The Dunning-Kruger effect is a type of cognitive bias (偏见) in which people believe that they are smarter and more capable than they really are. Essentially, low ability people do not possess the skills needed to recognize their own incompetence. The combination of poor self-awareness and low cognitive ability leads them to overestimate their own capabilities. This phenomenon is something you have likely experienced in real life, perhaps at a holiday family gathering. Throughout the course of the meal, a member of your extended family begins spouting off on a topic, boldly announcing that he is correct and that everyone else’s opinion is stupid, uninformed, and just plain wrong. It may be plainly evident to everyone that this person has no idea what he is talking about, but he talks continuously, blithely oblivious (忘乎所以) to his own ignorance.
The effect is named after researchers David Dunning and Justin Kruger, two social psychologists. They found incompetent people are not only poor performers, they are also unable to accurately assess and recognize the quality of their own work. These low performers were also unable to recognize the skill and competence levels of other people, which is part of the reason why they consistently view themselves as better, more capable, and more knowledgeable than others.
This is the reason why students who earn failing scores on exams sometimes feel that they deserved a much higher score. They overestimate their own knowledge and ability and are incapable of seeing the poorness of their performance.
“In many cases, the incompetent are often blessed with an inappropriate confidence, encouraged by something that feels to them like knowledge.” Dunning and his colleagues have also performed experiments where they ask respondents if they are familiar with terms related to subjects including politics, biology, physics, and geography. Along with genuine concepts, they added completely made-up terms. In one such study, approximately 90 percent of respondents claimed that they had at least some knowledge of the made-up terms.
So what can you do to gain a more realistic assessment of your own abilities? Instead of assuming you know all there is to know about a subject, keep digging deeper. Once you gain greater knowledge of a topic, the more likely you are to recognize how much there is still to learn. Another effective strategy involves asking others for constructive criticism. While it can sometimes be difficult to hear, such feedback can provide valuable insights into how others perceive your abilities. Even as you learn more and get feedback, it can be easy to only pay attention to things that confirm what you think you already know. In order to minimize this confirmation bias, keep challenging your beliefs and expectations and seek out information that challenges your ideas.
【小题1】What can we learn about the Dunning-Kruger effect from the first paragraph?| A．The Dunning-Kruger effect is rare for us to confirm. |
| B．Incompetent people can be blind to their own ignorance. |
| C．Ignorance leads people to underestimate their own abilities. |
| D．Poor self-awareness and low cognitive ability have a close connection. |
| A．Underestimate their own skill levels. |
| B．Feel more realistic about their competence. |
| C．Recognize their own mistakes and lack of skills. |
| D．Fail to recognize the genuine skill of other people. |
| A．The meaningless terms may cause respondents to feel ashamed. |
| B．The participants pretended to know what they actually didn’t know. |
| C．The aim of the experiments was to assess how smart the participants were. |
| D．Most of the respondents claimed they were unfamiliar with the make-up terms. |
| A．Ask people for helpful feedbacks. |
| B．Minimize the bias and challenges. |
| C．Assume that you know everything. |
| D．Gain confidence and trust yourself. |
