11/09/2022, 16:27 How to tell a real expert from a fake

F O L LOW LO G I N 

A DV E R T I S E M E N T

0 9- 07-2 2 H OW TO B E A S U CC E S S AT E V E RY T H I N G

5 ways to tell if someone is a real expert (or just

really good at BS)
A professor of linguistics explains that not every ‘expert’ has the expertise and the language
to back up their argument.

[Source illustration: CSA Images/Getty Images]





We use cookies on our websites to support
technical features that enhance your user
BY T H O R A T E N B R I N K —T H E CO N V E RS AT I O N
experience and help us improve our website. By Y E S, I ACC E P T
4 MINUTE READ
continuing to use this website you accept our
Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Have you ever listened to a talk by somebody who came across as an expert, only to find that they
had no clue after all? Or perhaps you’ve been annoyed by a colleague who explains the obvious in a
https://www.fastcompany.com/90782109/5-ways-to-tell-if-someone-is-a-real-expert-or-just-really-good-at-bs?utm_source=newsletters&utm_mediu… 1/5
11/09/2022, 16:27 How to tell a real expert from a fake

condescending way. The way expertise is expressed is very similar to how confidence is expressed.
And despite the trope of mansplaining, this happens independent of gender,
F O Lalthough
LOW communicative
LO GIN 
styles do tend to differ between the genders.

When someone states their thoughts with high confidence, we assume they know what they are
talking about and we are inclined to believe them. Often enough, we are correct: there are various
indications in the way they talk that reflect their knowledge. However, it’s relatively easy to express
certainty in language without having any sort of expertise to back it up. For more than 20 years, I’ve
studied how people communicate their thoughts through language—including how they demonstrate
expertise and confidence in their discourse.

Experts may know exactly what they cannot be sure about, while nonexperts may confidently claim
pure nonsense, if they believe in it. Some may even be skilled at claiming nonsense even if they
don’t believe in it—this might help their political career or other interests that can be served by
misleading people.

Actual expertise is important in a world where misinformation spreads easily. Here are five questions
to ask yourself to determine whether the person you’re listening to is an expert, or just a confident
speaker:

1. HOW LIKELY IS IT THAT THIS PERSON IS AN EXPERT?

Consider their background, their possible motivation, their skills and goals in the present
conversation. People may have true expertise and knowledge in areas you wouldn’t expect. But
seeing no relation between what you know about this person and their proclaimed expertise is an
indication that they’re just overconfident in a topic they actually know little about.

In research, actual expertise can be identified by objective measures such as facts about a person’s
life history, or performance assessments. For instance, experts differ from novices in memory as well
as perception and categorization of complex facts. In daily life, awareness of someone’s background
can help you treat their statements with appropriate caution.

2. HOW DOES THIS PERSON COMMUNICATE IN GENERAL?

People differ in their communicative styles. Some tend to talk over others as a habit, needing to
dominate a conversation. Others listen more, offering opinions and views only when they’re well-
founded.

In a medical setting, an attentive style—one that prioritizes listening over talking—can lead to better
collaboration between physicians and nurses and improve the quality of care for the patient.

Sometimes it is wise to listen to the quieter voices: They might have more value to add than nonstop
talkers.

3. DOES THE PERSON GO INTO DEPTH?

We use
Sweeping cookies on
statements oureasy
are websites to support
to make. While experts know more details and will be ready to
technical features that enhance your user
provide them, people without true knowledge have to stay on a superficial level. They might repeat
experience
the same generaland help us over
message improve our unable
again, website.toByelaborate. This
Y E Spresents
, I A C C Eanother
PT problem: If a
continuing to use this website you accept our
message is repeated often enough, we will eventually believe it–that’s only natural. When it comes to
Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
COVID-19, research shows people believe repeated false information, especially about less known
aspects.
https://www.fastcompany.com/90782109/5-ways-to-tell-if-someone-is-a-real-expert-or-just-really-good-at-bs?utm_source=newsletters&utm_mediu… 2/5
11/09/2022, 16:27 How to tell a real expert from a fake

4. IS ANYBODY ACTUALLY CERTAIN ABOUT THE TOPIC?

F O L LOW LO G I N 
Events that we have not observed with our own eyes, that cannot be repeated in a scientific
experiment, that happened long ago in the past or in the future–all of these naturally come with a
certain amount of uncertainty. An expert will adequately acknowledge the limits to certainty. Their
statements will contain uncertainty markers (words such as “maybe” or “could”) where appropriate.

Here, a crucial difference is that between “I am uncertain” and “It is uncertain.” A nonexpert simply
doesn’t know the available facts. But an expert knows whatever can be known about the matter at
hand. In some cases, this goes as far as stating explicitly what the likelihood of a certain event is.
Climate experts, for instance, will not be able to predict extreme weather events with certainty,
beyond what immediate weather forecasts can provide. However, they can demonstrate how the
occurrence of such events has increased in the past, and based on this, they can provide the
statistical likelihood of events such as flooding for the future.

5. CAN THEY PROVIDE INFORMATION FLEXIBLY?

Consider the difference between automatic route navigation systems (such as Google Maps) and the
kind of directions you would get from a friend. The friend would be able to give you just the
information you need, providing more details at tricky decision points, but skipping over those parts of
the route that they know you’re already familiar with. Automatic systems are unable to do that.
They’re not “experts”–they’re simply pulling information from a database, without actual insight or
intelligence, using the same phrases over and over again.

True experts use concepts and terminology in their field (jargon) flexibly and with ease—and they are
typically able to adjust their communication to accommodate the specific needs of their audience.

Thora Tenbrink is a professor of Linguistics at Bangor University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the
original article.

Call for Most Innovative Companies entries! Apply now.

500+ winners will be featured on fastcompany.com. Final deadline: 9/23.

We use cookies on our websites to support

technical features that enhance your user
TECH
experience and help us improve our website. By Y E S, I ACC E P T
T EC H continuing to use this website you accept our
Web3Privacy
needsPolicy
women andto
Terms of Use.Here’s how to make it happen
survive.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90782109/5-ways-to-tell-if-someone-is-a-real-expert-or-just-really-good-at-bs?utm_source=newsletters&utm_mediu… 3/5
11/09/2022, 16:27 How to tell a real expert from a fake

T EC H
The MTA’s switch to OMNY machines is a privacy nightmare
F O L LOW LO G I N 

T EC H
Use these services to get quicker customer service calls

NEWS
NEWS
Citi’s head of racial equity talks about how the financial giant is fixing ‘credit invisibility’

NEWS
Can the British monarchy survive Queen Elizabeth’s death?

NEWS
British royals by the numbers: Queen Elizabeth leaves behind a fortune with a murky future

CO.DESIGN
CO. D E S I G N
As countries try to attract digital nomads, locals say ‘not so fast’

CO. D E S I G N
A new satellite brighter than any star could ruin the night sky

CO. D E S I G N
The Queen’s secret death alarm has been mistakenly going off for years

WORK LIFE
WO R K L I F E
How to stay focused when everything feels stressful and overwhelming

WO R K L I F E
A founder’s guide to weathering the gathering economic storm

WO R K L I F E
We
3 ways use cookies
women can on our websites
reach to support
the C-suite even though research shows the odds are against
them technical features that enhance your user
experience and help us improve our website. By Y E S, I ACC E P T
continuing to use this website you accept our
Advertise
Privacy| Policy
Privacy Policy
and Terms| of
Terms
Use. | Notice of Collection | Do Not Sell My Data | Permissions | Help
Center | About Us | Site Map | Fast Company & Inc © 2022 Mansueto Ventures, LLC

https://www.fastcompany.com/90782109/5-ways-to-tell-if-someone-is-a-real-expert-or-just-really-good-at-bs?utm_source=newsletters&utm_mediu… 4/5
11/09/2022, 16:27 How to tell a real expert from a fake

F O L LOW LO G I N 

We use cookies on our websites to support

technical features that enhance your user
experience and help us improve our website. By Y E S, I ACC E P T
continuing to use this website you accept our
Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90782109/5-ways-to-tell-if-someone-is-a-real-expert-or-just-really-good-at-bs?utm_source=newsletters&utm_mediu… 5/5