The regular use of text messages and e-mails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking marijuana. 

    That is the claim of psychologists who have found that tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keypad or checking them for electronic messages temporarily knocks up to ten points off the user’s IQ. 

    This rate of decline in intelligence compares unfavourably with the four-point drop in IQ associated with smoking marijuana, according to British researchers, who have labelled the fleeting phenomenon of enhanced stupidity as “infomania”. 

    Research on sleep deprivation suggests that the IQ drop caused by electronic obsession is also equivalent to a wakeful night. 

    Infomania is mainly a problem for adult workers, especially men, the study commissioned by Hewlett Packard, the technology company, has concluded. 

    The noticeable drop in IQ is attributed to the constant distraction of “always on” technology when employees should be concentrating on what they are paid to do. Infomania means that they lose concentration as their minds remain fixed in an almost permanent state of readiness to react to technology instead of focusing on the task in hand. 

    Workers lose productivity by interrupting a business meeting and disrupt social gatherings because of their infirmity, the report said. 

    The brain also finds it hard to cope with juggling lots of tasks at once, reducing its overall effectiveness, it added. And while modern technology can have huge benefits, excessive use can be damaging not only to a person’s mind, but to their social life. 

    Furthermore, infomania is having a negative effect on work colleagues, increasing stress and dissenting feelings. Nine out of ten polled thought that colleagues who answered e-mails or messages during a face-to-face meeting were extremely rude. Yet one in three Britons believes that it is not only acceptable, but actually diligent and efficient to do so. 

    The effects on IQ were studied by Dr Glenn Wilson, a University of London psychologist, as part of the research project. “This is a very real and widespread phenomenon,” he said. “We have found that infomania, if unchecked, will damage a worker’s performance by reducing their mental sharpness. Companies should encourage a more balanced and appropriate way of working.” 

    经常收发短信和e-mail会降低人的智商。这种损害比吸食大麻对智商带来的损害要高两倍多。 

    心理学家发现，使用手机或敲击电脑键盘发送或接收电子信息会暂时降低使用者约十个百分点的智商。 

    根据英国研究人员的研究，吸食大麻会使智商下降个百分点，而与之相比，经常使用电子文本信息造成的智力衰减率更加严重。研究人员将这种暂时变笨的现象称为“信息狂躁”。 

    关于剥夺睡眠的研究表明因为痴迷于电子产品而造成的智力衰退相当于一夜失眠。　　 

    惠普科技公司委托进行的研究结果表明，信息狂躁主要表现在成年人身上，尤其是成年男性。 

    造成这种智力明显衰退的原因在于当员工们应该集中精力工作时，“无处不在”的科技却总是不断分散他们的注意力。信息狂躁是指他们的意识近乎一直处于一种随时对“技术”做出反应的状态，因而无法将注意力集中在手头的工作上。 

    该报告还补充说大脑很难同时应付许多难题，其整体效率会降低。此外，虽然现代科技可以给予我们巨大的帮助，但过多地使用科技也会给人们的大脑和社会生活带来危害。 

    此外，信息狂躁对同事也有负面影响，增加他们的压力和敌对情绪。90％的被调查者认为在面对面会议时回电子邮件是非常无礼的行为。但是三分之一的英国人不仅可以接受这种行为，而且觉得这样做说明自己工作勤奋、高效。

    伦敦大学的心理学家Glenn Wilson博士正在做一个名为“这是一个真实的的普遍现象”的研究项目，信息狂躁对智商的影响是其中的一个部分。他说：“如果不进行检查控制，信息狂躁将会降低员工的精神敏感度，进而影响其工作效率。所以，公司应提倡一种更加平衡的适当的工作方式。”