People who are obsessed with celebrities tend to score lower on measures of cognitive ability by Eric W. Dolan January 3, 2022 in Cognitive Science Cognitive performance is slightly reduced among those with higher levels of celebrity worship, according to a new study published in BMC Psychology. “Interest in the topic of celebrity worshipers spans almost two decades. From several studies, over that period, research showed a weak to moderate tendency for those who showed the strongest admiration for their favorite celebrity to have lower cognitive skills, using a variety of cognitive measures,” explained study authors Lynn E. McCutcheon, Ágnes Zsila, and Zsolt Demetrovics in a joint statement to PsyPost. “However, most of these studies did not control for a variety of extraneous variables. The current study did control for several possibly relevant variables.” In the study, 1,763 Hungarian adults completed a 30-word vocabulary test and a digit symbol substitution test, a validated assessment of fluid intelligence. The researchers also collected data about the participants’ self-esteem, current family income, material wealth, and highest level of education.