More support for “fake it ‘til you make it.” It looks like we may have underestimated the importance of confidence. A group of researchers gathered a group of students and asked them to estimate their grades. They were then rated by others on how smart or talented they were perceived to be. The researchers “found that students who over-estimated their own grades tended to be perceived as more talented, and students who underestimated their grades were seen as less talented, regardless of their actual capabilities.” As per the authors, “our results support the idea that self-deception facilitates the deception of others. Overconfident individuals were overrated and underconfident individuals were underrated.” The findings have broader implications for who might be rising to the top. “The researchers also warned that over-confidence can have more of an effect on individual decisions like picking a mate or hiring for jobs, resulting in self-deceptive and risk-prone people being promoted to powerful roles

Learn More