The University of Waterloo recently reported on research done on smartphones that indicates that our reliance on smartphones to find and recall information for us is making it easier and more common for people to think for themselves. That may not be a huge surprize, but it gets more interesting…
People are divided into two cognitive styles: intuitive and cognitive. Intuitive thinkers – those who tend to rely on instincts and gut feelings when making decisions – tend to rely on their smartphones to look up information that they already know rather than bothering to recall it. Cognitive thinkers are more critical and tend to think through problems on their own rather than rely heavily on their smartphones. The research at the University of Waterloo shows a strong connection between heavy smartphone use and lowedered intelligence, though it is a bit of a chicken and egg situation.