{"id":686070,"date":"2025-08-20T06:45:15","date_gmt":"2025-08-20T03:45:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/is-chatgpt-really-making-us-dumb-and-lazy\/"},"modified":"2025-08-20T06:45:15","modified_gmt":"2025-08-20T03:45:15","slug":"is-chatgpt-really-making-us-dumb-and-lazy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/is-chatgpt-really-making-us-dumb-and-lazy\/","title":{"rendered":"Is ChatGPT really making us dumb and lazy?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2eaa64a9b95\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2eaa64a9b95\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/is-chatgpt-really-making-us-dumb-and-lazy\/#Your_brain_on_gen_AI\" >Your brain on gen AI<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/is-chatgpt-really-making-us-dumb-and-lazy\/#The_death_of_critical_thinking\" >The death of critical thinking?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div id=\"article-main-content\">\n<p>Since ChatGPT\u2019s debut in 2022, generative AI quickly entered our work, study, and personal lives, helping to speed up research, content creation, and more at an unprecedented rate.<\/p>\n<p>Enthusiasm for generative AI tools has understandably gained traction <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2024\/10\/generative-ai-embraced-faster-than-internet-pcs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">experiencing an even faster adoption rate than the Internet or PCs<\/a>, but experts warn we should proceed with caution. As with every new <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a>, generative AI can launch society forward in a number of ways, but it can also bring consequences if left unchecked.<\/p>\n<p>One of those voices is Natasha Govender-Ropert, Head of AI for Financial Crimes at Rabobank. She joined TNW founder Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten on the latest episode of \u201cKia\u2019s Next Big Drive\u201d to talk AI ethics, bias, and whether we\u2019re outsourcing our brains to machines.<\/p>\n<p>Check out the full interview \u2014 recorded en route to TNW2025 in <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kia.com\/nl\/modellen\/ev9\/ontdekken\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kia\u2019s all-electric EV9<\/a>:<\/p>\n<div class=\"resp-video-container\"><iframe title=\"Kia\u2019s Next Big Drive: Can we trust AI with our future? \ud83e\udd16\ud83e\udde0\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" srcdoc=\"&lt;style&gt;*{padding:0;margin:0;overflow:hidden}html,body{background:#000;height:100%}img{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;transition:opacity .1s cubic-bezier(0.4,0,1,1)}a:hover img+img{opacity:1!important}&lt;\/style&gt;&lt;a href=\" https:=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/2G0SfeMEy_4\/hqdefault.jpg\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn.png\" style=\"top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/themes\/cyberdelia\/assets\/img\/ytplaybtn-hover.png\" style=\"top: 50%;left:50%;width:68px;height:48px;opacity:0;transform:translate3d(-50%,-50%,0)\"\/>&#8221; frameborder=&#8221;0&#8243; allow=&#8221;accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a>; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share&#8221; referrerpolicy=&#8221;strict-origin-when-cross-origin&#8221; allowfullscreen&gt;<\/iframe><\/div>\n<div class=\"inarticle-wrapper latest channel-cta hs-embed-tnw\">\n<div id=\"hs-embed-tnw\" class=\"channel-cta-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"channel-cta-img\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"js-lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/tnw.events\/hardfork-2018\/uploads\/visuals\/tnw-newsletter.png\"\/><\/div>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/tnw.events\/hardfork-2018\/uploads\/visuals\/tnw-newsletter.png\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"channel-cta-input\">\n<p class=\"channel-cta-title\">The \ud83d\udc9c of EU tech<\/p>\n<p class=\"channel-cta-tagline\">The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol&#8217; founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It&#8217;s free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>One question that should be on our minds is, as we turn to generative AI more and more for answers, what impact could this reliance have on our own intelligence?<\/p>\n<p>A recent <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.media.mit.edu\/publications\/your-brain-on-chatgpt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">study by MIT<\/a> into the use of ChatGPT to write essays has spiralled out into a slew of sensationalist headlines, from \u201cResearchers say using ChatGPT can rot your brain\u201d to \u201cChatGPT might be making you lazy and dumb.\u201d Is that <em>really<\/em> the case?<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Your_brain_on_gen_AI\"><\/span><strong>Your brain on gen AI<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Here\u2019s what <em>actually<\/em> h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ened: Researchers gave 54 Boston-area students an essay task. One group used ChatGPT, another used Google (without the help of AI), and the third had to write using nothing but their brains. While they wrote, their brain activity was measured using electrodes.<\/p>\n<p>After three sessions, the brain-only group showed the highest levels of mental connectivity. ChatGPT users? The lowest. It seemed the AI-assisted folks were cruising on autopilot while the others had to think harder to get words on the page.<\/p>\n<p>For round four, roles reversed. The brain-only group got to use ChatGPT this time, while the AI group had to go solo. The result? The former improved their essays. The latter struggled to remember what they\u2019d written in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, the study found that over the four months during which it was conducted, brain-only participants outperformed the other groups in terms of neural, linguistic, and behavioral levels, while those using ChatGPT spent less time on their essays, simply hitting copy\/paste instead.<\/p>\n<p>English teachers who reviewed their work said it lacked original thought and \u201csoul.\u201d Sounds alarming, right? Perhaps, but the truth is more complicated than the sensationalist headlines suggest.<\/p>\n<p>The findings were less about brain decay and more about mental shortcuts. They showed that over-relying on LLMs can reduce mental engagement. But with active, thoughtful use, those risks may be avoided. The researchers also emphasised that, while the study raised some interesting questions for further research, it was also far too small and simple to draw definitive conclusions.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_death_of_critical_thinking\"><\/span><strong>The death of critical thinking?<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>While the findings (which are yet to be peer reviewed) certainly require further research and deeper reflection into how we should be using this tool in educational, professional, and personal contexts, perhaps what might actually be rotting our brains is TLDR headlines devised for clicks over accuracy.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers seem to share these concerns. They created a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.brainonllm.com\/faq\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">website with an FAQ page<\/a> where they urged reporters not to use language that is inaccurate and sensationalises the findings.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1414790 size-full js-lazy\" alt=\"Disclaimer that reads: Is it safe to say that LLMs are, in essence, making us \" dumber=\"\" no=\"\" please=\"\" do=\"\" not=\"\" use=\"\" the=\"\" words=\"\" like=\"\" rot=\"\" and=\"\" so=\"\" on.=\"\" it=\"\" does=\"\" a=\"\" huge=\"\" disservice=\"\" to=\"\" this=\"\" work=\"\" as=\"\" we=\"\" did=\"\" vocabulary=\"\" in=\"\" paper=\"\" especially=\"\" if=\"\" you=\"\" are=\"\" journalist=\"\" respoting=\"\" on=\"\" it.=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"468\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-18-at-6.19.16-PM.png\"\/><figcaption>Source: FAQ for \u201cYour Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt when Using an AI Assistant for Essay Writing Task\u201d https:\/\/www.brainonllm.com\/faq<\/figcaption><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1414790 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2025\/08\/Screenshot-2025-08-18-at-6.19.16-PM.png\" alt=\"Disclaimer that reads: Is it safe to say that LLMs are, in essence, making us \" dumber=\"\" no=\"\" please=\"\" do=\"\" not=\"\" use=\"\" the=\"\" words=\"\" like=\"\" rot=\"\" and=\"\" so=\"\" on.=\"\" it=\"\" does=\"\" a=\"\" huge=\"\" disservice=\"\" to=\"\" this=\"\" work=\"\" as=\"\" we=\"\" did=\"\" vocabulary=\"\" in=\"\" paper=\"\" especially=\"\" if=\"\" you=\"\" are=\"\" journalist=\"\" respoting=\"\" on=\"\" it.=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"468\" srcset=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>Ironically, they attributed the resulting \u201cnoise\u201d to reporters using LLMs to summarize the paper and added, \u201cYour HUMAN feedback is very welcome, if you read the paper or parts of it. Also, as a reminder, the study has a list of limitations we list very clearly both in the paper and on the webpage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There are two conclusions that we can safely draw from this study:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>More research into how LLMs should be used in educational settings is essential<\/li>\n<li>Students, reporters, and the public at large need to remain critical about the information we receive, whether from the media or generative AI<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/research.vu.nl\/ws\/portalfiles\/portal\/382320511\/larson-et-al-2024-critical-thinking-in-the-age-of-generative-ai.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Researchers from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam<\/a> are concerned that, with our increasing reliance on LLMs, what might really be at risk is critical thinking, or our ability and willingness to question and change social norms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStudents may become less likely to conduct extensive or comprehensive search processes themselves, because they defer to the authoritative and informed tone of the GenAI output. They may be less likely to question \u2014 or even identify \u2014 the unstated perspectives underlying the output, failing to consider whose perspectives are being glossed over and the taken-for-granted assumptions informing the claims.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>These risks point to a deeper problem in AI. When we take its outputs at face value, we can overlook embedded biases and unchallenged assumptions. Addressing this requires not just technical fixes, but critical reflection on what we mean by bias in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>These issues are central to the work of Natasha Govender-Ropert, Head of AI for Financial Crimes at Rabobank. Her role focuses on building responsible, trustworthy AI by rooting out bias. But as she pointed out to TNW founder Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten in \u201cKia\u2019s Next Big Drive,\u201d bias is a subjective term and needs to be defined for each individual and each company.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBias doesn\u2019t have a consistent definition. What I consider to be biased or unbiased may be different to somebody else. This is something that we as humans and as individuals need to decide. We need to make a choice and say this is the standard of principles that we will enforce when looking at our data,\u201d said Govender-Ropert.<\/p>\n<p>Social norms and biases are not fixed but ever-changing. As society evolves, the historical data we train our LLMs on does not. We need to remain critical and challenge the information we receive, whether from our fellow humans or our machines, to build a more just and equitable society.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/chatgpt-making-us-dumb-lazy\" target=\"_blank\" >Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Since ChatGPT\u2019s debut in 2022, generative AI quickly entered our work, study, and personal lives, helping to speed up research, content creation, and more at an unprecedented rate. Enthusiasm for generative AI tools has understandably gained traction experiencing an even faster adoption rate than the Internet or PCs, but experts warn we should proceed with&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":686071,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/tnw-blurple?filter_last=1&fit=1280%2C640&url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2025%2F08%2FA-student-sleeping-at-their-desk-while-gen-AI-write-their-essay-for-them-highly-realistic.jpeg&signature=596cd7a26879fd7057cfc2c5233714ce","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-686070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686070","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=686070"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686070\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/686071"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=686070"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=686070"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=686070"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}