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Dunning Kruger, while it does have a precise meaning and was experimentally discovered, in common usage of the term it is just a way to say someone else is dumb without using words like 'dumb'. Not only are they dumb, they're so dumb they are too dumb to know they are dumb! Not only are they soooo dumb, I'm very smart, so smart I use words to talk like smart people, with big special words that are from science. Plus, I bet I underestimate my own skill level. How humble!

I've never seen someone cast themselves as the one that might be overestimating their ability.



> they're so dumb they are too dumb to know they are dumb!

It’s really too bad Dunning & Kruger’s data didn’t show anyone being too dumb to know it, nor did it even show anyone being dumb at all. So maybe the meaning isn’t as precise as you think? All the participant scores were relative to their peer group (no way to know if they were dumb or smart), and all the participants were Ivy League college kids. That doesn’t mean there were no dummies in the group, but it is certainly not a random sample of the population.

> I’ve never seen someone cast themselves as the one that might be overestimating their ability.

The DK paper shows a positive correlation between confidence and skill. While I have seen people suggest they might be overestimating (in social situations where doing that might add credibility), if you believe in the DK effect and trust their data, then saying out loud that you’re overestimating your ability is the same as saying you think you might be dumber than you are, right?


You overestimated how well you understood my comment. I was commenting on the irony of how people bring up dunning kruger to insult other people.

Why bother going to the effort trying to correct someone without bothering to take 30 seconds to even read their comment?


Relax friend, I did read your comment before replying and I was agreeing with you that it's ironic. I guess I did misunderstand your statement about precise meaning, but what exactly makes you think I was trying to insult you? I wasn't, and I apologize for giving that impression.


Maybe I'm the one that needs to slow down and read more carefully :)


A friend of mine and I do this regularly.




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