The pioneer effect – The daily blog of behavioral and cognitive economics

The Pioneer Effect: A Bold New Effect Where No Effect Has Been Before

When Was the Last Time You Referenced the Lake Wobegon Effect? The chances are, probably never. The effect refers to a tendency to overestimate one’s capabilities, inspired by the fictional town of Lake Wobegon where “all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and the children are all above average”. But as above-average behavioural scientists will recognise, Lake Wobegon sounds a lot like ‘illusory superiority’ aka the ‘above-average effect’ aka the ‘Dunning-Kruger effect’. The tendency to create new effects, constructs and measures when perfectly good alternatives already exist, is something that we have dubbed the ‘Pioneer Effect’. ….[READ]