(Well, I did and let me tell you how it went!)


In one of my other posts Things people DON'T tell you about being an Undergraduate student! I briefly mentioned some fancy term which is the Dunning Kruger effect. It might sound complicated but it's a pretty simple concept that I am sure that we all did at least once in our lives and believe me as a university student you have definitely done this.


Check this list to easily jump through the topics:


My humbling experience

Before I continue into discussing more about the Dunning Kruger effect, let me tell you a little anecdote if you will.

Once upon a time...

there was a very smart high school student who took lots of advanced placement courses (university-level courses).

She learned many things that were so detailed and dense. Then she went to university and started her first semester with a basic biology course.

A course everyone deemed an easy A, and why shouldn't it be, she did take advanced courses after all. So, she hadn't really given her all and it was time for the first exam. She thought that she absolutely aced it.

The unexpected happened when she received her grade, and she was greatly humbled by it. To say the least it was not an A.

She decided to check her answers because she was too proud to admit anything else. There it was all her mistakes which made sense after she had submitted the exam and seen the grade, it was too late to do anything.

THE END.

That girl was ME, yup me you read that right. I was the main character in that story. Well, let's breakdown what happened.

  • I overestimated my knowledge on basic biology, on the topics that were included in the course.
  • I assumed that I was ahead and that I knew all the things that the lecturer said.
  • I also assumed that because I took such advanced topics there was no way that there is anything new to learn -how much basic information was left?- To tell you the truth, there was lots and lots to learn.
  • I not only overestimated my knowledge on the topics but I also was too proud to admit it which was the biggest mistake I made.

Basically I was a...


What I learned from it?

I think you might now have a general understanding to what the Dunning Kruger effect is. In this psychological bias an individual overestimates their abilities or knowledge in certain things. Which is exactly what I did in that basic biology course.

I think of this effect as a fancy way of saying you're way too deep in your own bubble to admit that there is so much out there that you have no idea about. Too confident to the point of being arrogant and self-centered.

At that time I hadn’t known about this Dunning Kruger effect but I was greatly humbled by that exam grade. To be entirely honest it shattered my ego, it made me step back, check-in with my self, recalculate what I know and change my perspective on learning. It was a huge turning point to me and future me is thankful for that experience.

It taught me many things and one of the biggest takeaways is that when it comes to learning, it is crucial to keep an open mind to new ideas and different perspectives.


The realization of being humbled

In that basic biology course, I did study the same topics from which I already covered in the advanced placement course back in high school but the key difference was the perspectives.

I had two different individuals teach me the same topics each having their OWN experience and method of teaching. Each having a set of unique information that they added to certain topics, while one highly focused on understanding all the basic backbone information before learning anything else, the other explained each topic with amazing detail while also relating it to specific real-life examples.

That in itself made a huge distinction in the material that was covered.

An example that I can easily state is when we covered the chapter relating to gene expression and regulation. Previously, I learned it in the biological matter in understanding the biology terms, covering all the patterns, having a comprehensive understanding to everything. While the second time, we had a general introduction and we related it to certain diseases, focusing on malfunction and mutations.

Thus, although we covered the same chapter title which is gene expression and regulation each time had a certain focus and a unique perspective.


Ways to avoid being humbled again

The Dunning Kruger effect doesn’t mean that you are stupid or that you should lack confidence in what you know, it is however a matter of perspective and understanding. In a way, being subjected to this psychological bias can have many negative outcomes and can ruin your chances in many learning opportunities.

When you are continually in your own bubble you are more likely to fall under this effect. To avoid being in this psychological bias, try these things:

  1. Ask people for constructive criticism. Although it might sometimes be hard to listen to feedbacks especially harsh ones, it is a great way to learn new things and improve your knowledge. Also try not to take things so personally and focus on the work it self.
  2. Keep your self open to new information and ideas. Don't restrict your circle of knowledge, when it comes to knowledge think of it as a sea rather than a pool. There is so much more water in a sea than a pool so don't settle for a tiny pool when you can have a whole sea.
  3. Don’t assume that you know things. This can ruin your chances in learning new things and seeing new perspectives. I made this mistake of blocking the information before I even knew what it was. Don't assume that you hate that topic unless you give it a try.
  4. Ask questions even when you don’t think you need to. Sometimes the silly questions that pop up in your mind are the most crucial ones, so don't underestimate how significant they might be. Ask obvious questions that doesn't make you any less of a learner.

These are some things that you can do to prevent yourself from going through the rabbit hole of this effect.


Final thoughts

Remember that we all are subjected to this psychological bias whether we notice it or not and that it can highly effect our decision making as well as our experiences. Don’t let it get the better of you, however, use it as a learning opportunity.

Keep in mind that the more you learn the more you’ll see the wealth of information out there AKA the more you learn the less you know.

Lastly, the Dunning Kruger effect is ONE of many other psychological biases that we all fall victims to. I can cover other biases in future posts if you found this topic interesting.

Feel free to comment your thoughts about this post and whether you have heard about this psychological bias before!


Hello there friend! Thank you for reading the post, feel free to check out my Instagram account for up-to-date announcement and join our continuously growing community of biology enthusiasts!!!

If you haven't subscribed yet, please consider it!! It is totally FREE and once you do, you'll automatically receive all the blog posts in your mail box as they are posted!! You will also have access to all the topics found on the site!!

You like what you read? Want to see more? Check out all the posts on the homepage or click the button below!


Ever got humbled by a grade you didn't expect?