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acsaper's review against another edition
3.0
Another almost cutesy pop-science book from Gladwell. Easy to read and super interesting though the majority of it is dedicated to presenting anecdotal examples of the 'blink' concept.
Breezed through it pretty quickly as I wasn't incredibly absorbed by it but did manage to draw a couple pieces of interesting info from it. Seems like most of us make a good amount of decisions based on very little information, despite telling ourselves otherwise. While we often think that the more information we utilize, the more accurate or precise our decision making will be. In doing so, we often over look the incredible power we retain to make snap judgments on a variety of topics using a 'power' that Gladwell refers to as rapid cognition.
Rapid cognition however can work both for, and against us. One of the biggest problems with it seems to be that the more ingrained something becomes, the harder it is for us to think clearly about it and not revert to our snap decisions. This can have markedly negative effects, for example, when people who have not been exposed to those of different ethnic backgrounds are suddenly confronted by a person of a different race.
On the other hand,there are the 'experts,' those who in any given field has simply had so much exposure to a topic that they are able to thin slice, or rapid dissect, any information pertaining to the subject without so much as 'thinking.'
An interesting introduction to the concept of rapid cognition and definitely an approachable book for people of all ages and backgrounds.
Breezed through it pretty quickly as I wasn't incredibly absorbed by it but did manage to draw a couple pieces of interesting info from it. Seems like most of us make a good amount of decisions based on very little information, despite telling ourselves otherwise. While we often think that the more information we utilize, the more accurate or precise our decision making will be. In doing so, we often over look the incredible power we retain to make snap judgments on a variety of topics using a 'power' that Gladwell refers to as rapid cognition.
Rapid cognition however can work both for, and against us. One of the biggest problems with it seems to be that the more ingrained something becomes, the harder it is for us to think clearly about it and not revert to our snap decisions. This can have markedly negative effects, for example, when people who have not been exposed to those of different ethnic backgrounds are suddenly confronted by a person of a different race.
On the other hand,there are the 'experts,' those who in any given field has simply had so much exposure to a topic that they are able to thin slice, or rapid dissect, any information pertaining to the subject without so much as 'thinking.'
An interesting introduction to the concept of rapid cognition and definitely an approachable book for people of all ages and backgrounds.
m3lz's review against another edition
informative
relaxing
fast-paced
5.0
Gladwell manages to effortlessly address complex psychological topics in an understandable way and gives the reader an insight into the somewhat different, unconscious side of decision-making. The book does not come across as extremely forced or uptight, quite the opposite - it is a very comfortable and light read. The theory is explained in an applied way through supplementary stories. I learned a lot and can still reproduce/recall many aspects covered by Gladwell due to this approach 🌵 (yes, I just learned about the genre "pop-sci" :))
gunterrichter's review against another edition
4.0
Another great read from Malcolm Gladwell. The book talks about how we make snap judgements in an instance. Often with a good outcome (spotting fake art) but sometimes with a bad outcome (innocent civilian killed by police). Gladwell delves into the the behavioural and psychological aspects of this, and as you would expect, provides loads of real life examples.
nujibuji's review against another edition
2.0
I thought this book would be about HOW to make better snap judgments (i.e. how to thin slice properly), not just an observation that snap judgments and thin slicing exist. But turns out the only way to make good snap judgments is by becoming an expert in a certain field. And even then, our unconscious biases will fail us if we try to make a snap judgment under pressure. So basically, snap judgments are deceptive and it's hard to know when they are correct or not in the moment. It was a quick read but I didn't learn as much as I hoped. I'm sensing a pattern in his books -- his inconclusive anecdotal style may not be for me.
danoreading's review against another edition
3.0
My least favorite of Gladwell's books, I think, but still really interesting. He shouldn't read his own audio books.
dullshimmer's review against another edition
4.0
Blink is one of those books that is both fascinating, but is hard to pull any hard takeaways out of. Blink is about our ability and inability to make decisions in the blink of an eye. That may seem a bit contradictory, and in some ways it kind of highlights the difficulty of what to take from the book.
Malcolm Gladwell looks at a variety of stories and situations where people were able to make split judgements that were either as accurate or more accurate than people who spent time researching and trying gaining more information.
One example is a statue that the Getty museum was attempting to purchase. They had researched the statue and thought it was authentic, but when certain experts saw the statue their initial reaction was that something was off. It turns out that these experts were right. Their split second reaction was successful where the Getty's research had failed. Gladwell's book is about talking about this phenomenon.
However, it's not quite as simple as trusting gut instinct. He also talks about times where split second decisions were definitely not correct. So Gladwell weaves stories and research in a way that is interesting and entertaining, but doesn't fully make you feel like you've grasped exactly what makes one able to make accurate decisions in a short time period.
In part there does seem to be a need for expertise and training in whatever area you're going to need to make quick decisions. It reminds me of the anecdote about detecting counterfeit money that you don't spend time studying the fake, you spend time studying real money and that makes it easier to detect when something is off when you get a fake bill. This is the kind thing that allows us to make these kind of accurate snap judgments. Except when it doesn't for various reasons like personal bias, cultural viewpoints and things like that when even our subconscious views can cause our snap decisions to be skewed.
I don't feel like I'm doing a particularly good job at explaining this book, but I did enjoy it. It is interesting and filled with stories that make you think and was a very engaging read. This is the kind of book you read not to gain mastery of a subject, but to be introduced to a new subject and seek more out. It's certainly not the end of the topic, but just an introduction.
Malcolm Gladwell looks at a variety of stories and situations where people were able to make split judgements that were either as accurate or more accurate than people who spent time researching and trying gaining more information.
One example is a statue that the Getty museum was attempting to purchase. They had researched the statue and thought it was authentic, but when certain experts saw the statue their initial reaction was that something was off. It turns out that these experts were right. Their split second reaction was successful where the Getty's research had failed. Gladwell's book is about talking about this phenomenon.
However, it's not quite as simple as trusting gut instinct. He also talks about times where split second decisions were definitely not correct. So Gladwell weaves stories and research in a way that is interesting and entertaining, but doesn't fully make you feel like you've grasped exactly what makes one able to make accurate decisions in a short time period.
In part there does seem to be a need for expertise and training in whatever area you're going to need to make quick decisions. It reminds me of the anecdote about detecting counterfeit money that you don't spend time studying the fake, you spend time studying real money and that makes it easier to detect when something is off when you get a fake bill. This is the kind thing that allows us to make these kind of accurate snap judgments. Except when it doesn't for various reasons like personal bias, cultural viewpoints and things like that when even our subconscious views can cause our snap decisions to be skewed.
I don't feel like I'm doing a particularly good job at explaining this book, but I did enjoy it. It is interesting and filled with stories that make you think and was a very engaging read. This is the kind of book you read not to gain mastery of a subject, but to be introduced to a new subject and seek more out. It's certainly not the end of the topic, but just an introduction.