May 2006    

Blink: the power of thinking without thinking Author: Malcolm Gladwell Publisher: Little, Brown $25.95 Cloth (277 p.) ISBN: 0316172324 B&T         YBP Reviewed by Marilyn Durkee, Cataloging Supervisor Malcolm Gladwell, a staff writer for the New Yorker magazine, took a sabbatical in order to research the field of the adaptive unconscious. This is an area of psychology that studies the "decision-making apparatus that's capable of making very quick judgments based on very little information". Gladwell states that his purpose in writing the book is to convince the reader that: 1) snap decisions can be as good as cautious and deliberate ones, 2) we can learn when to trust our instincts and when not to, and 3) snap judgments can be educated and controlled. The research studies and examples that Gladwell describes are fascinating by themselves. By tying in other research, such as research on autism, he makes plausible arguments that explain the failures and successes of decision-making in a variety of situations. The book is filled with descriptions of research studies and analysis of real world situations based on that research. Gladwell introduces the concept of "thin slicing" -- "a part of rapid cognition that refers to the ability of our unconscious to find patterns in situations and behavior based on very narrow slices of experience." He provides many examples of thin slicing in research studies. In one study, researchers cataloged all of the physical behaviors that couples exhibit when discussing something contentious in their relationship. Based on a very thin slice of only several minutes of conversation, the researchers could predict with great accuracy which relationships would end in divorce. This sounds like an easy task, but apparently, untrained observers could not predict nearly as well. As Gladwell describes it, thin slicing occurs behind the locked door of our adaptive unconscious. Not only are we often unaware of how our environment affects our snap decisions, (and this is not necessarily bad), but, by trying to describe our thinking process, we can negatively affect the outcome. This reminds me of the times I "forgot" my computer password, though my fingers would type it automatically if I didn't think about it. Gladwell describes as temporary autism the state of extreme anxiety that police officers experience after a high-speed chase. Through examples from research we learn that people with severe autism do not understand body language or tone of voice. He suggests that police officers in the midst of a chaotic or perceived high-stress situation may make incorrect snap judgments because the ability to understand what they are seeing may be impaired. This may seem to be an overwrought explanation for what some would describe as simply a rush of adrenaline gone awry. I think the argument that Gladwell makes can (and perhaps already does) inform the training of police and armed forces personnel. By way of contrast, Gladwell presents an example of U.S. military war games that went poorly for "our" side because of adherence to a plethora of "intelligence". This was a case of not seeing the forest for the trees. The military was so bogged down in the facts that they forgot that everything they knew, the enemy knew as well. They didn't see the big picture. They were not using their adaptive unconscious at all. Blink was an interesting and, at times, dramatic read. Particularly compelling is his moment-by- moment analysis of the Amadou Diallo shooting in 1999. Gladwell's writing is clear and full of detailed description and analysis of events and examples. He convinced me of the truth of all three of his initial points. Anyone who has had extensive training and experience in a particular field has had that blink moment, when you knew the answer right away. In many cases, you may even be unable to describe how you arrived at the answer. However, if one is involved in training others, the challenge in applying Gladwell's third task - educating and controlling one's snap judgments - requires getting into that locked door. I'm waiting for the book that provides that key. Published by YBP Library Services 999 Maple St., Contoocook, NH 03229 USA v: 800.258.3774   f: 603.746.5628 w: www.ybp.com   e: academia@ybp.com All rights reserved.