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What is an expert?
1Center for Health Ethics and Law, West Virginia University, Morgantown 26506.
Theoretical Medicine
|March 1, 1993
Summary
Experts are vital, but their nature is understudied. This research distinguishes between epistemic experts (knowledge-based) and performative experts (skill-based), highlighting their distinct capacities and potential for disagreement.
Area of Science:
- Philosophy of Science
- Social Epistemology
Background:
- The societal importance of experts is recognized.
- However, the fundamental nature of expertise remains underexplored in academic literature.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate and define the nature of expertise.
- To differentiate between distinct types of experts based on their core competencies.
Main Methods:
- Conceptual analysis of the term 'expertise'.
- Distinction between knowledge-based and skill-based competencies.
Main Results:
- Identified two primary categories of expertise: epistemic and performative.
- Epistemic expertise is defined by the ability to justify propositions within a domain.
- Performative expertise is defined by the skillful execution of a practice according to its norms.
Conclusions:
- The two identified types of expertise, epistemic and performative, are conceptually and logically distinct.
- Both types of experts can hold legitimate disagreements.
- Understanding these distinctions is crucial for evaluating expert contributions in society.