Artificial intelligence promises to save us time, make us more productive, and help us solve tasks that once required hours of work. More and more studies suggest, however, that this efficiency may come at an unexpected cost: the weakening of essential cognitive skills, such as critical thinking, analytical ability, or confidence in one’s own judgments.
Excessive use of artificial intelligence can reduce cognitive effort and slow down the development of important skills, especially among young people at the beginning of their careers, experts draw attention.
A study conducted by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and Microsoft of 319 employees in fields where the main activity is based mainly on analysis, information and problem solving showed that people who had more confidence in the capabilities of AI than tended to put less effort into critical thinking when using these tools, according to a material published by Forbes.com.
Another study, conducted by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, observed lower levels of cognitive engagement and poorer information retention among ChatGPT users who wrote AI-assisted essays. Specifically, participants who used ChatGPT showed less brain activity while writing and had a harder time remembering their own texts compared to those who wrote without the help of AI.
“The problem is not that we use artificial intelligence”
Gabriela Marc, senior clinical psychologist and associate university lecturer at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, believes that the discussion should not be about the existence of artificial intelligence, but about how we choose to use it.
“From a psychological perspective, the problem is not that we use artificial intelligence. Humans have always created tools to make their lives easier, expand their possibilities, and allow them to go further than they could on their own.”she explains for “The Truth”.
According to him, the problem appears when technology begins to replace processes that contribute to the psychological and cognitive development of the individual.
“The difficulty arises when a tool, originally created to support human development, begins to replace processes that were designed to be formed through direct experience, through practice, through trial and error, through confronting the unknown, and through that seemingly invisible learning that takes place every time man searches for a solution on his own.” continues the specialist.
What happens when we give up the effort to think
The psychologist points out that critical thinking, creativity, discernment or frustration tolerance are not simple information that we accumulate and store. These capacities are developed gradually, through experience, through facing difficulties and through the process of finding solutions.
“They are essential functions of human autonomy and develop slowly, through repeated encounters with difficulty, through questions not immediately answered, through mistakes that force us to rethink our path, and through the profoundly human experience of not knowing yet but continuing to seek“, continues the teaching staff.
In his view, risk is not just the loss of the exercise of a skill: “When we constantly outsource these processes to artificial intelligence, we risk losing not just the exercise of a skill, we lose something much more subtle: the confidence that we can think, create and decide by our own resources.”
To explain this, Gabriela Marc uses a suggestive comparison: “It’s like choosing to plaster a perfectly healthy function just because using it requires effort. At first it seems like an efficient solution. But over time, what’s no longer used begins to weaken, and what was once a natural ability begins to be perceived as difficult or inaccessible.”
From useful tool to subtle addiction
In the article published by Forbes, Julia Korn notes that many users have already developed the reflex to call the chatbot before trying to solve a problem themselves. Over time, the researchers say, there is a risk of shifting from the role of active creator to passive evaluator of AI-generated responses.
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“There is a risk that our relationship with artificial intelligence will sometimes follow a similar path. In the beginning, it really helps us. It reduces effort, saves time and gives us quick access to information. These are all real benefits and should not be denied.” is the opinion of Gabriela Marc. “When we automatically turn to AI for any difficulty, any question, or any process that requires reflection, the solution begins to turn into a subtle addiction. Gradually, the ability to tolerate uncertainty, trust in one’s own resources, and willingness to seek answers on one’s own begin to diminish, and what originally supported development ends up replacing it.”
Young people, the most exposed category
According to Forbes analysis, people between the ages of 18 and 29 show the highest levels of dependence on artificial intelligence. The cited researchers argue that this high reliance on AI can reduce analytical effort precisely at the time when fundamental professional skills are being formed.
In parallel, a 2025 Gallup and Walton Family Foundation poll found that 65% of young people believe that artificial intelligence encourages instant gratification rather than real understanding, and 79% are concerned that it may make people more intellectually lazy.
Development does not occur when we receive the answer
In Gabriela Marc’s opinion, the real stake is not the speed with which we get an answer, but the process by which we arrive at it.
“Maybe the real question is what AI shouldn’t do, not what it can do for us,” she claims.
It believes that many of the processes that we are tempted to delegate to technology actually have an essential role in the development of personal identity.
“When we express our ideas, we don’t just produce a simple text, we organize our thinking and discover our own ideas. When we make a decision, we don’t just choose one option from several options before us, we build our discernment and relationship with responsibility. When we solve a problem, we don’t just find an answer, we find that we can stay with the discomfort long enough for clarity to emerge.” adds Gabriela Marc. “In a culture that values speed, efficiency and immediate results, there is a risk of forgetting that human development does not occur when we receive the answer, it occurs in the process by which we arrive at it,” she notes.
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How we can avoid the “atrophy” of skills
Forbes cites several strategies recommended by experts to avoid what the authors call “skills atrophy.” These include drafting a first draft before asking for AI help, keeping some activities to be done exclusively without artificial intelligence, critically analyzing each response generated, and maintaining human interactions in processes such as mentoring, feedback, or decision-making.
Essentially, the researchers’ conclusion is that the problem is not the existence of artificial intelligence, but the abandonment of one’s own exercise of thought.
“Perhaps the greatest risk of artificial intelligence is not that we will know less or become less capable. Perhaps the real risk is that we will gradually and almost imperceptibly lose touch with ourselves.”says Gabriela Marc. “Ultimately, what defines us is not how quickly we arrive at an answer. What defines us is the person we become as we search for it, and the ability to stay connected to our own resources, our own creativity, and our own truth, without delegating to technology the very processes that make us human.” concludes the specialist.
