Electronic devices have apparently contributed to the decline in IQ scores (Picture: Getty Images)

The IQ scores of young people have started to decline, according to a new study.

That means future generations may not be as smart as previous ones, which is worrying.

The drop of around seven points per generation has apparently been caused by new methods being used to teach maths and languages, according to the research.

Electronic devices have also been blamed for distracting young people.

IQ scores had been on the rise over the past 70 years but the fall began with people born in 1975, which has now apparently been reflected in the numbers.

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GOERLITZ, GERMANY - FEBRUARY 03: Students during a lesson. Feature at a school in Goerlitz on February 03, 2017 in Goerlitz, Germany. (Photo by Florian Gaertner/Photothek via Getty Images)
The lower IQ scores are a worrying trend (Picture: Getty Images)

The Norwegian study, from Ole Rogeburg and Bernt Bratsberg, also showed men in the country had lower IQs than their fathers at the same age.

The scientists, from Oslo’s Ragnar Frisch Centre for Economic Research, looked at data from more than 730,000 men.

The respondents had all signed up for the army from 1970 to 2009.

Psychologist Stuart Ritchie, from the University of Edinburgh, was worried the research could show an end to the Flynn Effect, which previously showed IQ scores rose consistently.

He told The Times newspaper: ‘This is the most convincing evidence yet of a reversal of the Flynn Effect.

‘If you assume their model is correct, the results are impressive, and pretty worrying.’

The Norwegian study was published in the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Journal (PNAS).

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