Looks like the difference between perceived and actual scores fit the popular understanding.
The people who perform the worst have the most inflated perception of their performance, while the people who perform the best underestimate their performance.
I think people take Dunning-Kruger and apply it to their everyday anecdotes. They are thinking in terms of relative differences rather than absolute, and thus the pop-sci understanding may not be that far off from the original.
Isn't this the same argument that could be used in the context of hospital borne infections?
Autopilot will reduced the number of fatalities in the same way that going to the hospital when you are sick will reduce the number of fatalities. However some people that use Autopilot will die when they otherwise would not have if they hadn't used Autopilot, just like how some people going to the hospital will die from infection when they otherwise would not have if they hadn't gone to the hospital.
The people who perform the worst have the most inflated perception of their performance, while the people who perform the best underestimate their performance.
I think people take Dunning-Kruger and apply it to their everyday anecdotes. They are thinking in terms of relative differences rather than absolute, and thus the pop-sci understanding may not be that far off from the original.