Four stages of competence.html



In psychology, the four stages of competence relate to the psychological states involved in the process of progressing from incompetence to competence in a skill:

1. Unconscious incompetence

   The individual neither understands or knows how to do something, nor recognizes the deficit or has a desire to address it.

   See also : Dunning-Kruger effect

2. Conscious incompetence

   Though the individual does not understand or know how to do something, he or she does recognize the deficit, without yet addressing it.

3. Conscious competence

   The individual understands or knows how to do something. However, demonstrating the skill or knowledge requires a great deal of consciousness or concentration.

4. Unconscious competence

   The individual has had so much practice with a skill that it becomes "second nature" and can be performed easily (often without concentrating too deeply). He or she can also teach it to others.

See also

• Competence
• Competence (human resources)

External links

• Conscious competence learning model - further history of the idea

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