Humiliation Drives Anti‑Expert Populism

Populist rejection of expertise often reflects a response to perceived condescension rather than ignorance. People will forgo material benefits if accepting help feels like accepting humiliation, so elevating 'common sense' becomes a way to reclaim dignity from credentialed elites. — This reframes the crisis of expertise as a status conflict, suggesting that restoring trust requires dignity‑preserving communication and institutions that don’t degrade lay publics.