Rant-Man's Notebook

By Jim "Rant-Man" MacQuarrie

Watching the Inept... Where Are the Ept?

I actually watched part of American Idol tonight. I happened to walk in while it was on. The news media had left me with the impression that the english guy was a total SOB, but after seeing (or rather hearing) the contestants, I think he errs on the side of mercy. Telling some of these people that they are the worst singers on earth is an understatement. The baffling part is why they tried out in the first place. Is realistic self-appraisal a lost art?

Perhaps it is. According to a study done a couple of years ago by Justin Kruger and David Dunning of Cornell University, the skills necessary for recognizing one's incompetence are the same ones necessary for being competent in the first place. The result is that the incompetent "grossly overestimate" their competency. Very competent people tend to underestimate their abilities. You know those stories about "America's Dumbest Criminals"? This explains it all.

It also explains a few people I know.

More interesting tidbits, from Thomas Gilovich's How We Know What Isn't So: Ninety-four percent of university professors think they are better at their jobs than their colleagues. Twenty-five percent of college students believe they are in the top 1% in terms of their ability to get along with others. Seventy percent of college students think they are above average in leadership ability. Only two percent think they are below average.

It's true. They're out there. They walk among us. They drive on the roads with us. Some of them vote. They don't even know they're idiots. Now you know why.

How do you know if you're one of them?

The authors of this study worried about that very point. What if they were incompetent and didn't know it? Heck, what if I'm a giggling idiot and don't know it? Well, the fact that I'm open to the possibility tends to mitigate against it. Crazy people never question their sanity, and stupid people never doubt their brilliance.

But it's actually pretty easy to tell. Arthur Conan Doyle once said "Mediocrity knows only itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius." When you assesss your abilities, do you compare yourself to the Masters in the field and come up short? That's a good indicator that you're probably better at it than you think you are. If, on the other hand, you compare yourself to unknown masses of anonymous people you assume are worse than you, you may not be as swift as you think. But as Kruger & Dunning point out, you may be a ninny and never know it. In which case, you should probably try to find some honest friends before you end up on "American Idol" having a belligerent limey call you names.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

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