Kruger vs. Imposter

And epic battle of success

What is the Dunning-Kruger effect (the Kruger principle) and Impostor Syndrome? Let's explore their potential impact on polymaths.

What’s the problem?

In the contemporary multi-disciplinary landscape, polymath individuals often grapple with a psychological dilemma stemming from the intertwining effects of the Dunning-Kruger effect and Impostor Syndrome. The polymaths’ broad knowledge base and expertise areas potentially make them more prone to vacillating between overestimating their capabilities in developing regions of expertise and underestimating their genuine contributions in well-versed domains.

This dilemma is further exacerbated by their keen awareness that every substantial achievement is typically the result of a collaborative effort, potentially intensifying feelings of being an impostor while also trying to maintain a grounded perspective on their competencies. This oscillation between contrasting psychological states might lead to a chronic cycle of self-doubt and overconfidence, hindering optimal performance and mental well-being.

Let’s do a quick recap:

1. Dunning-Kruger Effect:

   1. The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which individuals with low competence or knowledge in each domain overestimate their competence. In contrast, those with high competence often underestimate it. In other words, those who know the least feel overly confident. In contrast, those who know the most might be highly critical of their abilities.

   2. The primary stages can be summarized as:

      1. Unconscious incompetence: The individual doesn't know they lack skill.

      2. Conscious incompetence: The individual recognizes their lack of skill.

      3. Conscious competence: The individual knows they have the skill but must actively consider it.

      4. Unconscious competence: The skill becomes second nature to the individual.

2. Impostor Syndrome:

   1. Impostor Syndrome is characterized by the internal belief that one's successes are due to luck, timing, or deceiving others into thinking they are more intelligent or competent than they believe. Despite clearly showing their accomplishments, those experiencing Impostor Syndrome feel they don't deserve their successes and fear being exposed as a "fraud."

   2. Contrast:

      1. Dunning-Kruger Effect: People *don't know what they don't know*; thus, they overestimate their abilities.

      2. Impostor Syndrome: People *know what they know* but feel they don't truly deserve the recognition or success they receive.

What problems can this cause?

1. Polymaths and Overstating Accomplishments:

   1. A polymath is someone who has expertise or knowledge in multiple fields. The broad nature of their knowledge base might mean they frequently shift between feelings of the Dunning-Kruger effect and Impostor Syndrome. In areas where they've only scratched the surface, they might overestimate their competency due to the Dunning-Kruger effect. In areas where they've delved deep and achieved success, they might feel like impostors, especially compared to specialists in that domain.

2. The Role of a Team:

   1. Intelligent people, especially polymaths who often navigate multiple domains, recognize that a team of people often contributes different skills and perspectives behind every great success. This acknowledgment can sometimes intensify feelings of Impostor Syndrome: "Did I contribute enough?" or "Would this project have succeeded without me?"

However, this realization can also be humbling and counter the overconfidence seen in the Dunning-Kruger effect. Recognizing that every achievement is a collective effort tempers the ego and encourages gratitude.

Specialists and single-minded individuals might view pursuing polymathic development as a "self-inflicted wound" because it seems to diverge from the well-trodden path of deep expertise in a singular field. This approach is often praised and promoted within various societal structures, including educational and professional spheres. They might perceive the polymathic journey as an unnecessary complication involving the juggling of diverse knowledge areas and the accompanying cognitive load, which, in their view, could potentially dilute the depth of expertise and focus.

Furthermore, they might see polymaths' oscillation between perceived and actual competence across various domains as a source of avoidable stress and confusion. This problem could have been averted by sticking to one path of specialization. The constant comparison with experts in various fields, they believe, sets polymaths up for frequent encounters with impostor syndrome and a lack of a coherent professional identity. Hence, from their perspective, the challenges faced by polymaths seem to be avoidable consequences of a choice to stray from the perceived safety and clarity of specialization.

For a polymathic individual, simultaneously wrestling with feelings of overconfidence in some domains and inadequacy in others can be perplexing. Recognizing that "no one achieves great success alone" can alleviate and exacerbate these feelings. It’s essential to provide support by helping individuals understand these dynamics, grounding them in their genuine accomplishments, and fostering a sense of gratitude and humility for the collective efforts behind every achievement.

Therefore, there is a need to develop psychological interventions and support mechanisms that can assist polymaths in navigating these complex emotional terrains, fostering a balanced self-view that encourages personal growth and acknowledgment of collective efforts in achieving success. We need to rethink the brainwashing models of the past and embrace more open corporation models between these opposing ideas.