[Psychology] Lake Wobegon effect - All childen are above average

[Pedro2005]

Hey Guys!

You might have come across this before but I find it quite interesting so I thought I would post it for those that haven't heard of it.

It's called the "Lake Wobegon effect".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Wobegon_effect

"a large majority of people claim to be above average; this phenomenon has been observed among drivers, CEOs, stock market analysts, college students, police officers and state education officials, among others"

"Surveying drivers, Ole Svenson (1981) found that 80% of respondents rated themselves in the top 30% of all drivers. Asking college students about their popularity, Zuckerman and Jost (2001) showed that most students judged themselves to be "more popular than average"."

"One College Board survey asked 829,000 high school seniors to rate themselves in a number of ways. When asked to rate their own ability to "get along with others," a statistically insignificant number

[~mike*bodnaruk~]

I'm in the top 5% of people who have the largest penis' ever recorded. I rule

[synchro]

except for me, i am the greatest person i know.


in all seriousness tho, i don't see anything wrong with pumping yourself up a bit (yeah yeah) to keep yourself in good spirits as long as you don't become a complete braggart. i'd rather think good of myself and be happy than think poorly and get down on myself. you get to choose how good your life so why not make a good choice?

[Pedro2005]

Originally Posted by synchro

i'd rather think good of myself and be happy than think poorly and get down on myself. you get to choose how good your life so why not make a good choice?

How do you know where to draw the line?

I can imagine when overconfidence spills over to incompetence, it can have some serious consequences.

Here are some other goodies on similar subjects:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning-Kruger_Syndrome


1. incompetent individuals tend to overestimate their own level of skill,
2. incompetent individuals fail to recognize genuine skill in others,
3. incompetent individuals fail to recognize the extremity of their inadequacy,
4. if they can be trained to substantially improve their own skill level, these
individuals can recognize and acknowledge their own previous lack of skill.

Pedro

[M_Dub]

once youve come to terms with your flaws, you can truly be happy.
i think ive done that. You can pretty much say that the large majority of people are insecure.

[synchro]

Originally Posted by Pedro2005

How do you know where to draw the line?

I can imagine when overconfidence spills over to incompetence, it can have some serious consequences.

talk to davem, he could fill you in on that.

[Craz]

If you were inherently non-confident in your own abilities (even if you are in the bottom 50%) you would never do anything. A person needs to believe in themselves, first and foremost, to have the courage to attempt to do anything.

[.glib]

Originally Posted by M_Dub

You can pretty much say that the large majority of people are insecure.

Except you? Lemme guess, you're in the top 30% of people that aren't insecure?