Illusory superiority
Also known as Better-than-average effect
The tendency to overestimate our own qualities and abilities compared with other people. The Lake Wobegon effect is another name for it.
In everyday life
Most drivers believe they are safer and more skilled than the typical driver on the road.
You think of yourself as a better listener, kinder and more honest than most of your friends, though you've never asked any of them how they see it.
Why your mind does this
To act at all, we need some belief that our choices matter and that we can pull them off. A bit of extra confidence gets us moving, keeps us going after setbacks, and protects our sense of self-worth and our standing in a group.
Its family, in 30 seconds: Confidence to act
How to spot it
Watch for the thought 'I'm not like most people' when it comes to a skill or a virtue.
How to counter it
Pick one skill you rate highly and test it against an objective benchmark, like a timed test or a recording of yourself.
Same family: Confidence to act
- Overconfidence effect
- Social desirability bias
- Third-person effect
- False consensus effect
- Hard-easy effect
- Lake Wobegon effect
- Dunning-Kruger effect
- Egocentric bias
- Optimism bias
- Forer effect
- Barnum effect
- Self-serving bias
- Actor-observer bias
- Illusion of control
- Illusory superiority
- Fundamental attribution error
- Defensive attribution hypothesis
- Trait ascription bias
- Effort justification
- Risk compensation
- Peltzman effect
SourcesZell et al. (2020)·Wikipedia