Book Review- blink-Malcolm Gladwell
What to do you make out of this book title in 2 seconds is what the whole book is about. I actually thought of putting up a white book cover of this book but felt blue book cover would do more justice and add color. Only time will tell if I have more views and reads of this piece. This book was released in 2005, I am reading it a tad late, nevertheless, gems of wisdom still hold true.
I knew this book would be a good read, for the concepts were age told but told in a scientific and logical manner. Felt it dry at times, comparing to Psychology 101 classes. Expert coders would be able to troubleshoot a coding issue in minutes, forensic investigators piecing evidence in seconds, this book is an attempt of how experts become experts and how they are able to do what they do. They themselves will be unable to tell many times, the deconstruct of their conclusion. It is the combination of years of experience, wisdom, analysis mixed together in proportions and aged with time.
Fake greek kouros could not be detected with a thorough analysis of a museum over nine months but would be declared a “fake” within minutes of introspection of an expert. The book starts off with that and goes on with more examples of “power of thinking without thinking”, essentially our blink decisions. Decisions made quickly are as effective as decisions made cautiously. We all cannot become experts in snap judgment, but this is something that can be mastered and controlled.
Thin-slicing or the art of unconscious ability to find patterns in narrow time slices. You are able to find the degree of cookedness with just a few grains of rice- you do not need the whole meal to taste it. Marriage counselors are able to determine the success rate of marriages by observing a few conversations between couples and real-world war examples of German radio operators are detailed. How much ever you try to cover up your image or pattern, a distinctive pattern emerges, we all are schooled by the same teacher, our learning differs, our handwriting differs.
thin slicing>>thick slicing
Business decisions cannot be just taken on how we feel, it must also be explained with why we feel. It is essential for future decisions, billion-dollar decisions cannot be taken on a blink. Different psychology experiments conducted over the years on decision making are explained. They tend to be boring at times, but you cross the fire, you reach the crux. Speed dating couples are as successful as couples after long years of courtship.
Dark Side of Rapid Cognition- There are dark sides of thin slicing. Your snap judgment and decisions come from your experiences. But what if those experiences were all fed with bias and false information. Then naturally your decisions if quick or late would be wrong. Warren Harding error is explained via an (in)famous US president who was mistaken and voted for his looks. People realized their mistake late, snap judgments were a colossal mistake in this regard. Computerized IAT is explained and how it spews racial discrimination.
Paul Van Ripper, a Marine and a veteran of many wars who was known for his nonsensical approach and clear mind to win the war. He was approached from Pentagon for a simulated war game. What followed was a comedy of epic proportions, Van Ripper was able to win the more equipped, technical side of US forces. They were taken aback with their simulated analysis all gone for a toss. His snap judgment taken with years of actual combat experience helped. Cook county ER officials who devised a simple protocol to clear patients for ER, which was a minimalist 3–5 questions which could be taken by a nonmedical professional, reduced the ER time and helped docs focus their energies on more critical patients. The ability to dole out the precise 3–5 questions comes with experience and expertise.
New Coke and Pepsi and their fallacies with blind tests, Kenna a musician who failed to achieve fame despite talented, a chair company experiment with a new experimental chair are updated. Lack of images through the book was a put off for myself, but mass-market paperbacks are able to lower the price because of this, and I cannot complain.
A cop chase in New York which ended in a fatal shootout of a black man, who was later proven as innocent is explained in“as seven seconds in the Bronx” chapter. What did that police officer decide in the seven seconds before triggering the bullet, could have saved that teenager, but instead killed that innocent person? Maybe years of bias and racial discrimination could have fueled this, but that act cannot be justified. When you have a margin of error and that decides the life or death of a person, you cannot afford to take blink decisions. But what if that person was indeed an armed robber who could have shot this officer if not encountered with, those are answers we need to piece together.
The key to good decision making is not knowledge.It is understanding.Deliberate analysis is better on straight forward choices. Unconscious though process is best in terms of more analysis and personal choices.
