US Adult Cognitive Scores Fell From 2006 to 2018 in 394,378-Person Study
Updated
Updated · ScienceAlert · Aug 5
US Adult Cognitive Scores Fell From 2006 to 2018 in 394,378-Person Study
2 articles · Updated · ScienceAlert · Aug 5
Summary
Composite cognitive scores declined among 394,378 US adults tested from 2006 to 2018, with researchers calling the pattern consistent with a reverse Flynn effect.
The drop appeared across age groups, education levels, and both sexes, with the steepest declines among 18-to-22-year-olds and adults with less education.
Matrix reasoning and letter-number sequence scores fell with the overall trend, while verbal reasoning changed little and three-dimensional rotation scores improved.
The study used repeated cross-sectional online test data, so it identifies population-level change but cannot show what caused it.
Published in Intelligence, the findings add US evidence to similar declines reported in Europe and on tests such as the SAT and ACT, with the trend predating both COVID-19 and generative AI.