Do you value an expert's opinion over that of the majority of people who disagree?

It depends on the type of question really.

Otherwise I like an array of different opinions :)

It’s not terribly important to me because anyone can have a piece of information that could be helpful. The only thing that has bugged me is the rare occasion where someone who has no children has criticized my parenting. That irks me to no end.

If you need expert advice here would be my last place I’d look. But if you are looking for a variety of opinions or answers Fluther is the place to be.

No. I value all the input that I receive from my fellow jellies. One can find useful insights from the most unexpected sources. And I’ve noticed that even being an expert does not necessarily count with some. I’ve seen medical advice sought after and then a complete disregard for input from @Shilolo, who is a doctor.

No, if I need expert advice I will go to someone I know is qualified to give it. If I am looking for opinions, being an “expert” makes no difference at all.

Depends on the type of question. For a medical question, if shilolo weighs in, I will give much more weight to his answer than anyone else’s. If you don’t know someone’s credentials and want to, you can usually get some indication on their profile page. For most factual questions, I will take what people say with a grain of salt, or use my own judgment to sort out the wheat from the chaff. But this is wonderful place to get a variety of problem-solving ideas and fodder for further thought.

For most of my questions I just want a variety of random people’s responses. There has been one question that I can remember specifically wanting legal advice. Instead, I got a lot of non-lawyers and non-policemen attacking me. Yeah, that went well.

Fluther needn’t get involved in trying to ID experts. Take what people say and come to your own conclusions.

Consensus isn’t proof of anything. People are easily mislead.

@Cruiser -Exactly! :)

Even experts on a subject frequently disagree with one another. I’m not going to make any important life decisions based on non-expert consensus either. If two or more recognized experts disagree with lay consensus, I’d say the consensus is probably wrong.

I form my own opinion of people’s expertise based on their answers on a variety of questions. Then I know how much weight to give their answers to any given question.

When it comes to a failing heart, or a brain tumor.

I go with the expert.

This is exactly why Wikipedia was so disturbing to some people and something to consider with social media. Encyclopedia Britannica contains information written by experts. If just anyone can write or edit Wikipedia why should it be given any credibility? Because the experts gravitated to Wikipedia . . . to improve upon and correct existing material. I would trust an expert in a field over a layman, unless the question posted is one of the “touchy-feely” ones about “how do you feel when…” or is obviously not an expert-type question. On fluther one has to get a sense of who actually has expertise in an area if it is not in their profile , which makes it a little tricky. On Wikipedia people editing a subject don’t necessarily know each other’s level of expertise either. They decide based on the expertise of each other’s contributions plus some back chatter where credentials may be mentioned. The internet has led to such things as redefining “Tourette’s syndrome to include definitions coming out of layman support forums. But is that good?

I don’t trust anyone without convincing evidence. I don’t care if they are an “expert” or one of the ordinary jellies. Besides which, there was recently a question about people’s expertise, and I can’t say anyone particularly stood out as being an expert in anything except for the physicians.

I like to decide for myself, but love to read what other people think.

I go with the expert assuming the question correlates to their area of expertise.
I’m not going to ask my tax person why my shoulder hurts.

If it is a medical question, go with the expert.
If it is a question about taxes, go with the tax expert.
If it is a question about the economy, don’t worry. No one knows shit about it.

@ubersiren Haven’t you learned? People who don’t have any children have all the answers!

@ubersiren Every one was raised by someone, and therefore has developed opinions about childraising based on being one. They don’t have to be parents. Do you have to break your leg first, before you know it hurts? There are many things that can be experienced from either of two sides, and growing up/raising children is one of them.

I would most likely listen to the expert, since the very word means that they have had a lot of experience in the field. If you have a doctor trying to give advice on investing, I would give his investment advice less weight than his medical advice.

If the expert can relate to my question from past time experience, then maybe I’d go with their opinion. But each person’s experience is different, so I enjoy variety.