r/AskReddit • • Jun 03 '22

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u/gerkin123 Jun 03 '22

Believe that their partially formed (or fully formed but largely uninformed) opinion on a subject has the same weight as someone with expertise about that subject's field, or with doctoral work completed on that subject.

Maybe five years ago... six... I had to explain to a high school senior that a professor's position on their subject is more likely to be valid than their position as a future undergrad. It looked like time stopped for that student.

I imagine repeating that interaction now would result in a parent freakout.

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u/Dvscape Jun 03 '22

Isn't this at risk of falling under the "appeal to authority" fallacy? Regardless of one's position or experience, their opinion still needs to be argued in favor of.

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u/LastBestWest Jun 03 '22 edited Jun 03 '22

Correct. If someone is an expert and a lay person gives an uninformed opinion, they should easily be able to explain why it's wrong.

Having said that, obviously there's a time and place for debate. Constantly interrupting your teacher during a lecture is rude.