Department of Anatomy, Institute of Clinical Anatomy and Cell Analysis, Faculty of Medicine, Eberhard Karls University of Tuebingen, Elfriede-Aulhorn- Straße 8, 72076, Tuebingen, Germany.
Institute of Medical Education, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Pettenkoferstraße 8a, 80336, Munich, Germany.
BMC Med Educ. 2024 Oct 24;24(1):1210. doi: 10.1186/s12909-024-06121-7.
The ability to self-assess is a crucial skill in identifying one's own strengths and weaknesses and in coordinating self-directed learning. The Dunning-Kruger effect occurs when limited knowledge causes individuals to overestimate their competence and underestimate others', leading to poor self-assessment and unrecognized incompetence. To serve as a foundation for developing strategies to improve self-assessment, the self-assessment abilities of first-semester students were assessed.
In the final weeks of the summer 2021, winter 2021/22, and summer 2022 semesters, the academic performance (oral anatomy exam) of first semester students was assessed (0-15 points). Before the exam results were announced, students were asked to self-assess their performance.
Exam scores (M = 10.64, SD = 2.95) and self-assessed scores (M = 10.38, SD = 2.54) were comparable. The absolute difference between them, as a measure of self-assessment ability ranged from - 9 to + 9 points (M = -0.26, SD = 2.59). Among participants (N = 426), 18.5% assessed themselves accurately, 35.5% overestimated, and 46.0% underestimated their performance. The correlation between actual score and self-assessment was ρ = -0.590 (p < 0.001), reflecting the Dunning-Kruger effect. When separated by gender, correlation for females was ρ = -0.591 (p < 0.001), and for males ρ = -0.580 (p < 0.001).
Realistic self-assessment is a challenge for first-semester students. The data indicate that females tend to overestimate their performance while males underestimate theirs. A pronounced Dunning-Kruger effect is evident in both genders, with significant negative correlations between self-assessment and actual performance. There are several reasons for the occurrence of the Dunning-Kruger effect. Considering that the COVID-19 pandemic influenced learning environments, collaborative learning was significantly restricted. The lack of opportunities for comparison could potentially lead to unrealistic self-assessment.
自我评估能力是识别自身优势和劣势以及协调自我导向学习的关键技能。当有限的知识导致个人高估自己的能力并低估他人时，就会出现邓宁-克鲁格效应，从而导致自我评估不佳和未被认识到的无能。为了为制定提高自我评估能力的策略提供基础，评估了第一学期学生的自我评估能力。
在 2021 年夏季、2021/22 年冬季和 2022 年夏季学期的最后几周，评估了第一学期学生的学业成绩（口腔解剖学考试）（0-15 分）。在公布考试成绩之前，要求学生对自己的表现进行自我评估。
考试成绩（M=10.64，SD=2.95）和自我评估成绩（M=10.38，SD=2.54）相当。它们之间的绝对差异，作为自我评估能力的衡量标准，范围在-9 到+9 分（M=-0.26，SD=2.59）之间。在 426 名参与者中，18.5%的人自我评估准确，35.5%的人高估，46.0%的人低估了自己的表现。实际分数与自我评估之间的相关性为 ρ=-0.590（p<0.001），反映了邓宁-克鲁格效应。按性别分组时，女性的相关性为 ρ=-0.591（p<0.001），男性为 ρ=-0.580（p<0.001）。
对于第一学期的学生来说，现实的自我评估是一个挑战。数据表明，女性往往高估自己的表现，而男性则低估自己的表现。两性都明显存在邓宁-克鲁格效应，自我评估与实际表现之间存在显著的负相关。邓宁-克鲁格效应的发生有几个原因。考虑到 COVID-19 大流行影响了学习环境，协作学习受到了极大限制。缺乏比较的机会可能导致不切实际的自我评估。
