controversial headline has been circulating online: for the first time in recorded history, Generation Z typically defined as people born between the late 1990s and early 2010s is said to be less intelligent than the generation before it. This claim stems from remarks by neuroscientist Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath, who told a U.S. Senate committee that metrics measuring cognitive skills, including attention, memory, reading, maths, and problem-solving, appear to have dropped for Gen Z compared with Millennials.
According to this perspective, intelligence indicators such as IQ scores have declined despite Gen Z spending more years in formal education than earlier generations. Dr. Horvath and others point to the rapid adoption of digital tools — especially smartphones and educational technology (EdTech) — as a likely factor.
Why Some Researchers Are Alarmed
Experts who discuss this issue argue that young people today spend an unusually large portion of their waking hours in front of screens, which may affect how their brains process information. Dr. Horvath told the committee that “more than half of the time a teenager is awake, half of it is spent staring at a screen” — and that schooling systems have too often adapted to tools like tablets and short-form media rather than encouraging deep, sustained learning.
The argument goes like this: Generation Z grew up with instant access to videos, bite-sized content, and quick summaries rather than long texts, and this may be changing how cognitive skills develop. Critics of screen-dominant learning say that scanning and skimming replace traditional study habits such as reading books or solving complex problems — both of which historically link to stronger memory and analytical performance. These claims have been reported globally, and some commentators have described the situation as a social emergency that could justify rethinking how digital tools are used in education.
What the Studies Actually Show — And What They Don’t
It’s important to note that headlines saying “Gen Z is officially less intelligent” can be misleading. Much of the reporting relies on preliminary or interpretative comments from educators and neurologists rather than peer-reviewed scientific consensus. Broader academic research shows that while average IQ growth (known as the Flynn effect) has levelled off in many countries, there isn’t clear, universally accepted evidence that Gen Z is dramatically or biologically less intelligent than older generations across the board. For example, research into cognition suggests that variations in performance can be influenced by education methods, lifestyle and environmental factors rather than innate intelligence. Some cognitive skills are improving or changing in ways that don’t neatly align with older measures of IQ. Additionally, being adept with digital tools and AI — a hallmark of Gen Z — isn’t a sign of inferior intelligence; instead, it reflects a different kind of literacy and adaptability. Surveys show that members of Gen Z are adopting emerging technologies like AI more rapidly than older cohorts and are often leading in practical applications of new tools.
Other Perspectives on Gen Z Strengths and Challenges
Beyond cognitive debates, research shows Gen Z has strengths in areas like digital fluency, adaptability and innovation — skills not well captured by traditional intelligence tests. Their deep integration with technology situates them uniquely for the modern workforce and digital economy. At the same time, other research highlights areas where Gen Z faces challenges, such as mental well-being or health information literacy, but these factors are separate from intelligence in the psychological or neuroscience sense.
Headlines vs. Nuance
In summary, the claim that Gen Z is inherently less intelligent than their parents is highly debated and not conclusively proven. What we are seeing in many reports are early interpretations of data on learning styles, technology use and cognitive testing trends. Experts differ on whether these trends reflect intelligence changes, shifts in educational approaches, or new kinds of cognitive strengths and weaknesses that traditional measures may not fully capture. Put simply: while there are conversations about how digital life affects young brains, that doesn’t mean Gen Z is definitively less capable or less intelligent than older generations.
