Dumber Decade: Report Shows Human Reasoning, Attention, Problem-Solving, Declining Substantially Since 2010

A growing body of research suggests that human intelligence, particularly in reasoning, problem-solving, and concentration, may have peaked over a decade ago and has been in decline ever since. Data from international education assessments and studies on adult cognitive skills reveal a concerning trend: individuals across all age groups are struggling more with focus, logical reasoning, and numerical understanding.

On Friday, the Financial Times of Britain published an essay “Have humans passed peak brain power?” which addressed these concerns, and presented the startling evidence, available here.

Long-Term Decline in Cognitive Skills

Recent results from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), an OECD-backed international exam measuring the reading, math, and science skills of 15-year-olds, indicate that test scores have been declining since 2012.

While much of the recent discussion has focused on the educational disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the data suggests that the decline in cognitive performance predates the pandemic by several years.

The trend is not limited to teenagers. A separate OECD study tracking adult skills also showed similar declines across all age groups, with reductions in problem-solving abilities, attention span, and even fundamental numeracy.

One particularly troubling statistic reveals that one in three American adults (35%) now struggles to apply basic mathematical reasoning when evaluating the validity of statements—a sharp increase from previous years. Across high-income nations, an average of 25% of adults now face the same difficulty.

The average American reads a reported four books per year. Globally, this is about a third of the global average of 12. The average in Britain is 15, and in France, 14.

The Role of Digital Media and Information Overload

Researchers suggest that these declines in cognitive ability may be linked to the rapid shift in how people consume information. The rise of digital media has reshaped human attention, moving people away from focused reading and problem-solving toward constant engagement with fast-paced, visually driven content.

According to data from the Monitoring the Future study, which has tracked American high school students for decades, reports of difficulty thinking, concentrating, or learning new things were stable through the 1990s and 2000s. However, starting in the mid-2010s, the number of students experiencing these difficulties increased dramatically.

This timeframe aligns with the growing dominance of smartphones, social media, and algorithm-driven content, which present a constant stream of updates, notifications, and distractions.

Social media platforms are fundamentally reshaping the way people process information, leading to shorter attention spans and reduced cognitive endurance.

With endless scrolling features, rapid-fire video content, and algorithm-driven feeds, platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter condition users to expect instant gratification and quick dopamine hits, discouraging deep thought or sustained focus.

Studies show that the average attention span has declined over the past decade, with users struggling to engage with long-form content, whether in reading, discussions, or problem-solving.

The constant barrage of notifications and infinite content loops promotes passive consumption over active engagement, rewiring the brain to crave speed over substance.

As a result, many individuals—especially younger generations—find it increasingly difficult to concentrate on tasks that require prolonged effort, such as reading books, studying complex subjects, or critically evaluating information.

This shift has profound implications for education, productivity, and even public discourse, as nuanced discussions are often replaced by bite-sized reactions, superficial engagement, and emotional knee-jerk responses.

In his latest book, last year’s The Anxious Generation, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt warns that the rise of smartphone culture and social media addiction is fueling a crisis in mental health and cognitive development, particularly among young people.

Haidt argues that these shifts toward constant digital stimulation has led to a decline in attention spans, reduced problem-solving abilities, and increased anxiety levels, especially among teenagers who have grown up with social media as a dominant force in their daily lives.

Reading Declines While Passive Consumption Rises

The decline in traditional reading habits further supports the theory that digital consumption may be playing a role in reduced cognitive performance.

• A 2022 survey found that fewer than half of Americans reported reading a book in the past year, a historic low.
• Meanwhile, screen time—especially on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube—has surged, often favoring short, high-speed content that discourages deep focus.

Some researchers suggest that this shift toward passive, fragmented consumption of information—rather than active, engaged learning—could be weakening the brain’s ability to focus, reason, and analyze complex topics.

Changes May Not be Reversible

Despite concerns about declining intelligence and attention, some experts argue that underlying human intellectual capacity remains intact. However, they emphasize that mental performance depends not only on raw ability but also on how skills are developed and applied.

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) has introduced legislation aimed at limiting children’s screen time and regulating Big Tech’s impact on young users. Hawley has proposed laws to ban addictive social media features and set a minimum age for children using social media.

In October 2023, Senators Ted Cruz, Ted Budd, and Shelley Moore Capito introduced the “Eyes on the Board Act,” seeking to restrict student access to social media during school hours and promote parental controls on screen time.

Even Michigan’s far-left Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently proposed legislation to ban cellphone use in schools.

If current trends in digital consumption and declining attention spans continue, the broader impacts on education, workforce productivity, and societal decision-making could be significant.

Some researchers advocate for educational reforms emphasizing critical thinking, logic, and deep reading, as well as more intentional use of digital media to minimize its negative effects on focus and cognition.

Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 is often interpreted as a warning about government censorship, but Bradbury himself made it clear that the novel’s deeper concern was society’s own abandonment of books in favor of mindless entertainment.

The dystopian world of Fahrenheit 451 did not fall into tyranny through state-imposed book bans alone; rather, it was the gradual erosion of attention spans, critical thinking, and intellectual curiosity that led people to stop reading voluntarily.

As television screens grew larger and entertainment became faster-paced, books—requiring patience, deep thought, and reflection—became obsolete in a culture that favored instant gratification over sustained intellectual engagement.

This mirrors what social critics like Jonathan Haidt now warn is happening in the real world, where the rise of social media, algorithm-driven content, and infinite scrolling has conditioned people to consume information in quick bursts, rather than engage deeply with complex ideas.

In Fahrenheit 451, people did not fight to save books because they no longer valued them; technology had rewired their brains to prefer distraction over depth, making the destruction of literature merely the final step in a process that had already been underway for years.

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