Dunning-Kruger Effect

Ever had a co-worker or school mate who seemed so lost in his incompetence that said person actually thought he was good at what he did?

Quoting Bertrand Russell, "The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts." The Dunning-Kruger effect was proposed in 1999 to recognise this phenomenon. The incompetent falsely inflate their perceived capabilities, not knowing what they don't know, often believing in their own incompetence as competence. Actual capability actually reduces self-confidence.

In their hypothesis, Dunning and Kruger proposed that, for a given skill, incompetent people will:

1. tend to overestimate their own level of skill;
2. fail to recognize genuine skill in others;
3. fail to recognize the extremity of their inadequacy;
4. recognize and acknowledge their own previous lack of skill, if they are exposed to training for that skill.

Studies were carried out on Cornell students and the effect was clearly observed. Given science has proven that the stupid will continue being stupid; thinking that they are smarter than they actually are, it creates pain for those with true ability, who tend to underestimate their own capabilities.

The next time you meet an annoying person who belongs to this category, take heart that science has proven that they are purely idiotic.

Personality Tests

Was introduced to the Hermann Brain Dominance Instrument yesterday. I read through their materials but of corse did not take the test. I consider myself a proponent of using the Meyer-Briggs as a gauge to determine optimal relationships in the workplace and personal life, so inevitably a comparison was done for both methods.

What I liked about the HBDI was that it provided a visual representation of one's dominance in the four different quadrants. It also provided or with recommendations for type o jobs one should be in that best emphasises one's dominant traits. However the hefty price for an assessment really put me off.

There is a competitive space in the market for services that assess individuals and propose methods to improve existing relationships, especially in the workplace. I wonder how one could provide a similar service for individuals at lower price points without looking like those free personality tests websites, while providing consultations to

improve users. I have heard of people paying 4-figure sums to obtain their profile and attend workshops to achieve whatever that workshop is intended for, e.g. Increased sales etc. Would an online version help? How about interpersonal relationships?

But I guess before I formulate a solution any further perhaps I should also think how to become a practitioner for one of these tests and then work towards helping those around me first.

Random thought of the day and that's because I'm probably a high D quadrant (creativity) on the HBDI scale. Frankly I dislike the naming convention those, ABCD quadrants.. That's not very descriptive!