AI and Cognitive decline
I’ll be the first to confess that I’m an AI fan. It composes emails quicker than I can type, comes up with ideas when my mind is mush, and even assists me in planning my holidays. But I came across a Microsoft study that made me think twice. It indicated that the more we use AI our cognitive thinking declines. Our minds are essentially taking a backseat, getting complacent, and sometimes even “atrophying.”
That’s horrifying.
If we continue to let AI do the heavy work, what will happen to our problem-solving abilities, creativity, and critical thinking? The more I researched this, the more I realized that AI may be dumbing us down. Now, AI and cognitive decline are at their peak.
The Study That Exposed AI’s Dark Side
Microsoft’s study drew a bleak picture: The increase of artificial intelligence in the lives of people creates a situation in which we become more robotic less critical, and self-reflective. It is not the people but the decisions made by the AI who are no longer relying on experience and knowledge Holmes and Pockell (2017).
They stop the practice of benchmarking and do not consider other alternative courses of action but rather pursue what they have been given by AI which is generally the best/ most accurate option for them. They stop asking why and other related questions about the situation.
Should we leave the machines/ algorithms, as autonomous as they are, after engaging them in a decision-making process? ChatGPT is employed to prepare a crucial paper, then, the next step is to read through what it produced. Afterward, you transfer to the copy-and-paste approach and hit the send button. However, what if its answer is inaccurate? If there is a major flaw in the reasoning, you would not be able to get it because you never studied the information deeply enough to understand the details.
The effect of the AI paradigm is not just in the workplace. Learners are currently using AI to create summaries of various books but do not bother to read any of them. Just imagine a world where software has been programmed to diagnose medical conditions and now professionals do not even have to check them questioning their value in medicine. They keep going inside a dark tunnel with AI following the path predicted by AI systems.
It is quite easy to see the repetitive nature of the trend. The conclusion is that we humans are replaced by AI that is making decisions for us and we are admiring them.
The Science Behind AI-Induced Brain Laziness
Have you ever thought of practicing cognitive offloading? Offloading occurs when machines are given the duties our brains are capable of doing. People feel no need to remember phone numbers anymore because the mobile phones are just the apt gadgets for that.
Next up, we can delve into AI.
- Instead of brainstorming, AI provides us with ideas with just one click.
- Instead of studying the data, we trust the AI recommendations only.
- We have no resistance whatsoever to not questioning the AI columnist all by ourselves. We trust it implicitly.
As time goes by, our brains forget how to perform those activities. It’s like never going to the gym—everything in your muscles vanishes with time. The case is different when our biceps are not in danger. We can think. This is the connection of AI with cognitive decline.
Real-Life Examples of AI Making Us Slower, Not Smarter
This isn’t some abstract theory that is happening right now.
1. The Students Who Can’t Think for Themselves
A professor in a leading university recently experimented: he provided students with two essays, a human-written and an AI-generated one. All but a handful of students were unable to spot the difference. Worse, they were unable to critique the AI essay when they were asked because they had been conditioned to be so accepting of what AI provided rather than querying it.
2. The Google Docs Catastrophe in a Law Firm
A large law firm allowed AI to prepare legal contracts. All was well until a young associate reviewed the document and discovered AI had placed entirely incorrect legal citations. The firm nearly sent out an invalid contract!
3. The AI Financial Crash Waiting to Happen
Wall Street is obsessed with AI-driven trading. But what happens when investors blindly follow AI’s predictions without understanding market nuances? A finance professor warns that over-reliance on AI could trigger a massive market crash because nobody is thinking critically, just reacting.
You can also check our blog on AI Gone Wild! The Shocking Truth About AI Hallucinations and Why You Should Be Worried
How to Use AI Without Letting It Use You
Admit it or not – AI is here to stay, and we can’t do anything about it, but it is totally up to us whether it will transform us into zombies or will help us to be better than before. So, here are some suggestions on how to deal with this problem:
- Make a Doubt Your Guide: Start with AI output as a helpful hint or clue and then, based on a more thorough analysis of facts and clear arguments, apply critical thinking. Verify every piece of information from multiple reputable sources to ensure its accuracy.
- Empower Your Mind First: Indeed, be as creative as you can on your own before consulting AI for help. Try to solve the problem without the help of anyone else for a day or two, forcing yourself to assess the situation from all possible angles.
- Opt An AI Atlas: Delegate AI migration of sections like automatic essay writing or brainstorming tasks to a human getting rid of AI interference. Therefore, check for resources to figure out a different way.
- Keep Growing: Educate them by letting them read new books and novels, practice math problems, or even have meaningful conversations with them about different topics. Anything that will challenge your mental capacities to be alert and at the same time to be creative.
The future isn’t AI vs. humans it’s AI with humans. But if we don’t stay engaged, we might wake up one day realizing AI didn’t just help us—it replaced us.
Let’s make sure that doesn’t happen.
What do you think? Have you noticed yourself relying on AI more than you used to? Drop a comment and let’s talk!
FAQ’s
AI in itself isn’t the issue, how we implement it is. Relying too much on AI for thinking, decision-making, and solving problems can deteriorate our cognitive functions over time.
Offloading cognition is when we allow technology to do tasks our minds would otherwise perform, such as recalling facts or figuring out problems. AI makes it even simpler, resulting in less mental effort.
Utilize AI as a tool, not a crutch. Challenge its output, verify facts, and attempt to work out problems yourself before seeking assistance from AI.
Yes! Education, healthcare, law, and finance are particularly at risk. In these domains, blindly following AI without human intervention can cause grave errors.
Indeed! Reading books, having in-depth conversations, exercising problem-solving, and restricting AI use in everyday decision-making can assist in rebuilding cognitive strength.
