Did they just call us DUMB? That’s what it sounded like.
Midnight lights up the screen again, one scroll after another. A fresh story slips into view while clips claim a generation’s done for. Between endless taps and viral takes, something different catches on.
Surprising? Gen Z shows fewer IQ points compared to prior generations. Earlier groups scored higher without digital noise around them. Now numbers confirm what some suspected. Not every young mind struggles, yet patterns emerge clearly. Gaining knowledge feels harder when screens dominate attention and older methods of learning fade into the background as focus stretches thinner across endless distractions. That changes how brains grow over time.
Truth is, that line gives us chills. It feels like the opening page of some bleak teen story, where people just stop using their minds without even noticing. Yet here’s something to ponder instead of rushing to judgment about our fate. Could it be that we’re jumping to conclusions too fast? What if the real story isn’t as dark as it first appears?
Funny thing, that idea about Gen Z smarts falling, where even did it start?
Out of nowhere, things got intense when scientist Jared Cooney Horvath talked to U.S. senators one morning in 2026. Midway through the testimony, Horvath pointed out how young adults today seem to perform below millennials on specific mental skill tests, examples include:
- attention span
- reading comprehension
- numeracy
- memory-related skills
Learning bends under constant pings, glowing tabs, endless scrolls and crush notifications. What once felt like tools now shape behaviour without even trying. Attention spans shorten while interfaces grow louder and moments pass waiting for notifications instead of ideas. (Yes bhai, abhi tak delivered pe hoon)
But folks heard him speak, then just like that the web swung into motion “Gen Z is less intelligent.”
What Horvath really meant was that a change is happening, how younger minds grow here seems different now. Not quite the old way, but it defines something subtler and more real. Far from it, hope remains alive for those coming up behind.
Hang on, didn’t we expect IQ numbers to get higher as years passed?
Fine. That went on for years, actually. It turns out people got better at scoring on IQ tests over time, something experts noticed decades ago. This slow climb in numbers happened all through the last century. The pattern picked up speed with each new generation. Wow, looks like genz is not just the trend starters, we are the trend stoppers too???
Your folks likely did better on IQ tests than their own parents, just as those grandparents probably scored less than you do now. Odds are, each generation climbs a bit higher in these results compared to the one before it. Why? Things got better here and there for some folks, things like better nutrition, better schooling, more mentally demanding jobs, access to books and education and healthier childhood environments. People didn’t suddenly get smarter on their own, life just got easier, so minds had room to stretch.
The Reverse Flynn Effect Explained
Beyond this point, things start to shift in ways you might not expect. Lately, a quiet worry has crept into science circles Nowhere near as many places saw minds getting sharper. Scores just stayed flat across nations once quick to improve. They were flattening. In certain situations…they dipped too.
This change has come to be known as the Reverse Flynn Effect.
But far from it, people aren’t losing their minds. Intelligence isn’t fading away. Minds still work, just differently now. Change doesn’t equal decline. Thought evolves, but they do not disappear.
Yes this is our version of, “Tu right nahi hai Naina, bas mujhse bohot alag hai.”
Picture someone learning words through memes instead of books, that changes things. (Yeah, watching Salman Khan cum Radhe dancing constantly on your feed will do that to you).
Could it be that Gen Z isn’t less smart – but shaped by different rhythms of life?
Sitting quietly once was seen as intelligence, IQ tests grew from that quiet. Deep focus shaped their design, not energy or speed. Long books, slow thinking, puzzle after puzzle became the standard. Stillness was expected, so it got measured. Reading heavy texts? That counted more than talking well.
But, wait, Gen Z is growing up in a world that rewards:
- speed
- multitasking
- constant switching
- rapid information scanning
- digital problem-solving
Here’s what comes up instead: Are we getting “less smart”? Might intelligence be shifting beyond what traditional exams can measure? Because intelligence isn’t just one thing, and traditional IQ misses these things
- creativity
- emotional intelligence
- adaptability
- digital literacy
- social awareness
- resilience
Gen Z faces plenty of hurdles, yet it might just be the most aware of social issues and comfortable with technology than any youth before them. True, certain mental test results might be changing. Yet calling Gen Z dumb isn’t research, it’s just a catchy phrase we only would be sending each other to crack up in DMs.
Funny enough, Horvath along with plenty of teachers gets at least this much right, that attention crumbles fast these days. Noise pulls at every thought. Screens flicker without pause. Minds race through endless loops.
Flicking past videos rewires our attention span. Every few heartbeats something new flashes by. Moments stretch thin when each second must grab hold. A single page of text now feels like a mountain to climb for some. Where thinking used to flow, it often snags on distractions instead. This isn’t about young people getting it wrong, this is what happens when information and the way the brain processes them goes unchecked.
Gen Z labelled doomed?
Truth is, arguments about intelligence barely touch the whole picture. What weighs on folks most isn’t just change, it’s seeing Gen Z shaped by stresses no earlier group faced.
Financial Pressures
Fresh out of energy, Gen Z feels the weight of money worries alongside emotional strain while living constantly connected. A generation worn thin by digital presence carries stress that never logs off. Financial pressure sits heavily on shoulders already bent from feeling too much.
Gen Z’s mental health crisis isn’t imaginary
Young people today say they feel more anxious and down compared to adults who were their age years ago, according to several polls. This stands apart from kindness, it runs deeper than gentle gestures ever could. This moment spins around childhood unfolding inside changing years of a pandemic, climate anxiety, global instability, non-stop online comparison. When folks mention memory fading, brushing off emotional well-being feels just as reckless as pretending nothing pulls us down.
Did you know, nearly half of teens said they felt down or hopeless most days, according to a 2021 government survey. One out of every five thought deeply about ending their life.
Lack of real social connection
Lingering on chat corners, people chat less. There are people literally sitting on the hinges of instagram, who go puff when they receive a message. Phones arrived early, shaping Gen Z from the start. Before most hit their teenage years, screens were already part of daily life. This group never knew a world without instant connection. Their formative moments happened with devices in hand. Growing up digital wasn’t a choice for them, it was just how things were.
Floating in a sea of messages, Genz is somehow still alone.
Gen Z Is Not Less Intelligent
Here’s the most honest conclusion:
Exhausted by constant noise, Gen Z faces a mental grind like never before. Social ties? They’re frayed, stretched thin by distance even when people are close. Money feels shaky underfoot, future plans built on ground that shifts daily. Brains buzz nonstop, screens pinging, feeds scrolling, thoughts racing without pause. Something seems off about how we track thinking abilities lately. Fear grows stronger because of what Horvath said. Labelling a whole age group as lost takes too little effort. This situation points fingers at the world we shaped, not the youth within it. Mockery isn’t what Gen Z is after. Gen Z needs better education models, less distraction-driven learning, stronger mental health support, financial stability and real community
Because when life moves, so do they.