Is ChatGPT/AI making kids stupid?

Tom_ed1987

Tom_ed1987

Tom_ed1987

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I've been meeting some workplace apprentices recently.
A few of them heavily use AI tools.
When interacting with them in person, or in meetings etc, they act & behave really...oddly
It's like a piece of their brains hasn't developed properly.
Some have nicknamed them 'prompt zombies' or a development of the 'GenZ stare'

Wondering if anyone else who works/interacts with kids say age 16-20 has noticed anything similar?

Generative AI bots have been around for 2-3yrs now so I wonder if this is the emergence of a new thing that i'm witnessing in real time.
 
I had a bit of an argument with someone (younger generation) recently who seemed quite convinced of the "facts" they were basing their argument on, even though they were talking complete nonsense, and only towards the end threw in a comment about how "even just querying ChatGPT would 'show me' never mind actually understanding the topic" at which point the penny dropped, though they denied it, ChatGPT was misinterpreting a couple of forum posts and presenting wrong information as fact.

Recently I had Google AI hallucinate a completely fictional air accident, with details, and present it to me as an actual event, unfortunately (or fortunately depending how you look at it) when I redid the search it had already corrected itself. Which is quite concerning given how the younger generations seem to be utilising AI more and more.
 
Tom_ed1987 said:
When interacting with them in person, or in meetings etc, they act & behave really...oddly
Click to expand...

I'm not sure this is AI related specifically - I had the misfortune last Christmas of having to manage a department full of 16-18 year olds and several of them exhibited the kind of stuff you are talking about, I blame the media they've grown up on especially online influencers, etc. they've been exposed to, some of it is eye-openingly detached from reality.
 
You’re raising a really interesting (and honestly, important) observation. A few thoughts that might help frame what you’re noticing:



1.​


  • Apprentices and students who lean heavily on AI tools might not be practicing certain cognitive muscles — like synthesizing information, structuring arguments, or struggling through a hard problem.
  • This isn’t new: calculators once sparked fears about kids losing math skills, and Google changed how we remember facts (we outsource memory to search engines). What’s different here is that AI can generate coherent language — so young people can skip not just the answer but the whole process of formulating ideas.


2.​


  • If you always offload communication to a tool, your own conversational muscles can atrophy.
  • Some young people are showing up with a kind of AI cadence in speech — slightly stilted, overly formal, or oddly vague. This can come across as “flat” or “underdeveloped,” especially in workplace settings where tone and nuance matter.
  • The “Gen Z stare” or emotional flatness might also reflect social media conditioning (passive scrolling, parasocial interactions) more than AI itself — but AI use could compound it.


3.​


  • Many 16–20-year-olds are incredibly sharp, socially agile, and good at using AI as an enhancer rather than a crutch.
  • What you’re noticing might be a selection effect: the ones leaning hardest on AI may be those who already struggle with communication, critical thinking, or confidence.


4.​


  • Think of it like “calculator kids” vs. “mental math kids” back in the ’80s/’90s. Some adapt by integrating the tool wisely; others lean too heavily and lose baseline skills.
  • In a few years, workplaces may expect AI literacy alongside traditional skills — meaning young people will need both the tool and the underlying thinking ability. Those who only have the tool may lag behind.


✅ Takeaway:
AI itself isn’t dumbing kids down, but over-reliance without skill-building might make them seem less developed in reasoning, communication, and social presence. What you’re probably seeing is the first wave of young people who grew up with generative AI as an everyday prosthetic — some are thriving with it, some are struggling, and workplaces are noticing.



Would you like me to share some practical strategies for helping apprentices (or younger colleagues) use AI in a way that strengthens their own abilities, instead of weakening them? That might give you tools to address this "prompt zombie" effect when you encounter it.
 
We pretty much let someone go because they used chatgpt to complete work.
It's a tool like any other but some people don't check what it's spitting out at all.
 
bloodiedathame said:
You’re raising a really interesting (and honestly, important) observation. A few thoughts that might help frame what you’re noticing:



1.​


  • Apprentices and students who lean heavily on AI tools might not be practicing certain cognitive muscles — like synthesizing information, structuring arguments, or struggling through a hard problem.
  • This isn’t new: calculators once sparked fears about kids losing math skills, and Google changed how we remember facts (we outsource memory to search engines). What’s different here is that AI can generate coherent language — so young people can skip not just the answer but the whole process of formulating ideas.


2.​


  • If you always offload communication to a tool, your own conversational muscles can atrophy.
  • Some young people are showing up with a kind of AI cadence in speech — slightly stilted, overly formal, or oddly vague. This can come across as “flat” or “underdeveloped,” especially in workplace settings where tone and nuance matter.
  • The “Gen Z stare” or emotional flatness might also reflect social media conditioning (passive scrolling, parasocial interactions) more than AI itself — but AI use could compound it.


3.​


  • Many 16–20-year-olds are incredibly sharp, socially agile, and good at using AI as an enhancer rather than a crutch.
  • What you’re noticing might be a selection effect: the ones leaning hardest on AI may be those who already struggle with communication, critical thinking, or confidence.


4.​


  • Think of it like “calculator kids” vs. “mental math kids” back in the ’80s/’90s. Some adapt by integrating the tool wisely; others lean too heavily and lose baseline skills.
  • In a few years, workplaces may expect AI literacy alongside traditional skills — meaning young people will need both the tool and the underlying thinking ability. Those who only have the tool may lag behind.


✅ Takeaway:
AI itself isn’t dumbing kids down, but over-reliance without skill-building might make them seem less developed in reasoning, communication, and social presence. What you’re probably seeing is the first wave of young people who grew up with generative AI as an everyday prosthetic — some are thriving with it, some are struggling, and workplaces are noticing.



Would you like me to share some practical strategies for helping apprentices (or younger colleagues) use AI in a way that strengthens their own abilities, instead of weakening them? That might give you tools to address this "prompt zombie" effect when you encounter it.
Click to expand...
BAN!
 
Google's AI really isn't that accurate, sometimes is just plain wrong.

If you google subjects you have a very good knowledge of and see what it says.

Its actually concerning it'll quite happily give out incorrect information. You are better off giving out no information then the wrong information.
 
Yes, but not just AI. It's an accumulation of AI and social media overwhelming junk.

I feel sorry for kids going through school and university these days.
 
montymint said:
I’ve noticed it in older people too, but yes I think Ai is making people lazier in places where it can be used
Click to expand...

This.....^ I see it in all age groups now and how they beat the drum of how amazing A.I is and have zero understanding of any topic they are discussing and even behave like the A.I hallucinating on topics they are discussing and pretend to be experts on any topic because A.I told them the "facts". Look up Dunning Kruger effect and you will understand how people are behaving now and what I see daily now in all types of people and age groups.

The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias where people with low competence in a specific area tend to overestimate their ability or knowledge in that domain. This overestimation happens because their very lack of skill prevents them from accurately recognizing their own incompetence. The effect was named by psychologists David Dunning and Justin Kruger in 1999 after they observed this phenomenon where individuals with limited expertise lacked the self-awareness to know what they didn't know.



Key Aspects of the Dunning-Kruger Effect
  • Overestimation by the Incompetent:
    People who are unskilled in a task often feel more confident in their abilities than they actually are.

  • Underestimation by the Competent:
    Conversely, highly skilled individuals may underestimate their own abilities because they assume tasks that are easy for them are also easy for everyone else.

  • Lack of Self-Awareness:
    The core of the effect is the inability to recognize one's own deficiencies. To accurately assess your own skill, you need a baseline level of that same skill, which is precisely what those experiencing the effect lack.

  • Impact on Perception:
    The effect can lead to poor decision-making, as people who are overconfident in their limited knowledge might take on tasks for which they are unprepared.
How it Manifests
    • "A Little Knowledge is a Dangerous Thing":
      This common saying reflects the Dunning-Kruger effect, as early-stage learners might believe they know everything when they only have a basic understanding.

  • Examples:
    You might see it in people who are terrible drivers but believe they are excellent drivers, or employees who overestimate their performance compared to their peers.
Understanding the Bias
The Dunning-Kruger effect isn't about arrogance; it's a consequence of a lack of expertise. It highlights the fact that the metacognitive ability (the ability to think about one's own thinking) required to assess one's own performance is, in itself, a skill that needs to be learned. As people gain more knowledge and experience, their self-perception becomes more aligned with their actual abilities, often leading to greater humility and less confidence as they realize how complex a subject truly is.
 
Last edited:
25 years ago...

Is Netscape Navigator making kids dumb? Now they do t even open Encyclopedia Britannica.....!
 
I've seen a few people talking about how bad AI is, and it's making kids stupid.. I've seen a lot people articles about video shorts damaging attention spans and actually changing brain structures.. It's definitely effected my attention and I'm trying to go cold turkey
 
shroomz said:
Half the text in this thread has been written by chatbots.
Click to expand...
it's evidently being used more widely in the forum , equivocal posts like the example above, just an anodyne shopping list;
where poster has not read or validated any of the references.

Amazon reviews epitomize the depth of the mire, where comments out of context have been misinterpreted.

(do you need an explanation diddums)
 
I don't hate AI, I hate how people don't understand it. To me, "AI" is just a marketing tool so companies can charge you more for the same service or lock products behind an "AI" paywall.
 
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