Dunning-Kruger Effect
The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which people wrongly overestimate their knowledge or ability in a specific area. This tends to occur because a lack of self-awareness prevents them from accurately assessing their own skills.
What causes the Dunning-Kruger effect?
Confidence is so highly prized that many people would rather pretend to be smart or skilled than risk looking inadequate and losing face. Even smart people can be affected by the Dunning-Kruger effect because having intelligence isn’t the same thing as learning and developing a specific skill. Many individuals mistakenly believe that their experience and skills in one particular area are transferable to another.
Why do people fail to recognize their own incompetence?
Many people would describe themselves as above average in intelligence, humor, and a variety of skills. They can’t accurately judge their own competence, because they lack metacognition, or the ability to step back and examine oneself objectively. In fact, those who are the least skilled are also the most likely to overestimate their abilities.
What is the double curse of the Dunning-Kruger effect?
The Dunning-Kruger effect results in what’s known as a "double curse:" Not only do people perform poorly, but they are not self-aware enough to judge themselves accurately—and are thus unlikely to learn and grow.
What is the opposite of the Dunning-Kruger effect?
If the Dunning-Kruger effect is being overconfident in one’s knowledge or performance, its polar opposite is imposter syndrome or the feeling that one is undeserving of success. People who have imposter syndrome are plagued by self-doubts and constantly feel like frauds who will be unmasked any second.
Why do people think they know more than they do?
One type of overconfidence, called overprecision, occurs when someone is exaggeratedly certain that their answers are correct. These individuals may seem highly competent and persuasive due to their apparent confidence. They are often driven by a desire for status and power and the need to appear smarter than the people around them.
Why do people overestimate their competence?
Overestimation, another kind of overconfidence, refers to the discrepancy between someone’s skills and their perception of those skills. People who overestimate themselves frequently engage in wishful thinking with harmful consequences. If someone overestimates their capabilities, they may take dangerous risks and overextend themselves beyond their limits, like an athlete pushing themselves to the point of injury.
Why do some people believe they are better than others?
Anytime someone believes they are more skilled or knowledgeable than others, they are engaging in overplacement. This form of overconfidence can lead a person to take unnecessary risks (e.g., drive unsafely) because they believe they possess superior skills. Overplacement occurs most frequently in people with low abilities who lack the competence to judge their skill level accurately; it is associated with an egocentric perspective and narcissism.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basi ... ger-effect
