Can extended periods consuming digital content lead to mental fog and diminished focus and impact our mental health? Two UNSW psychologists have found little evidence for it.
In a world where our growing dependence on digital devices and social media is increasingly under fire, the term 'brain rot' — the idea that endless scrolling of low-value content negatively impacts our mental agility and health – is confirmation for many that digital excess is bad for us all.
Leaving aside for the moment this is an internet meme and not a clinical diagnosis – is brain rot something we should take seriously?
Dr Poppy Watson, adjunct lecturer with UNSW's School of Psychology, says while the idea warrants exploration, there is a lack of evidence showing excessive doomscrolling of social media is responsible for the mental fatigue, lack of focus, and reduced cognitive function often attributed to 'brain rot'.
"This isn't to rule out that there are negative effects from overexposure to digital devices and their content, but so far, the research isn't showing that causal link," she says.
Dr Watson, whose research examines how environmental cues guide our behaviour and decisions and affect our motivation and attention, says the link between online content consumption and decreased cognitive ability is so far a correlative one, especially when looking at the cognitive development of younger people.
"There are other factors that affect your brain health and your cognitive control, beyond social media," she says.
"We know that things like poverty and socioeconomic status – and as has become increasingly clear, poor diet – are probably the biggest predictors of brain health and function. Access to education has a massive impact on cognitive ability."
If intense, prolonged digital consumption were stultifying young people's minds, then we could expect to see a drop in average IQ scores between pre- and post-digital generations. But as Dr Watson points out, average IQ scores have risen from the start of the 20th century and into the 21st, known as the Flynn Effect.
Mental health and digital device usage
Cognition is one side of the brain rot story. The other is mental health where excessive screen time and consumption of online content is believed to be responsible for emotional dysregulation and declining mood, especially among young people.
Dr Sophie Li is a research fellow and clinical psychologist with the UNSW-affiliated Black Dog Institute who has been exploring the links between digital device usage and mental health.
She and her colleagues are undertaking the largest Australian longitudinal study of more than 6000 teenagers who are being followed over the course of their teen years, measuring recreational screen time on digital devices and changes in mental health. Dr Li says the research – which is not yet published, and currently under review – shows while longer screen time is associated with lower mental health scoring, it's not clear whether increased screen time is leading to more depression and anxiety, or whether it's the other way around, or a bit of both.
"We looked at whether or not there was an association between screen time on digital devices and depression and anxiety, but then also looked at whether there was an association between screen time and later depression and anxiety, trying to get an understanding of the direction of the relationship," Dr Li says.
"We replicated all the previous studies that showed there's definitely a correlation where more screen time is associated with more depression and more anxiety. But when we looked at depression and anxiety 12 months later, we either saw a reduction in the size of the correlation to the point where it's almost negligible or no association at all, providing not a great deal of evidence that screen time is leading to subsequent reductions in mental health."
Mistrust of technology
If it's difficult to find a causal link between extensive digital device usage and content consumption with a decline in cognition and mental health, could the fears about brain rot and negative impact of online content be part of a larger pattern of suspicion humans have for technological change throughout history?
Greek philosopher Socrates was scathing about writing, fearing it would weaken memory and understanding, and insisted on communicating orally. Later, the printing press was initially feared to disrupt the sanctity of oral traditions and handwritten manuscripts, while newspapers were seen as a threat to personal communication and community bonds. Radio brought worries about its impact on social interaction, only to be followed by fears that television would render radio obsolete and degrade public discourse.
And more recently, the rise of computers, the internet and AI have sparked anxieties about job displacement, the erosion of privacy and the end of 'irl' social interaction.
But supporters argue each new technology has typically found its place, often enhancing rather than completely replacing existing systems.
Dr Watson says this could be the case with our consumption of online content that has us wedded to our mobile devices. But she says there is one key difference which raises a valid cause for concern.
"With online content we're in uncharted territory. Content is now so curated to keep you engaged, which means we don't all have access to the same information, and we're not all watching the same stuff on TV. The algorithm is choosing what we see. We're all seeing different versions of adverts, we're seeing different things in our news feeds."
Dr Li says some academics have labelled fear of technology as 'Sisyphean cycle of technology panic', and empathises with parents of children glued to one screen or another who have never known a life without 24/7 communication. She says concerns about digital technology are certainly warranted and more should be done to ensure online spaces are safe for users.
"We recommend parents set boundaries around tech use, promote offline activities and in-person social engagements for their children, educate themselves and their children about online risk and responsible digital citizenship and check in frequently with their child about their tech use and wellbeing."
