Wanda Woods still remembers her first encounter with technology. Back in high school, following her father’s advice, she took a typing course that led to an after-school job at the Environmental Protection Agency. Her supervisor introduced her to a bulky, magnetic-card word processor, and something clicked. “It was big and bulky and used magnetic cards to store information. I thought, ‘I kinda like this,’” Woods, now 67, recalled, as quoted by The New York Times on August 9, 2025.
Fast forward to today, and Woods is not only still “liking it”—she’s teaching others. Since 2012, she’s run a computer training business and now instructs older adults at Senior Planet in Denver, an AARP-supported initiative to help seniors keep pace with the digital world. For her, staying engaged with technology “keeps me in the know, too.”
Woods’s story is emblematic of a larger, transformative shift in how technology is affecting the minds of older adults. In a world often alarmed by the dangers of screens and smartphones, new research is painting a surprisingly optimistic picture—at least for the aging population. According to a sweeping analysis published in Nature Human Behavior this year, using digital technology may actually help stave off cognitive decline and dementia among seniors.
The study, led by cognitive neuroscientist Michael Scullin of Baylor University and neuropsychologist Jared Benge of the University of Texas at Austin, reviewed 57 studies involving more than 411,000 seniors, with an average age of 69. Their findings were striking: nearly 90 percent of the studies showed that using computers, smartphones, or the internet was associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment or dementia. “Among the digital pioneer generation, use of everyday digital technology has been associated with reduced risk of cognitive impairment and dementia,” Scullin told The New York Times.
For decades, the prevailing wisdom warned of “digital dementia”—the idea that too much screen time could rot our brains. But as Dr. Murali Doraiswamy, director of the Neurocognitive Disorders Program at Duke University (who was not involved in the study), remarked, “It flips the script that technology is always bad. It’s refreshing and provocative and poses a hypothesis that deserves further research.”
What explains this apparent cognitive boost? The researchers suggest that learning to navigate new devices, software updates, and even troubleshooting tech glitches presents older adults with complex mental challenges—exactly the kind of brain exercise that studies have linked to cognitive health. “If you don’t give up on them, if you push through the frustration, you’re engaging in the same challenges that studies have shown to be cognitively beneficial,” Scullin explained. Even the constant need to relearn evolving systems can be a positive, he added.
Technology’s benefits may also extend to social connections, which are vital for brain health. Apps and devices help seniors stay in touch with family, manage their schedules, shop, bank, and even compensate for mild memory lapses. Woods herself uses a digital calendar, pays bills online, and group-texts her relatives. She’s also unafraid of the latest tech: last year, she used AI chatbots like Gemini and ChatGPT to plan a family RV trip, and now she’s using them to arrange a cruise for her fiftieth wedding anniversary.
But as with any powerful tool, the story isn’t all rosy. Technology also presents risks, particularly for older adults. The Federal Trade Commission warns that seniors lose more money to online fraud than younger users, even though they report fewer incidents. Disinformation online can have its own hazards, and, as Dr. Doraiswamy cautions, “If you’re bingeing Netflix 10 hours a day, you may lose social connections.” He’s quick to add that technology shouldn’t “substitute for other brain-healthy activities” like exercise or a balanced diet.
There’s also the question of causality. Does technology use sharpen cognition, or are more cognitively healthy people simply more likely to embrace technology? The researchers accounted for factors like health, education, and socioeconomic status, and still found a strong link between tech use and cognitive health. But, as Doraiswamy put it, “We still don’t know if it’s chicken or egg.”
This generational divide in technology’s cognitive impact is underscored by a parallel, but far more sobering, set of findings about younger users. On the same day as The New York Times’s article, WebProNews reported on a University of Toronto study, published in Nature, that tracked personality traits across more than 1.2 million people from multiple countries. The headline finding: since the rise of smartphones around 2007, young people—especially those under 30—have experienced a rapid decline in conscientiousness, a trait encompassing diligence, organization, and self-discipline.
This drop, described as the fastest personality shift in recorded history, has outpaced even the societal changes brought by the printing press or industrial revolution. The researchers argue that the constant digital interruptions of smartphone life—endless notifications, social media scrolls, and multitasking—are rewiring brains and eroding the ability to focus and plan. Neuroimaging studies, including a 2024 review in Progress in Neurobiology, found that heavy smartphone users (over four hours daily) show reduced gray matter in the prefrontal cortex, a region key to executive function. Some participants exhibited atrophy similar to early-stage cognitive decline.
“Excessive screen time stifles neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to form new connections,” warned neuroscientist Dr. Wendy Suzuki in The Indian Express (July 2025). She and other experts advocate for “digital detox” strategies: setting app limits, practicing mindfulness, and creating device-free zones. The Nature study noted that even moderate smartphone use in youth correlated with a 15-20% drop in conscientiousness scores, which could have broad societal impacts, from lower productivity to increased mental health challenges.
Yet, the picture isn’t entirely bleak for older adults. A recent study in the Journal of Medical Internet Research found that non-addictive smartphone use in seniors might actually protect cognition, aligning with the findings from Scullin and Benge. In fact, a PsyPost report in May 2025 suggested tech engagement could reduce dementia risk by 26% for seniors.
As the evidence mounts, policymakers are taking note. The European Parliament is debating guidelines to reduce addictive smartphone features, while the U.S. Federal Communications Commission is reviewing studies linking prolonged use to changes in brain activity. Some experts, like those quoted in viral threads on X, are calling for mandatory screen-time warnings, likening smartphones to “the new smoking.”
For now, the consensus seems to be that technology is a double-edged sword. Used mindfully, it can help seniors keep their minds sharp and their lives connected. Used excessively or without boundaries, especially among young people, it may erode the very cognitive skills we rely on. As Woods and her students demonstrate, embracing technology with curiosity—and a little caution—may be the key to thriving in the digital age.
The digital revolution continues to reshape the way we live, learn, and age. For older adults, it may just be the unexpected ally they never saw coming.