Nature-Nurture Journal of Psychology

Cognitive Debt in the ChatGPT Era: How Ethical and Emotional Use Shapes Cognitive Function in Emerging Adults

2025-09-07T15:39:58+00:00

Background:The accelerated use of large language models like ChatGPT has revolutionized human emotional and cognitive involvement, yet its neuropsychological implications remain poorly known. The present study proposes the concept of cognitive debt, the accumulated strain on attention, memory, and metacognitive control triggered by sustained AI engagement. This study investigated how distinctive patterns of ChatGPT involvement spanning usage frequency, emotional and cognitive engagement, and ethical reflection predict cognitive dysfunction across four user typologies: low–moderate, minimal/unhealthy, balanced–cognitive, and ethically reflective users.

Method: This study employed a purposive sampling strategy within a web-based cross-sectional design to recruit 300 emerging adults (aged 18–25 years) from universities in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Pakistan, between June 25 and July 12, 2025. Participants completed two standardized psychological instruments examining ChatGPT usage and cognitive dysfunction via an online survey administered on Google Forms. The survey link was disseminated through multiple digital platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook, and official university email network to ensure broad accessibility and voluntary participation.

Results: The results revealed that higher ChatGPT usage, specifically emotionally driven involvement, was associated with increased cognitive dysfunction, including impairments in memory, attention, and executive control across all user profiles, proposing that emotionally driven and impulsive interplay with generative AI diminishes executive control and heightens cognitive load. In contrast, ethical reflection indicated a mild protective effect against cognitive dysfunction. Moreover, females exhibited higher cognitive vulnerability than males, while males reported greater ChatGPT engagement and susceptibility to its cognitive effects as compared to females.

Conclusions: The results explain two diverse cognitive stress pathways: (1) emotional compulsive engagement, described by affect-laden and impulsive AI use, and (2) reflective cognitive overload, where ethical contemplation paradoxically develops metacognitive load. These novel results improve the concept of cognitive debt, proposing that both over reflective and overreliant AI interactions could impair cognitive efficacy. The research highlights the urgency of establishing evidence-based digital ethical-use and literacy approaches to promote cognitively sustainable AI usage.

The Mediating Role of Social Anxiety between Fear of Negative Evaluation and Online Self-Presentation in Young Adults: A Collectivist Cultural Perspective

2025-07-22T08:13:38+00:00

Background: The increasing immersion in digital environments has heightened concerns about psychological factors influencing online self-presentation (OSP), especially among young adults. This study examines the relationship between fear of negative evaluation (FNE) and OSP, with Social Anxiety (SA) as a potential mediator, within a collectivist cultural context.

Method: A cross-sectional design with convenience sampling was employed, involving 200 participants (131 men, 69 women) with age ranged of 16 to 32 years (M = 24.25, SD = 2.85), recruited from educational institutions and social media platforms across Pakistan. Four standardized measures were used, including the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale (BFNE-S), the Social Anxiety Interaction Scale (SAIS), and the Presentation of Online Self Scale (POSS).

Results: The results indicated a significant positive association between FNE and OSP. Further the results demonstrated that SA significantly and partially mediated this relationship (β = −0.19, SE = 0.06, 95% CI [−0.33, −0.07]). These findings suggest that individuals with higher levels of FNE tend to experience greater social anxiety, which in turn contributes to more controlled, deliberate, and strategic online self-presentation behaviors.

Conclusions: The findings suggest that individuals with higher levels of FNE are more likely to experience social anxiety, which subsequently contributes to more strategic and controlled online self-presentation. The study highlights the cognitive-affective pathways involved in digital identity construction in collectivist cultures. Interventions targeting FNE and SA may promote healthier online behaviors among young adults.

The Mediating Role of Grit in the Relationship among Health Behaviors, Internet Addiction, Emotional Intelligence, and Academic Burnout in Adolescents

2025-05-08T07:22:37+00:00

Background: Adolescence is a critical developmental stage marked by significant emotional, psychological, and academic changes. Academic burnout has become increasingly common in this age group due to academic pressure, lifestyle changes, and excessive digital media use. While health behaviors, internet addiction, and emotional intelligence are recognized as important psychosocial determinants of academic adjustment, the underlying mechanisms of their impact on academic burnout remain unclear. This study aimed to examine the mediating role of grit a trait representing perseverance and passion for long-term goals in the relationship between academic burnout and these psychosocial predictors in adolescents.

Method: This cross-sectional study employed a convenience sampling technique to recruit 281 adolescents (149 boys and 132 girls), aged 14 to 18 years (M = 17.09, SD = 1.26), from public and private colleges in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Participants completed validated self-report measures assessing academic burnout, emotional intelligence, grit, internet addiction, and health behaviors. Correlation and mediation analyses were used to explore direct and indirect associations among variables.

Results: Academic burnout showed a significant positive correlation with internet addiction and emotional intelligence, and a significant negative correlation with grit and health behaviors. Mediation analyses revealed that grit significantly mediated the relationship between internet addiction and academic burnout, suggesting that higher grit levels weaken the negative impact of internet addiction. Similarly, grit partially mediated the effects of emotional intelligence and health behaviors on academic burnout, indicating that adolescents with stronger grit reported lower burnout despite high digital engagement or moderate emotional competencies.

Conclusions: Findings support the role of grit as a protective psychological factor, emphasizing its potential in school-based interventions aimed at reducing academic burnout and enhancing adolescent resilience.

Perceived Stress as a Mediator between Episodic and Semantic Memory in Hypertensive and Normotensive Individuals: A Neuropsychological Perspective

2025-05-11T16:49:57+00:00

Background: Hypertension is not only a leading cardiovascular risk factor but also significantly influences cognitive functioning, particularly episodic and semantic memory. Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, leading to heightened perceived stress, has been linked to neurocognitive impairments. Despite growing evidence, the interplay between episodic memory, perceived stress, and semantic memory remains underexplored, particularly in hypertensive populations

Method: This cross-sectional, comparative study included 200 participants (100 hypertensive, 100 normotensive), recruited through purposive sampling. Data collection occurred between October 1, 2024, and January 4, 2025, at the Cognitive and Neuroscience Lab, Foundation University School of Science and Technology (FUSST), and the Cardiology Department at Fauji Foundation Hospital, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Episodic memory was assessed using the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) and Picnir Scales, semantic memory via the Semantic Memory Scale, and perceived stress through the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Correlational and mediation analyses were conducted.

Results: The results of this study demonstrated that perceived stress significantly mediated the relationship between episodic and semantic memory in both normotensive and hypertensive groups. Moreover, people with normal blood pressure had better memory when they felt less stress. However, in people with high blood pressure, stress had a stronger effect on memory, showing that they may be more mentally vulnerable. Additionally, moderation analysis revealed a more robust direct effect of episodic memory on semantic memory in normotensive participants compared to their hypertensive counterparts.

Conclusions: These findings highlight perceived stress as a critical neuropsychological mediator influencing memory systems, particularly under hypertensive conditions. Integrating stress-reduction strategies into cognitive interventions may help mitigate neurocognitive decline in hypertensive populations.