New research suggests that digital technologies provide beneficial effects on cognition in middle-aged and older adults who did not grow up with such technologies [1].
Childhood without computers
For younger people, it is difficult to imagine living in a world without the internet and digital technologies. However, older people grew up in a world without computers, smartphones, and the internet, and they only started using these technologies after they reached adulthood. Such ‘digital pioneers’ are also old enough to have increased risks of dementia.
A tale of two theories
The authors of this study aimed to determine whether technology use increased or decreased the risk of dementia in the ‘digital pioneer’ population, given the two opposing schools of thought regarding this topic.
“You can flip on the news on just about any day, and you’ll see people talking about how technologies are harming us,” said study co-author Michael K. Scullin, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor University. “People often use the terms ‘brain drain’ and ‘brain rot,’ and now ‘digital dementia’ is an emerging phrase. As researchers, we wanted to know if this was true.”
The first hypothesis is that that the daily use of digital technologies worsens cognitive abilities. This has its roots in studies conducted primarily on children and adolescents, linking passive screen time to decreased cognitive abilities [2]. In adults, the researchers point to such observations as the ‘Google effect’, which is the tendency to forget pieces of information that can be easily found in a quick search or offloading the need to remember information to digital technologies.
This passive screen time and cognitive offloading, combined with the distraction found in the digital world, are three components of the digital dementia hypothesis [3] that link them to an increase in “rates of dementia in older adults, especially those with greater lifetime exposures to these technologies.”
However, there is also a competing theory that states that the use of digital technologies has a protective effect against cognitive decline, also known as the technological reserve hypothesis.
Previous studies defined the reserve as “a property of the brain that allows for cognitive performance that is better than expected given the degree of life-course-related brain changes and brain injury or disease” [4]. In this hypothesis, digital technology helps build such a reserve.
One way to do this is by engaging in complex mental activities using digital devices. Such an approach fosters more dynamic interaction than analog engagement, and the user, apart from engaging with the task, must also learn about software and hardware, troubleshoot device or internet connectivity issues, and filter distractions such as ads.
“One of the first things that middle-aged and older adults were saying is that ‘I’m so frustrated by this computer. This is hard to learn.’ That’s actually a reflection of the cognitive challenge, which may be beneficial for the brain even if it doesn’t feel great in the moment,” Scullin said. “If you’re doing that for years and you’re really engaging with it, even though you might experience frustration, that may be a sign of you exercising your brain,” he adds.
Using digital technologies also allows us to stay connected with family and friends, which has a positive impact on cognitive health.
“Now you can connect with families across generations,” Scullin said. “You not only can talk to them, you can see them. You can share pictures. You can exchange emails, and it’s all within a second or less. That means there’s a greater opportunity for decreasing loneliness.”
Some research also suggests that cognitive offloading may not be as detrimental as the related theory suggests. Emerging data indicate that using digital devices for cognitive offloading can be beneficial for the elderly, compensating for cognitive shortcomings that often accompany aging, such as setting reminders to take medications or pay bills on time, thereby allowing for independent functioning for longer [5].
Studying ‘digital pioneers’
The study’s authors conducted a meta-analysis and systematic review of 136 observational or cohort studies that examined the impact of general digital technology use on cognitive decline and dementia. These studies contained a total of 411,430 participants who were at least 50 years old. This age cutoff was to establish a population of ‘digital pioneers’: adults without internet access during childhood.
More technology, better cognition
The researchers concluded that the “greater use of everyday digital technologies was associated with reduced odds for cognitive decline” in this population.
The researchers broke down the analysis into different types of technology. Computer use, internet use, smartphone use, and mixed uses of digital technologies were all associated with a reduced risk of cognitive impairment, but social media use showed inconsistent results among the analyzed studies.
The observed positive effects persisted even when the researchers controlled for demographic, socioeconomic, social support, health factors, reading, playing games or puzzles, or similar lifestyle activities, suggesting that it’s the digital technologies that positively impact cognition.
When compared to previous reports on cognitive decline risks, the use of technology had a comparable or even more beneficial effect than blood pressure reduction, physical activity, increased years of education, and other cognitively stimulating activities.
“If you have a parent or grandparent who’s just staying away from technology, maybe revisit that. Could they learn to use photo, messaging, or calendar apps on a smartphone or tablet? Start simple and be very patient while they learn,” Scullin suggested.
Association doesn’t equal causation
The researchers acknowledge that observing an association between two factors does not necessarily mean that one is causing the other. They elaborate on the possibility of causal and non-causal relationships between the use of digital technologies and cognitive decline.
First, people who use technology tend to have higher incomes, more education, better physical health, social support, and more mentally active lifestyles. However, the studies analyzed in this review controlled for those factors and showed that digital technology use is associated with reduced cognitive decline independently of those factors.
Therefore, the researchers elaborated on the causal direction: whether it is better cognition that leads to increased technology use with age or technology use fosters better cognitive outcomes.
The scientific literature provides evidence to support both possibilities, and it is possible that there is a bidirectional relationship between technology use and cognition. Such relationships are common in cases of dementia; for example, cognitive decline is often preceded by a decrease in walking speed, while regular walking can improve cognitive performance. However, if this is the case, further research is required to understand this relationship.
Two faces of technology
The researchers summarize that, while their analysis shows positive results, the connection between technology and cognition is more complex, and the use of technology cannot be labeled as always positive or negative.
The dose is frequently a crucial measurement, with moderate use having a positive impact, while excessive use is detrimental; one study suggests a U-shaped interaction between technology and cognition in older adults [6]. The impact of digital technology may also differ for younger generations who have been exposed to the internet since childhood, in contrast to the ‘digital pioneers’ described in this research.
The authors point out that further research is needed to understand the mechanisms that connect technology use and cognition.
Literature
[1] Benge, J. F., & Scullin, M. K. (2025). A meta-analysis of technology use and cognitive aging. Nature human behaviour, 10.1038/s41562-025-02159-9. Advance online publication.
[2] Madigan, S., Browne, D., Racine, N., Mori, C., & Tough, S. (2019). Association Between Screen Time and Children’s Performance on a Developmental Screening Test. JAMA pediatrics, 173(3), 244–250.
[3] Manwell, L. A., Tadros, M., Ciccarelli, T. M., & Eikelboom, R. (2022). Digital dementia in the internet generation: excessive screen time during brain development will increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias in adulthood. Journal of integrative neuroscience, 21(1), 28.
[4] Stern, Y., Albert, M., Barnes, C. A., Cabeza, R., Pascual-Leone, A., & Rapp, P. R. (2023). A framework for concepts of reserve and resilience in aging. Neurobiology of aging, 124, 100–103.
[5] Scullin, M. K., Jones, W. E., Phenis, R., Beevers, S., Rosen, S., Dinh, K., Kiselica, A., Keefe, F. J., & Benge, J. F. (2022). Using smartphone technology to improve prospective memory functioning: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 70(2), 459–469.
[6] Cho, G., Betensky, R. A., & Chang, V. W. (2023). Internet usage and the prospective risk of dementia: A population-based cohort study. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 71(8), 2419–2429.
