Healthcare (Commonwealth Union) – The continuous consumption of digital content, where our growing reliance on digital devices and social media is increasingly criticized, the term “brain rot” has emerged as a way to describe the idea that endless scrolling through low-value content might harm our mental sharpness and well-being. For many, this concept reinforces the belief that overindulging in digital media is detrimental to us all.
Setting aside that “brain rot” is more of an internet meme than a clinical diagnosis, which gained the attention of researchers.
Dr. Poppy Watson, an adjunct lecturer at UNSW’s School of Psychology, suggests that while the idea merits attention, there is limited evidence directly linking excessive doomscrolling to the mental fatigue, loss of focus, and cognitive decline often associated with “brain rot.”
She indicated that it does not mean that overexposure to digital content has no negative effects, but research has not yet confirmed a causal relationship.
Dr. Watson, who studies how environmental factors shape behavior, motivation, and attention, notes that any connection between online content consumption and reduced cognitive performance is so far only correlational, particularly when examining young people’s cognitive development.
She further pointed out that there are many influences on brain health and cognitive control beyond social media.
“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 excessive digital consumption were truly impairing young people’s cognitive abilities, we would expect to see a decline in average IQ scores when comparing pre-digital and digital generations. However, as Dr. Watson highlights, average IQ scores have actually increased since the early 20th century and continue to rise into the 21st—a trend known as the Flynn Effect.
Cognition is only part of the “brain rot” narrative. The other aspect concerns mental health, with many attributing emotional dysregulation and worsening mood, particularly among young people, to high levels of screen time and online content consumption.
Dr. Sophie Li, a research fellow and clinical psychologist at the Black Dog Institute affiliated with UNSW, has been investigating the connections between digital device use and mental health. She and her team are conducting the largest Australian longitudinal study to date, tracking over 6,000 teenagers throughout adolescence. The study monitors recreational screen time on digital devices and changes in mental health. According to Dr. Li, the research—currently unpublished and under review—indicates that longer screen time correlates with lower mental health scores. However, it’s unclear if increased screen time is causing higher rates of depression and anxiety, if these issues are leading to more screen time, or if the relationship is bidirectional.
Dr. Li indicated that they examined whether screen time on digital devices is linked to depression and anxiety, and also whether screen time predicts future depression and anxiety to better understand the relationship’s direction.
“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.”
Skepticism of technology was highlighted by the researchers who indicated that Greek philosopher Socrates strongly criticized writing, believing it would impair memory and comprehension, favoring oral communication instead. Later, the printing press sparked worries that it would undermine the value of oral traditions and handwritten texts. Newspapers, too, were seen as potential disruptors of personal connections and community ties. When radio emerged, it raised concerns about diminishing social interaction—only to be followed by anxieties that television would make radio obsolete and lower the quality of public dialogue.
