandemic.
But why is this happening?
One potential culprit is our changing relationship with reading and how we consume information and media.
According to a 2022 report by the National Endowment for the Arts, only 37.6 percent of Americans said they’d read a novel or short story in the previous year – a noticeable drop from 41.5 percent in 2017, and 45.2 percent in 2012.
If fewer people are engaging with long-form written content, it could be contributing to the decline in problem-solving and reasoning abilities.
However, it’s not just reading that’s in decline.
Recent data from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development suggests that numeracy skills are also falling.
In their 2023 survey, it was found that 34 percent of adults in the United States scored at the lowest levels of numeracy – up from 29 percent just a year ago.
As our interaction with numbers decreases in daily life due to reliance on technology, our ability to work with numbers inevitably suffers.
The Financial Times stresses that our relationship with information at large is shifting.
Excessive “screen time” is linked to negative impacts on cognition, hurting verbal functioning in children and making it harder for college-age adults to focus and retain information.
This isn’t just speculation – studies show that high screen time can negatively impact verbal functioning in children and make it harder for young adults to concentrate and retain information.
Going forward
It’s important to note that this doesn’t necessarily mean human intellect is damaged.
However, it does suggest that both our potential and execution of intelligence are experiencing a significant downturn.
It also suggests that we need to reassess our relationship with information consumption and consider the potential long-term impacts of our increasingly digital lifestyles.
Education systems also need to evolve to address these challenges.
Teaching methods should encourage critical thinking, problem-solving, and deep engagement with content, rather than mere information absorption.
There’s a need for a balanced approach that harnesses the benefits of technology without letting it compromise our cognitive skills.
After all, our collective intelligence is one of humanity’s most powerful tools — but only if we know how to use it effectively.
How can we ensure that our cognitive abilities continue to flourish in an increasingly digital world? It’s a question that demands our attention, for the sake of future generations and the continued advancement of humanity.
