The New Generation of Brazilian Dentistry: The Dunning-Kruger Effect and the Socratic Wisdom

Abstract

Brazilian Dentistry is experiencing a paradox: never before has there been so much technology available, and at the same time, so much concern about the clinical maturity of recent graduates. This editorial explores the intersection between the Dunning-Kruger effect - a cognitive bias where incompetence breeds overconfidence - and the Socratic maxim “I know that I know nothing”, applying them to the profile of the newly graduated dental surgeon. There is a phenomenon of “great boldness and little experience”, exacerbated by the concept of the “Liquid Dentist”. Through an analysis of recent literature, the risks of this miscalibrated self-confidence and the urgent need to restore intellectual humility and solid basic knowledge as tools for clinical and ethical safety wre discussed.