Are Smart Phones Making us Dumb or Dumber?

(Newswire.net — July 13, 2017) Nottingham, Nottinghamshire — Smart phone users cognitive mind power is being diluted by smartphones. It does not matter if we use the phone to navigate down the street or to watch a cat video, this broad reaching study, with over 100 citations suggests even the presence of a smartphones further constrains our already limited cognitive capacity.

While continuing research gives mixed reviews as to the physiological damage microwaves and cell towers might be causing the brain, this study focused entirely on how phones are not only changing our behaviour, but dumbing us down. Indications of the study show the smartphone is literally supplanting our brain function by taxing the attentional resources that reside at the core of our memory and intelligence according to this study.

This is not a simple “we surveyed 100 people and measured their perception” study. With over 100 resources and papers researched, the University of Austin program looked at available working memory and functional fluid intelligence. The primary two experiments measured how the usage and mere presence of a smartphone would affect these two areas of our brains.

In each experiment, smartphone users were given cognitive tasks to complete at various distances ranging from in their hand to out of sight, with a 3rd measurement where the phone was in the room and out of reach.

One conclusion of the study was particularly interesting. Frequently relevant stimuli, such as those associated with long-term goals, may automatically attract attention even when the goals associated with these stimuli are not active. For example, individual smart phone users automatically orient to the sound of their own name even in audio channels that are ignored. 

Mothers, more so than non-mothers, automatically visually attend to infants’ emotional expressions. Automatic attention often helps individuals make the most of their limited cognitive capacity by directing attention to frequently goal relevant stimuli without requiring these goals to be constantly kept in mind.

In all cases, the phone had a measurable impact on the participants performance. “Our data suggest that the mere presence of consumers’ own smartphones may further constrain their already limited cognitive capacity by taxing the attention resources that reside at the core of both working memory capacity and fluid intelligence.”

In addition to the experiments, some of the statistics they uncovered show a physical connection to our smartphones, that suggest we may not be far off from becoming human cyborgs, where technology melds with our bodies. Notably,

• On average, people interact with their smartphones 85 times per day
• 91 percent of people never leave their home without their phone
• 46 percent stated they could not “live” without them

“I’m not even remotely surprised by the findings of this study,” stated Dr. Shan Hussain, #1 Best Selling Author of The Big Prescription. “The harmful psychological effects of smartphone dependency are beginning to get the attention they deserve, and Im sure more research will emerge to make us review our increasing reliance to these devices.”

Dr. Hussain is no stranger to the topic. In his bestselling book, he outlines specific steps anyone can and should take to creating and balancing enduring health. Most of these elements are easy, simple and unfortunately… overlooked.