The Thoughtless Generation: How AI Threatens Our Critical Thinking
Reading The Anxious Generation (2024),Jonathan Haidt helped me realize how social media overexposure affected my teenage kids’ development. I also learned that I was unprepared to handle the impact of smartphones on their childhood and the resulting mental health issues. This is a fact, not an excuse: I was unprepared.
If I could revisit the past, I wouldn’t try to prevent their exposure to social media, as technological advancement is inevitable. However, I would manage it differently.
Today, we are experiencing another significant shift with the emergence of AI. In this context, it is essential to consider what might be at risk. One key concern is the potential impact on the next generation’s critical thinking skills.
To be clear, I do not oppose AI. But if we don’t use it responsibly, I anticipate Jonathan Haidt’s next book could be titled The Thoughtless Generation.
Can AI impact our critical thinking abilities?
A recent study from MIT, Your Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt When Using an AI Assistant for Essay Writing Tasks (read the study here), has sparked many discussions online and also prompted my own reflections.
The study compared students using ChatGPT (LLM), Internet Search, and “Brain-Only.” Each group wrote essays over three sessions, and in a fourth session, those who returned had to rewrite a topic from their earlier sessions. The key difference? Those who had used ChatGPT switched to Brain-Only, and vice versa.
Some conclusions from the study—and my takeaways:
When the cognitive process is offloaded to an LLM, there is an undeniable reduction of friction. The process becomes more appealing because it requires less effort. However, the downside is a cognitive cost: users don’t fully internalize the ideas and are less inclined to evaluate the LLM’s output critically.
This suggests that overreliance on LLMs, because of the low effort they require, could limit our ability to practice critical thinking.
Moreover, you risk becoming part of the LLM echo chamber. If you don’t question its reasoning, you may end up unthinkingly following wherever the algorithm leads you.
On the other hand, groups that began with Brain-Only and then used an LLM showed higher metacognitive engagement. Comparing the LLM’s suggestions with their own ideas sparked critical self-reflection.
This last point is crucial: the impact of LLMs depends on how you use them. If you outsource critical thinking to an LLM, you may lose that skill—or worse, if you start relying on LLMs too early in life, you may never develop it. This is why young people are at the highest risk.
Should we worry about losing our critical thinking?
In A More Beautiful Question (2014), Warren Berger highlights the profound impact that questions can have on individuals, communities, and societies.
He reminds us of Carl Sagan’s comments on Charlie Rose (1996):
“If we are not able to ask skeptical questions, to interrogate those who tell us that something is true, to be skeptical of those in authority, then we’re up for grabs for the next charlatan, political or religious, who comes ambling along.”
Sagan’s words are especially relevant when we consider the power we give others through our vote, which affects global security, climate change, environmental protection, social programs, and more. We cannot delegate the critical thinking behind our voting decisions; we must make the cognitive effort required.
Critical thinking is not optional; it is a responsibility in this time of AI emergence. It’s not just about asking questions—it’s about asking the right questions, at the right time, and with the right mindset so we can change our thinking and, potentially, the world around us. These questions help us better understand the world and the flood of information coming our way. They shape how we make both large and small decisions.
The risk of a Thoughtless Generation is further highlighted by a 2019 study from the Stanford History Education Group, Students’ Civic Online Reasoning: A National Portrait. The study found a widespread lack of critical thinking among students: when asked to evaluate the credibility of a climate change website, 96% of students failed to investigate its connections to the fossil fuel industry. Instead, they focused on superficial cues like website design, non-profit status, and the “about” page.
Being a critical thinker is not easy. Our educational system rewards students who have the answers, not those who ask the questions. Over time, this discourages the innate curiosity of four-year-olds who constantly ask “why?” But we must reignite that curiosity. We cannot move forward without questioning why we keep discussing the same issues without seeing meaningful change. Today’s generation grows up overexposed to information curated by Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms. Their minds are shaped by the stories these companies want to tell them. Would it make a difference if they started exercising their critical thinking? I believe it would. If we raise our hands in a classroom, in a meeting, or in a community gathering and ask “why?”, and keep asking “why?”, change will happen.
My path forward with AI
I cannot say whether there is a single “right” way to use AI, but there is certainly a responsible way.
In today’s world, knowledge has become a commodity, and we are inundated with it. As knowledge grows exponentially, the portion we can fully grasp constantly shrinks. We should leverage AI’s capabilities to handle some cognitive tasks.
But now, more than ever, we also need the analytical questioning skills of a good critical thinker—someone who can sift through information and discern what makes sense and what doesn’t, what’s true or false, and what’s truly relevant.
I personally use AI as a thought partner. I develop my ideas and have AI challenge my positions, helping me find blind spots in my reasoning. I have been following without knowing the logic of the MIT study: Brain-Only first, then LLM.
With others, including my family, I am learning to ask A more beautiful question, developing a culture of critical thinking and creating a safe environment to ask “why.”
Call to Action
How will you use AI in your life?
Will you let it do your thinking for you, or will you challenge yourself—and others—to ask better questions?
Have you asked Why lately?
Share your reflections with a friend or family member and start a conversation about critical thinking.
Change starts with one question.