We need to talk about pseudo-intellectuals

00:24:07
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odPnVhT_YAc

Ringkasan

TLDRDr. Anna Udin discusses the rising issue of pseudo intellectualism, particularly among self-proclaimed experts in psychology and self-help. She encourages viewers to discern between genuine intellectual qualifications and misleading claims. The video outlines characteristics of pseudo intellectuals, such as vague qualifications, a tendency to misrepresent expertise, and an over-reliance on the appeal to authority. Udin emphasizes that authority does not equate to correctness and warns against generalizing all intellectuals as untrustworthy due to a few bad examples. She advocates for critical thinking and careful evaluation of both content and qualifications when assessing information from any source.

Takeaways

  • 📚 Understand pseudo intellectualism to navigate information accurately.
  • 🤔 Discern genuine expertise from misleading claims.
  • 🚫 Be wary of the appeal to authority fallacy.
  • 🧐 Analyze content's quality, not just credentials.
  • 💼 Recognize that qualifications do not guarantee correctness.
  • 🔍 Identify characteristics of pseudo intellectuals for better evaluation.
  • ⚖️ Maintain a critical perspective towards all intellectual claims.
  • 👥 Avoid generalizing all intellectuals based on a few shady examples.
  • 📣 Consider the role of discernment in today's information landscape.
  • 💡 Strive for constructive dialogue when addressing misinformation.

Garis waktu

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The speaker expresses concerns about a TikTok personality who misrepresents qualifications in psychology, raising awareness about the rise of pseudo-intellectualism. They emphasize the importance of discernment to differentiate between qualified intellectuals and those who merely appear knowledgeable without the relevant expertise.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    The speaker discusses the appeal to authority fallacy, illustrating how individuals can misuse their credentials to make claims that may not be scientifically sound. They stress that expertise does not guarantee accuracy and that even laypeople can offer valuable insights.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    The distinction between pseudo-intellectuals and shady intellectuals is made, where pseudo-intellectuals feign authority without relevant qualifications and may manipulate information to gain perceived credibility. In contrast, shady intellectuals have the credentials but may exploit their authority unethically.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:24:07

    The speaker outlines characteristics of pseudo-intellectuals, such as being vague about their qualifications, cosplaying intellectualism through staged interactions, and lacking professionalism. They also touch on the dangers of misrepresenting expertise and the societal implications of trusting authority without scrutiny.

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Peta Pikiran

Video Tanya Jawab

  • What is pseudo intellectualism?

    Pseudo intellectualism refers to individuals who present themselves as experts in a field without having the necessary backgrounds or qualifications.

  • How can I spot a pseudo intellectual?

    Look for vague qualifications, unoriginal ideas without citations, and a focus on appearance rather than content.

  • What distinguishes a shady intellectual from a pseudo intellectual?

    Shady intellectuals have real qualifications but misuse them, while pseudo intellectuals lack genuine expertise.

  • What is the appeal to authority fallacy?

    This fallacy occurs when someone relies on their status or qualifications to validate their argument instead of providing actual evidence.

  • Do qualifications guarantee credibility?

    No, having qualifications does not automatically mean someone is correct or trustworthy; the content of their argument is what matters.

  • What is the danger of assuming all intellectuals are shady?

    It can lead to mistrust in qualified professionals, which hinders understanding and acceptance of genuine expertise.

  • How should I evaluate information from intellectuals?

    Focus on the quality and substance of their arguments rather than their credentials alone.

  • What should I be cautious of in self-help coaching?

    Be wary of unregulated coaching and those who imply expertise without proper qualifications.

  • Why is discernment important?

    Discernment helps individuals identify genuine knowledge from misinformation, particularly in today's information-heavy environment.

  • Should I call out specific individuals for misinformation or keep it general?

    It's a personal decision; some prefer addressing broader issues without targeting individuals directly.

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Gulir Otomatis:
  • 00:00:00
    recently I kept seeing this person on my
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    feed on Tik Tok who gave me serious
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    doubts as to this person's credibility
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    this person was positioning herself as
  • 00:00:07
    an authority on psychology and there
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    were a number of red flags that I got I
  • 00:00:11
    took a little bit of a deeper look and
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    it turns out this person has been
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    accused of misrepresenting her
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    qualifications to seem like more of an
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    authority on psychology but rather than
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    making a video tearing down a person I
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    figured I would try to make this more
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    constructive by talking about how we can
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    more broadly recognize the signs of a
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    pseudo intellectual ual or a shady
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    intellectual Cudo intellectualism is
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    definitely on the rise we're just seeing
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    the beginning of it especially with the
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    rise of podcasts that heavily feature
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    certain types of intellectuals if viers
  • 00:00:40
    start to realize that a lot of these
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    intellectuals are shady my concern is
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    that they're going to assume this
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    selection bias means all intellectuals
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    are bad so I think it's really important
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    for us to be able to practice
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    discernment to identify between someone
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    truly having intellectual qualifications
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    on something and someone kind of
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    cosplaying the aesthetic of it if you
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    don't know me I'm Dr Anna Udin I'm a
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    doctor of Clinical Psychology and also a
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    fiction author and let's get started we
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    need to talk about pseudo
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    [Music]
  • 00:01:23
    intellectuals I feel like the Crux of
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    this issue is really just the appeal to
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    Authority fallacy which is one of person
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    relies on some source of authority like
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    a degree a qualification and so forth as
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    their argument instead of actually
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    making an argument for example let's say
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    that johon goes to the doctor and John's
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    doctor tells him not to eat apples cuz
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    they're dangerous and when John dares to
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    question the statement or asks what is
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    the evidence for this John's doctor says
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    Are you seriously questioning a doctor
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    right now that would be an example of an
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    appeal to Authority or when a person
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    with a doctorate and say counselor
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    supervision and education uses that
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    doctr to mislead people into thinking
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    he's some sort of authority on say True
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    Crime we live in a culture where certain
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    types of authority are so valued to the
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    point where they're considered a logical
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    argument and we put more stock in the
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    opinions of people who are authorities
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    on matters rather than people who don't
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    have authority on it and look the truth
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    is there's a reason for that when
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    somebody has gone to school for 5 6 7 8
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    9 10 years for something there's a good
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    chance that they probably learn certain
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    information and skills that the average
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    lay person might not have access to in a
  • 00:02:32
    specific field however just because
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    somebody is likely to have more
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    information than the average lay person
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    doesn't mean they necessarily are going
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    to have a good take people in positions
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    of Authority or people with specialized
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    qualifications can sometimes make
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    mistakes have bad takes even make
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    unscientific claims on the other hand
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    someone with very little qualifications
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    in a specific field can raise good
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    points independently learn about the
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    field or even just have a fresh
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    perspective by nature of not being in
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    the field fi I think sometimes when
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    you're in a field really deep you can
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    kind of lose the forest for the trees
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    for example I remember years ago at a
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    former workplace there was a new
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    employee and this employee was telling
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    me that he wanted to shake things up at
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    the workplace he was suggesting how
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    people do things a little bit more
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    efficiently the workplace was very
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    resistant to that and kind of had this
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    attitude of like no this is how we've
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    always done things so this is how we're
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    going to continue to do things I think
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    sometimes when you have an outsider or
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    someone with less experience coming in
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    looking at things with a fresh
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    perspective that can have a lot of value
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    so a person having Authority is not a
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    logical argument as to why they're
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    automatically right about something just
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    as a person not having Authority on
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    something doesn't automatically mean
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    they don't have a right to speak up we
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    need to judge whether people are right
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    and wrong based on the content of what
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    they're saying not based on their
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    background or the amount of letters
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    behind their name and because we've so
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    idealized Authority as a society we also
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    sometimes see the shadow of this effect
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    how sometimes people devalue Authority
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    some people literally think that all
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    doctors all therapists and so forth are
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    Crooks they have almost like a kind of
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    paranoia towards people in positions of
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    authority that if you really look at it
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    deep down is born of insecurity let me
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    explain we live in a society where
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    Authority is idealized like I was saying
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    so when somebody insecure brushes up
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    against someone in one of those
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    positions they're automatically going to
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    feel inferior they're automatically
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    going to feel bad about themselves and
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    in order to compensate for that and to
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    make themselves feel better
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    psychologically they go ahead and just
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    devalue all authority and employ kind of
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    this black and white attitude of
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    everybody in this group is is bad
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    everybody in this group of crooks and
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    you know I worry that the more of these
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    pseudo intellectuals that we see the
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    more people are going to shift into that
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    kind of splitting where they think that
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    all doctors are bad or all intellectuals
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    are bad or all therapists or
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    psychiatrists whatever everybody in this
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    group is bad and mistrusting entire
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    Fields because of it they're going to
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    assume that a few bad apples a few
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    people masquerading as intellectuals are
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    representative of the entire field now
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    before I go into the characteristics of
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    a pseudo intellectual we have to
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    differentiate between pseudo
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    intellectuals and just plain old Shady
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    intellectuals pseudo intellectuals are
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    people who cosplay almost like the
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    athetic of an intellectual in order to
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    utilize the appeal to Authority fallacy
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    they have little training or background
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    or qualifications in the field in which
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    they're trying to portray themselves as
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    an expert or maybe they do have some
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    qualifications but not in the fields
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    that they want you to think they do and
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    look some of them do have insightful
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    things to say but the fact that they
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    feel the need to misrepresent their
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    qualifications signals to me that
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    they're lying they're willing to lie
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    about this they're probably willing to
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    lie about other things too they want to
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    write off the cails of an appeal to
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    Authority fallacy probably because they
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    want to manipulate what qualification
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    somebody has is just a fact it's just
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    information it's just a way for you to
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    know where that person is likely getting
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    their information true intellectuals
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    when they State their qualifications
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    it's just matter of fact it's not used
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    as an argument these kinds of pseudo
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    intellectuals are what we get when we
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    value the appear appearance of
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    intellectualism over actual intellectual
  • 00:06:02
    values for example I get a ton of
  • 00:06:04
    comments still to this day even though
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    I've shown my diploma even though I've
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    made a video about this of people who
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    just straight up don't believe I have a
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    doctorate straight up think I'm lying
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    not because of anything I've said but
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    just because I don't look like how they
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    imagine a doctor of psychology to look
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    there is that better do I look like more
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    of a doctor now and you know like I
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    don't expect any special treatment for
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    being a doctor you know when I interact
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    with people I ask them to please call me
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    Anna rather than Dr Anna in my personal
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    life I never bring up the fact that I'm
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    a doctor frankly I sometimes forget that
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    I have a doctorate but it sucks
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    to know that when I move through the
  • 00:06:39
    world people not only automatically
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    assume that I'm not a doctor but
  • 00:06:43
    genuinely disbelieve it when they learn
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    that information simply because of the
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    way I look contrast the way people
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    disbelieve my qualifications with the
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    way for instance they talk about Robert
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    Green now look I don't have any problem
  • 00:06:54
    with Robert Green I don't think that he
  • 00:06:56
    pretends to be an intellectual and I
  • 00:06:58
    actually find his book to be quite
  • 00:07:00
    insightful but simply because he has
  • 00:07:01
    more of the appearance of an
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    intellectual people tend to assume that
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    he has a lot more qualifications than he
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    does the other day I heard somebody
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    describing him as a psychologist and an
  • 00:07:12
    expert researcher in his
  • 00:07:14
    field this is someone with a bachelor's
  • 00:07:16
    in the classics by the way that's his
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    background but all because he speaks
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    about psychology with confidence people
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    tend to assume that he's like a leading
  • 00:07:24
    expert in Psychology Robert Green is a
  • 00:07:26
    leading researcher of psychology the
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    same way that my three like a cat is an
  • 00:07:30
    expert in cat surgery he might have some
  • 00:07:32
    valuable insights to say on the matter
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    but I wouldn't necessarily trust him
  • 00:07:36
    anywhere near a scalpel so those are
  • 00:07:37
    pseudo intellectuals people who kind of
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    masquerade as being intellectuals but
  • 00:07:42
    they're also Shady intellectuals that
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    kind of factor similarly into this
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    discussion these are people who do have
  • 00:07:47
    actual training or authority in the
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    field but chronically abuse it whether
  • 00:07:51
    it be to make unscientific claims or to
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    get very wealthy or to pretend to be
  • 00:07:55
    authorities in fields other than what
  • 00:07:57
    they're actually an authority in but at
  • 00:07:59
    what point does somebody Veer into the
  • 00:08:00
    territory of shady intellectual because
  • 00:08:03
    I think it's important for us to
  • 00:08:04
    remember that intellectuals are not
  • 00:08:06
    infallible like I said intellectuals are
  • 00:08:09
    human beings who sometimes make mistakes
  • 00:08:11
    so just because an intellectual has a
  • 00:08:13
    bad take that doesn't mean that they're
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    not an intellectual if we act like it
  • 00:08:16
    does then we're again idealizing
  • 00:08:18
    intellectualism I don't really know the
  • 00:08:20
    answer to this so I'd love to hear your
  • 00:08:21
    input down below at what point do you
  • 00:08:23
    think somebody veers into chronically
  • 00:08:25
    making so many scientific or
  • 00:08:28
    intellectual mistakes or shortcuts that
  • 00:08:30
    they're really not an intellectual
  • 00:08:32
    anymore that they're actually kind of a
  • 00:08:33
    shady person but let's talk about the
  • 00:08:36
    characteristics of pseudo intellectuals
  • 00:08:38
    and then we'll talk about the
  • 00:08:39
    characteristics of shady intellectuals
  • 00:08:41
    how to identify a pseudo intellectual
  • 00:08:43
    one way is that they're very secretive
  • 00:08:45
    about their qualifications you have to
  • 00:08:47
    go digging as to what their background
  • 00:08:49
    is and even then it kind of seems like
  • 00:08:52
    they're trying to evade the matter for
  • 00:08:53
    example when I first read a Joe dispenza
  • 00:08:55
    book I was very interested in how
  • 00:08:58
    somebody is writing a book that contains
  • 00:09:00
    Neuroscience quantum mechanics biology
  • 00:09:03
    medicine allinone I wanted to know hold
  • 00:09:05
    up what is this person's background
  • 00:09:07
    because it kind of seems like he's
  • 00:09:08
    trying to portray himself as an expert
  • 00:09:10
    in everything and if that's the case I'm
  • 00:09:12
    not sure this is somebody I really trust
  • 00:09:14
    so I looked at the back cover Dr Joe
  • 00:09:16
    despenza is an international lecturer
  • 00:09:18
    researcher corporate consultant author
  • 00:09:20
    and educator who has been invited to
  • 00:09:22
    speak in more than 33 countries on five
  • 00:09:25
    continents okay still doesn't tell me
  • 00:09:28
    what his doctorate is in still doesn't
  • 00:09:31
    tell me what his background is at that
  • 00:09:33
    point I started to get a little
  • 00:09:34
    suspicious so I Googled him I looked him
  • 00:09:36
    up on Wikipedia and you know what at the
  • 00:09:39
    time when I did there was interestingly
  • 00:09:41
    again no information about his
  • 00:09:44
    qualifications side note I actually went
  • 00:09:46
    to go look at his Wikipedia page again
  • 00:09:48
    and I couldn't find one I don't know if
  • 00:09:50
    I'm misremembering whether I was looking
  • 00:09:52
    at Wikipedia maybe I was looking at his
  • 00:09:54
    website instead either yes I was just
  • 00:09:57
    looking at his website or somebody took
  • 00:09:59
    down his Wikipedia page and then I got a
  • 00:10:01
    little bit more suspicious and I said it
  • 00:10:03
    certainly seems like somebody may have
  • 00:10:06
    scrubbed the internet of what this
  • 00:10:08
    person's qualifications actually are
  • 00:10:11
    allegedly that's what it seems like to
  • 00:10:12
    me there was only one article that I
  • 00:10:14
    managed to find that told me that Dr Joe
  • 00:10:17
    dispenza is a
  • 00:10:18
    chiropractor and he got his chiropractor
  • 00:10:21
    degree from a school that had its
  • 00:10:22
    accreditation revoked 3 years after he
  • 00:10:24
    graduated not a neuroscientist not an
  • 00:10:27
    epigeneticist not a doctor of medic
  • 00:10:29
    medicine not a biologist not a physicist
  • 00:10:32
    that is a really simple way of figuring
  • 00:10:34
    out if somebody is not actually an
  • 00:10:36
    intellectual if they are intentionally
  • 00:10:38
    being vague about what their
  • 00:10:40
    qualifications are because the more
  • 00:10:42
    vague a person is about their
  • 00:10:44
    qualifications the more they're trying
  • 00:10:46
    to mislead you about how far their
  • 00:10:48
    qualifications go typically when
  • 00:10:50
    somebody has a certain degree or a
  • 00:10:52
    certain lure they make it very clear you
  • 00:10:54
    do not have to go very hard trying to
  • 00:10:56
    find it within one to two clicks you can
  • 00:10:58
    usually figure out exactly what their
  • 00:11:00
    background is another way that you can
  • 00:11:02
    spot a pseudo intellectual is these tiny
  • 00:11:04
    little subtle ways of cosplaying the
  • 00:11:06
    appearance of an intellectual for
  • 00:11:08
    example a huge one is you'll notice
  • 00:11:10
    there are certain accounts of people who
  • 00:11:13
    have Tik toks for instance of them
  • 00:11:15
    talking to what seems to be a podcast or
  • 00:11:18
    talking to someone who seems to be
  • 00:11:19
    asking them questions as if they're on
  • 00:11:21
    Authority in the field but when you
  • 00:11:23
    really take a closer look you realize
  • 00:11:25
    this was never a real podcast this
  • 00:11:27
    person is just hiring somebody to ask
  • 00:11:29
    ask them questions for the camera so
  • 00:11:31
    that they can then seem like more of an
  • 00:11:33
    authority when they actually upload that
  • 00:11:35
    video another pet peeve of mine is when
  • 00:11:37
    people call something a master class but
  • 00:11:39
    they are not an established master in
  • 00:11:40
    that field why do you think I named it
  • 00:11:42
    the connection course and not master
  • 00:11:44
    class and connection because I'm just a
  • 00:11:46
    doctor of psychology I'm not a renowned
  • 00:11:49
    expert in the field I was having this
  • 00:11:50
    conversation with my husband he was
  • 00:11:52
    saying like yeah I feel like in order to
  • 00:11:53
    call something a master class somebody
  • 00:11:55
    else needs to come to you and say hey I
  • 00:11:57
    perceive you as a master like like how
  • 00:11:59
    EST Perell had a master class with
  • 00:12:01
    actual Master Class you don't get to be
  • 00:12:03
    the one to decide I'm a master in this
  • 00:12:05
    and there are way too many people out
  • 00:12:07
    there who perceive themselves to be
  • 00:12:09
    Masters in a field where nobody knows
  • 00:12:11
    about them another one that really
  • 00:12:12
    annoys me is you'll see these Tik toks
  • 00:12:14
    often of usually real doctors again
  • 00:12:17
    they'll have somebody with a camera
  • 00:12:18
    coming up to them and asking them hey
  • 00:12:20
    Doc what do you think about XYZ or what
  • 00:12:21
    do you recommend for ABC and it's like
  • 00:12:24
    bro like we know that you just hired
  • 00:12:27
    like your husband or your wife or
  • 00:12:28
    whoever to come up to you and ask this
  • 00:12:30
    question you're trying to portray
  • 00:12:32
    yourself as like being accosted by
  • 00:12:34
    Paparazzi so that you can give this
  • 00:12:37
    insightful seeming answer hey Dr Arna
  • 00:12:39
    I'm so glad I found you what fiction
  • 00:12:41
    books do you recommend for this fall oh
  • 00:12:43
    man that's a hard one I'd have to say I
  • 00:12:46
    recommend the curse in their veins by Dr
  • 00:12:48
    Anna Udin this is a really wonderful
  • 00:12:50
    book for exploring intergenerational
  • 00:12:52
    trauma witchcraft female empowerment
  • 00:12:55
    yeah check it out link below thank you
  • 00:12:56
    thank
  • 00:12:57
    you it's so manipulative another
  • 00:13:00
    variation of this is when people start a
  • 00:13:01
    video by saying today's question asks me
  • 00:13:04
    to analyze XYZ that nobody asked them to
  • 00:13:07
    analyze that the news broke half an hour
  • 00:13:09
    ago how did you even make this video so
  • 00:13:10
    quickly did you just look on Wikipedia
  • 00:13:12
    also pseudo intellectuals take part in
  • 00:13:15
    Behavior that's at odds with what
  • 00:13:16
    intellectuals are taught to do whether
  • 00:13:18
    it be being unprofessional being
  • 00:13:20
    unethical being unscientific all of
  • 00:13:23
    these are things that you're kind of
  • 00:13:24
    taught when you do higher education or
  • 00:13:26
    when you do grad school or get extended
  • 00:13:28
    deg degrees that you're not supposed to
  • 00:13:30
    do because they're not good ways of
  • 00:13:32
    preserving the Integrity of Truth for
  • 00:13:35
    example calling somebody a who
  • 00:13:37
    can't afford your coaching Services
  • 00:13:39
    would be unprofessional behavior and I
  • 00:13:41
    seriously doubt that person would ever
  • 00:13:43
    last in a grad school program a person
  • 00:13:45
    with proper qualifications would know
  • 00:13:47
    not to do something like that also
  • 00:13:49
    pseudo intellectuals tend to copy the
  • 00:13:51
    work of others without giving credit
  • 00:13:53
    intellectuals typically site their
  • 00:13:55
    sources because it's drilled into us and
  • 00:13:57
    also because we love to Hype up our role
  • 00:13:59
    models it's not about grandiosity for us
  • 00:14:01
    well some of us now of course when we're
  • 00:14:03
    talking about general information like
  • 00:14:05
    something that somebody has learned over
  • 00:14:06
    the course of say seven years in grad
  • 00:14:08
    school I think that's different I think
  • 00:14:10
    you can sometimes speak from your
  • 00:14:12
    experience as somebody who's trained in
  • 00:14:14
    that field without citing every single
  • 00:14:15
    Source what I'm talking about here is
  • 00:14:17
    people who basically plagiarize who take
  • 00:14:19
    other people's ideas as their own for
  • 00:14:20
    example a few months ago I made a video
  • 00:14:23
    about a technique that I learned about
  • 00:14:25
    from Martin seligman's book flourish
  • 00:14:27
    later that day that same day Tik tocker
  • 00:14:29
    posted a video discussing that technique
  • 00:14:31
    with no reference to Martin Seligman or
  • 00:14:34
    my video that he apparently learned this
  • 00:14:36
    from because yes he did admit to
  • 00:14:37
    learning about this technique that day
  • 00:14:39
    from my video but pseudo intellectuals
  • 00:14:41
    don't want you to know where they're
  • 00:14:42
    getting their information because if you
  • 00:14:44
    did you would realize that the source of
  • 00:14:45
    their knowledge is one YouTube video but
  • 00:14:48
    occasionally pseudo intellectuals slip
  • 00:14:50
    up and they reveal how little they know
  • 00:14:51
    about the topic at hand if you can pay
  • 00:14:53
    attention to those moments it's very
  • 00:14:55
    important this is hard because you do
  • 00:14:56
    have to be somewhat of an expert in that
  • 00:14:59
    fields to know when a confident person's
  • 00:15:00
    just talking out of their ass but
  • 00:15:02
    sometimes you might catch a whiff that
  • 00:15:04
    somebody's just not quite as much of an
  • 00:15:06
    expert in something as they think they
  • 00:15:08
    are for example people who talk about
  • 00:15:10
    Quantum
  • 00:15:11
    leaping I don't think you have to be a
  • 00:15:13
    Quantum physicist to know that the way a
  • 00:15:16
    lot of people talk about Quantum leaping
  • 00:15:19
    is completely unscientific and complete
  • 00:15:21
    bogus I'm sure actual quantum mechanics
  • 00:15:24
    would like to Quantum Leap out of the
  • 00:15:26
    dimension in which people make
  • 00:15:27
    statements like this or just the other
  • 00:15:29
    day somebody was talking about how they
  • 00:15:31
    studied psychology in school they were
  • 00:15:33
    referring to a bachelor's and this was
  • 00:15:34
    not even their major they were talking
  • 00:15:36
    about how they studied psychology in
  • 00:15:37
    school to show that like there's some
  • 00:15:39
    sort of authority on the field and this
  • 00:15:40
    person wasn't even sure what pavlovian
  • 00:15:43
    classical conditioning was
  • 00:15:45
    called something that you literally
  • 00:15:47
    learn within like the first 5 minutes of
  • 00:15:49
    Psych 101 pseudo intellectuals also
  • 00:15:51
    speak in absolutes rather than Nuance I
  • 00:15:54
    love the Albert Einstein quote the more
  • 00:15:56
    I learn the more I realize how much I
  • 00:15:58
    don't know I think it's true I think
  • 00:16:00
    that the more a person learns about a
  • 00:16:02
    field or just the world in general the
  • 00:16:05
    more they realize that it's important to
  • 00:16:06
    be humble even when I first started this
  • 00:16:08
    channel when I was still in grad school
  • 00:16:10
    I spoke in a lot more absolutes and
  • 00:16:12
    extreme language than I do now and
  • 00:16:15
    that's because over the course of
  • 00:16:16
    experience and gaining wisdom you
  • 00:16:18
    realize things are not that black and
  • 00:16:19
    white so when someone has a very extreme
  • 00:16:21
    take that's usually a pretty good sign
  • 00:16:24
    that they're not very well vered in what
  • 00:16:25
    they're talking about now a lot of
  • 00:16:27
    pseudo intellectuals in this day and age
  • 00:16:29
    also offer unregulated coaching now look
  • 00:16:32
    there are actual coaching certifications
  • 00:16:34
    you can get and there are some
  • 00:16:35
    situations where maybe it doesn't make
  • 00:16:36
    sense to get certified for coaching like
  • 00:16:39
    if you're an experienced author coaching
  • 00:16:41
    a younger author you know you don't need
  • 00:16:43
    a certification for that but if somebody
  • 00:16:45
    made absolutely no attempt to get
  • 00:16:47
    certified in this field and or the area
  • 00:16:50
    in which they're trying to seem like an
  • 00:16:52
    authority to coach people on is actually
  • 00:16:54
    a regulated field that they're not
  • 00:16:55
    participating in they're probably a
  • 00:16:57
    scammer you know like why would somebody
  • 00:16:59
    take a two-e nutrition course instead of
  • 00:17:02
    becoming a registered dietitian why
  • 00:17:05
    would somebody become a marriage coach
  • 00:17:07
    instead of going to school to be an mft
  • 00:17:09
    you have to ask yourself why this person
  • 00:17:11
    cut Corners most times it comes down to
  • 00:17:14
    money it comes down to the fact that
  • 00:17:15
    they don't actually care about this
  • 00:17:16
    field they're not trying to invest in it
  • 00:17:19
    they're not actually trying to learn
  • 00:17:20
    about it they just want a quick book and
  • 00:17:22
    look actual therapists sometimes do also
  • 00:17:24
    provide coaching because of jurisdiction
  • 00:17:26
    regulations basically therapists can't
  • 00:17:28
    practice
  • 00:17:29
    outside of their state or their country
  • 00:17:31
    so sometimes it's easier for them to say
  • 00:17:33
    well I provide therapy in this place and
  • 00:17:34
    I also provide coaching worldwide you
  • 00:17:36
    know I don't judge them as harshly for
  • 00:17:38
    that because I understand that
  • 00:17:40
    jurisdiction regulations can be very
  • 00:17:42
    limiting and and you know they actually
  • 00:17:44
    did get the degree they do have the
  • 00:17:45
    qualifications to do what they're doing
  • 00:17:47
    but like let's be for real a lot of
  • 00:17:49
    people that do this are doing it for a
  • 00:17:51
    quick Buck because they want to expand
  • 00:17:52
    their practice to offer services
  • 00:17:54
    worldwide regardless of jurisdiction I'm
  • 00:17:57
    just saying let's be for real what about
  • 00:17:58
    about the characteristics of shady
  • 00:18:00
    intellectuals Shady intellectuals also
  • 00:18:03
    mislead people into thinking their
  • 00:18:04
    qualifications are more General than
  • 00:18:06
    they are typically they don't lie about
  • 00:18:08
    their qualifications like they'll make
  • 00:18:10
    it upfront what their degree is but they
  • 00:18:12
    just kind of push the boundaries of what
  • 00:18:14
    they want people to see them as an
  • 00:18:15
    authority on for example let's say a
  • 00:18:17
    clinical psychologist wants you to think
  • 00:18:19
    that he's an expert on climate change
  • 00:18:22
    just saying Shady intellectuals also
  • 00:18:24
    will often try to sell you a
  • 00:18:26
    groundbreaking cure that somehow the
  • 00:18:28
    rest of the field has no idea about they
  • 00:18:32
    spent their entire career researching
  • 00:18:34
    something that later turns out to be a
  • 00:18:35
    conflict of interest something that they
  • 00:18:37
    make a lot of money from if a person's
  • 00:18:39
    research is funding support for their
  • 00:18:42
    own product that should raise some red
  • 00:18:44
    flags for example a few months ago when
  • 00:18:46
    I had a chat with munat on my channel I
  • 00:18:48
    referenced something vaguely I didn't
  • 00:18:50
    mention who it was about I had just read
  • 00:18:52
    the book lifespan by David Sinclair and
  • 00:18:54
    I had some unanswered questions about
  • 00:18:56
    his research some of the statements he
  • 00:18:59
    made about longevity seemed a little bit
  • 00:19:01
    out of place to me compared to what
  • 00:19:03
    others in his field say and after
  • 00:19:05
    looking into it a little more closely I
  • 00:19:07
    realized that he had some conflict of
  • 00:19:09
    interest based on his research which was
  • 00:19:10
    not able to be replicated just today I
  • 00:19:13
    was looking him up to check up on what
  • 00:19:15
    happened and I discovered that right
  • 00:19:16
    around that time Harvard Professor David
  • 00:19:19
    Sinclair was forced to resign the
  • 00:19:20
    presidency of the Academy of health and
  • 00:19:22
    lifespan research after accusations of
  • 00:19:24
    scientific dishonesty and conflict of
  • 00:19:26
    interests but where do we draw the line
  • 00:19:28
    cuz like like look for example John
  • 00:19:30
    godman monetizes his resources at The
  • 00:19:32
    godman Institute he has courses books
  • 00:19:34
    content creation and he has researched
  • 00:19:36
    relationships his whole life I don't
  • 00:19:38
    think that makes mached intellectual in
  • 00:19:40
    my opinion it becomes a red flag when
  • 00:19:42
    somebody is cutting Corners in their
  • 00:19:44
    research and we know this because their
  • 00:19:46
    research is not able to be replicated or
  • 00:19:48
    their claims are inconsistent with what
  • 00:19:51
    the broader field considers to be true
  • 00:19:53
    at that point in time like say a doctor
  • 00:19:55
    who claims that there are no adverse
  • 00:19:57
    effects of UV exposure that would be
  • 00:20:00
    something that's like whoo you know the
  • 00:20:02
    entire field of medicine disagrees with
  • 00:20:04
    you on this so you're going to need to
  • 00:20:05
    explain what you mean by that or this
  • 00:20:07
    magical cure that they're trying to sell
  • 00:20:09
    you is completely inaccessible to the
  • 00:20:11
    people who need it most you know they're
  • 00:20:13
    charging people thousands of dollars for
  • 00:20:15
    a magical cure pretty clear they're just
  • 00:20:17
    trying to line their own pocket right
  • 00:20:18
    and also I find that shady intellectuals
  • 00:20:20
    often try to Pander to specific audience
  • 00:20:23
    or ideology they've realized what their
  • 00:20:25
    specific audience likes to hear and they
  • 00:20:27
    distort their research into supporting a
  • 00:20:29
    conclusion that Their audience will like
  • 00:20:31
    shady intellectuals also love to hide
  • 00:20:33
    behind the mask of neutrality or
  • 00:20:36
    objectivity while espousing opinions
  • 00:20:38
    that consistently reveal their ideology
  • 00:20:40
    look I'm not saying that you have to be
  • 00:20:43
    a moderate in order to be an
  • 00:20:44
    intellectual not at all but please don't
  • 00:20:46
    try to frame yourself as some Beacon of
  • 00:20:48
    objectivity and neutrality when you
  • 00:20:51
    experience the same exact biases and
  • 00:20:53
    prejudices is everyone like I'm sorry
  • 00:20:55
    but you're not actually moderate when a
  • 00:20:57
    majority of your viewpoints allow line
  • 00:20:58
    with one side of the political spectrum
  • 00:21:00
    and your criticism of ideologues only
  • 00:21:02
    extends to the ideologues who disagree
  • 00:21:04
    with you when someone is doing that when
  • 00:21:06
    an intellectual tries to frame
  • 00:21:08
    themselves as neutral but really they're
  • 00:21:10
    pandering to a specific audience that's
  • 00:21:12
    shady to me I'm sure I'm missing
  • 00:21:14
    something some sort of characteristic of
  • 00:21:16
    pseudo intellectuals or Shady
  • 00:21:18
    intellectuals if you think I did miss
  • 00:21:19
    any pop them down below the point I
  • 00:21:21
    really want to drive home is this
  • 00:21:23
    someone being an authority in a specific
  • 00:21:25
    field does not automatically make them
  • 00:21:27
    right listen to the content of what
  • 00:21:29
    people are saying pay attention to the
  • 00:21:30
    signs that somebody is trying to portray
  • 00:21:32
    themselves as bigger Authority than they
  • 00:21:34
    really are in order to manipulate or
  • 00:21:36
    deceive don't believe somebody just
  • 00:21:38
    because they act like they're an
  • 00:21:40
    authority in a specific field and truly
  • 00:21:42
    just try to pay attention to the quality
  • 00:21:44
    of the arguments that they're making
  • 00:21:45
    like I said you guys I have a feeling
  • 00:21:46
    about this pseudo intellectuals are only
  • 00:21:49
    going to get bigger and bigger and
  • 00:21:50
    bigger CU we've seen a huge boom in the
  • 00:21:52
    past few years of these very like
  • 00:21:54
    intellectual podcasts where a lot of
  • 00:21:56
    intellectuals get invited over to
  • 00:21:58
    present a certain worldview and in some
  • 00:22:00
    cases that's great you know some of them
  • 00:22:02
    are lovely and they Feature A lot of
  • 00:22:04
    people that have valuable insights the
  • 00:22:06
    problem is the ones that feature a lot
  • 00:22:08
    of people who are shady who are
  • 00:22:11
    pretending to be intellectuals because
  • 00:22:13
    what I fear that's going to do is it's
  • 00:22:15
    going to give late people the impression
  • 00:22:17
    that all intellectuals are like this all
  • 00:22:19
    intellectuals are shady and then people
  • 00:22:21
    are going to start mistrusting
  • 00:22:23
    authorities in the field they're going
  • 00:22:25
    to devalue anyone that has higher
  • 00:22:27
    education in a specific field and then
  • 00:22:29
    the very people who are the most trained
  • 00:22:31
    to discuss these issues are going to be
  • 00:22:33
    considered untrustworthy and what do you
  • 00:22:35
    think that's going to do to
  • 00:22:37
    misinformation and to the ability to get
  • 00:22:39
    at the bottom of what the truth is hope
  • 00:22:40
    that this video was helpful I really
  • 00:22:42
    want to hear your thoughts down below
  • 00:22:44
    and there's actually one more thing that
  • 00:22:45
    I'd love your opinion on thank you if
  • 00:22:47
    you've watched this far something that
  • 00:22:49
    I've been really ambivalent about is
  • 00:22:51
    whether or not to call out individuals
  • 00:22:54
    behavior in my videos because gossip
  • 00:22:57
    channels te channels you know these
  • 00:23:00
    people that encourage everyone to like
  • 00:23:01
    be better do better tear people down
  • 00:23:05
    they really get on my nerves they really
  • 00:23:07
    really do they're like dripping with
  • 00:23:09
    condescension and moral
  • 00:23:11
    self-righteousness so the last thing I
  • 00:23:12
    want to do is to become like what I hate
  • 00:23:15
    and at the same time I sometimes feel
  • 00:23:18
    it's important to call out specific
  • 00:23:20
    individuals Behavior as misinformation
  • 00:23:22
    or as harmful or whatever so I'm just
  • 00:23:25
    kind of at an impass here I'm just not
  • 00:23:28
    sure whether I want to name people or
  • 00:23:30
    talk about the broader issue and I would
  • 00:23:33
    love to hear your opinions in the
  • 00:23:34
    comments because I I know that you guys
  • 00:23:37
    often have insightful things to say in
  • 00:23:39
    response to my videos so please make
  • 00:23:41
    your arguments in the comments do you
  • 00:23:43
    think that I should talk about specific
  • 00:23:45
    individuals behaviors or do you think
  • 00:23:47
    that I should keep it vague and just
  • 00:23:49
    stick to the topic thank you so much
  • 00:23:51
    take care
  • 00:23:52
    [Music]
Tags
  • pseudo intellectualism
  • discernment
  • psychology
  • self-help
  • authority fallacy
  • intellectual qualifications
  • critical thinking
  • misinformation
  • shady intellectuals
  • evaluating credibility