Things like smartphones, Alexa, Google and streaming services have changed the world for many of us, but for others, it’s really the only the world they’ve known.
So what effect is all this tech having on kids growing up with it?
“It’s always here, you know,” says 19-year old-Michael Choma as he references his phone sitting next to him.
“It has everything on it. All knowledge is on there with the touch of a fingertip,” he adds.
Smartphones have become every type of information, that for most, is almost always within an arm’s reach. They’re used to store phone numbers, grocery list and important dates and look up directions and trivial facts.
“They ask me what’s this, and I’m like, ‘I don’t know, Google it, you know,” says Shannon Schulte as she discusses how technology has changed the childhoods of her children.
The smartphone has become an irreplaceable tool for most people, but for a generation that’s never really had to get by without one, has it replaced things, like their working memory?
“With the phones, they don’t have to remember a whole lot of stuff because technology remembers for them and Siri will remind you,” continues Schulte.
Dr. Luis Felipe Amunategui, a psychologist at University Hospitals and the training director for their Psychology Education Program, says, “There’s mounting evidence that it does have an effect on our wiring and neurodevelopment.”
So what happens when the phone is no longer within arm’s reach? I asked 15-year-old, Kelly Schulte and 19-year-old, Michael Choma to hand over their phones and asked them who some of the most important people were that they called or texted every day. They both listed their significant other as well as friends. However, with their phones out of reach, neither knew any of their phone numbers.
However, when I asked 47-year-old, Shannon Shulte and 49-year-old, Jim Choma if they could recite any of the important phone numbers they call daily, they both said yes. “I could still tell you the numbers of my neighbors from 40 years ago because it was repetition, where here it’s the press of a button” say Jim.
“It’s a concern,” says Dr. Amunategui. “There’s evidence there that it’s already shaping our way to recall things.”
Now it’s time to test their spatial memory. No phone means no GPS and without it, can the younger two get to a few nearby places?
After getting some assistance from their parents and taking some non-direct detours, they did eventually make it. It just took much longer.
So if phones are affecting our memories, how do we get it back? Doctors say it’s like a muscle, so it may be time to start exercising.
“Playing games like what was on the table before we left home or card games, like where you have to match two cards. Those are things that the less we perform them, the more difficult they’re going to be to perform if require,” says Dr. Amunategui.
When asked if they learned anything or if the experiment made them feel like they were too reliant on their phones, Michael responded, “Oh, definitely, in terms of directions, definitely.” Kelly said, “I think I should stay off my phone more.”