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Loading... Blink : the power of thinking without thinkingby Malcolm Gladwell
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. He presents a bunch of fascinating psychology results. I felt his overall theme was a bit confused though. He seemed to draw stronger conclusions from the psychology experiments than I think were warranted. He didn't do a good job of explaining the difference of "thin slicing" and "guessing". One of which he thinks is powerful and almost mystical, and the other easily leading to the wrong answer. If you've got extra time then it is worth a read, but not a must read. Like Outliers, the actual thesis Gladwell is arguing for doesn't have to be remotely true for this book to be thoroughly enjoyable for the anecdotes alone & his storytelling genius. I thought this book was interesting but I was devoted to finishing it, I only read through specific sections. A quick read, well-researched but not too dense. Thought-provoking stuff, especially the chapter about implicit associations, discussed in the context of the Amadou Diallo shooting in New York. An excellent chapter on art and instincts, as well as a feature on professional "tasters" who describe the criteria for testing mayonnaise amongst other things.
Beyond question, Gladwell has succeeded in his avowed aim. Though perhaps less immediately seductive than the title and theme of The Tipping Point, Blink satisfies and gratifies. If you want to trust my snap judgment, buy this book: you'll be delighted. If you want to trust my more reflective second judgment, buy it: you'll be delighted but frustrated, troubled and left wanting more. "Blink" brims with surprising insights about our world and ourselves, ideas that you'll have a hard time getting out of your head, things you'll itch to share with all your friends. You can't judge a book by its cover. But Gladwell had me at hello — and kept me hooked to the final page. As a researcher, Gladwell doesn't break much new ground. But he's talented at popularizing others' research. He's a clever storyteller who synthesizes and translates the work of psychologists, market researchers and criminologists.
References to this work on external resources.
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Gladwell includes caveats about leaping to conclusions: marketers can manipulate our first impressions, high arousal moments make us "mind blind," focusing on the wrong cue leaves us vulnerable to "the Warren Harding Effect" (i.e., voting for a handsome but hapless president). In a provocative chapter that exposes the "dark side of blink," he illuminates the failure of rapid cognition in the tragic stakeout and murder of Amadou Diallo in the Bronx. He underlines studies about autism, facial reading and cardio uptick to urge training that enhances high-stakes decision-making. In this brilliant, cage-rattling book, one can only wish for a thicker slice of Gladwell's ideas about what Blink Camp might look like. --Barbara Mackoff
(retrieved from Amazon Tue, 05 Jan 2010 12:08:17 -0500)
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