From the Bookshelf This is a fortnightly review of bestsellers for business executives Unconscious thoughts are often best guide By Nicole Wong Trusting your instincts may be the key to good decision making Whenever we meet someone or if something in a store window catches our eye, the subconscious mind has already raced to a series of preliminary conclusions without us realising it. We may tell ourselves that it takes time to think things over and weigh up various considerations when, in fact, many of our final decisions turn out to be exactly the same as our initial gut reaction. Few of us, though, give much thought to the significance of our snap judgments. We do not ask how they shape our personal, professional and social lives, nor do we question how they may affect our decisions about choosing a spouse, selecting work partners or employees, or even voting for a certain person who is running for office. In a society where we are taught to believe in the importance of gathering information and the necessity of careful decision making, one story about the Getty Museum provides an intriguing and contrasting example. It concerns the museum's purchase of a Greek statue in 1984 and may lead us to rethink some of our beliefs about the correctness of snap judgments. Scientific tests conducted on the marble had indicated the statue was as old as claimed. However, every art historian who examined it knew instantly that it was a fake. Closer scrutiny proved them right, but how did they spot with one glance what months of detailed tests had failed to reveal? Rapid cognition In Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, Malcolm Gladwell recounts how the art historians said they had no idea how they came to know what they knew. They also had no memory of "compulsive repulsion", such as a specific adverse physical reaction at the sight of the statue. Terming it "rapid cognition", Gladwell suggests the conclusions made in that decisive glance can be just as powerful, or even more so, than those made after long and careful deliberation. If our spontaneous responses can be so powerful, why then do we sometimes go astray when we think we are following our instincts? Using examples drawn from studies of speed dating and conversations between married couples, Gladwell explains many of us are attracted to or repelled by qualities that differ from our assumed preferences. The difference between our real desires and our stated criteria can hamper our selection of the right partners, as we are mistaken about what we truly want. Instinct can also mislead us, since it is shaped by the information we receive from our surroundings. For example, the simple act of solving a crossword puzzle which has words like "worried", "grey" and "wrinkle" can create a feeling of ageing and make us walk more slowly. In a substantial part of Blink, Gladwell explores how appearances also have a greater effect on us than we realise. He points out that our preference for one brand over another is often related to our perception of the packaging. Similarly, tall men usually have a better chance of becoming CEOs, and it is still a commonly held belief that Warren Harding was able to win election as president of the US more for his good looks than for any political ability. Such preconceptions about appearance mostly have their roots in stereotypes, some of which may even be connected to the kind of racial bias we claim to be free of. Psychological aspect Blink undoubtedly provides readers with an interesting mix of experiences from daily life, psychology and neuroscience in a number of intriguing stories. However, despite the many thought-provoking examples, the book does not really answer the question of how, in the author's words, "snap judgments and first impressions can be educated and controlled" (Blink, p.15). Gladwell discusses, for instance, the possibility of making accurate judgments about people by studying their facial expressions, which are manifestations of their instincts. While his argument is supported by research in psychology, it is questionable whether readers without the same educational background would apply his conclusions to their own experiences. For those who have yet to understand how to trust their own snap judgments, it may be quite a stretch to interpret those being made by other people. Content highlights: Snap judgments may be even more accurate than conscious or deliberate assessments People's instincts are shaped by their surroundings and external environment Our conception of people and things is often dominated by appearances and affected by stereotypes About the authors A former business and science reporter for the Washington Post, Malcolm Gladwell is now a staff writer for The New Yorker. His first book, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference has been a runaway bestseller since its publication in 2000. Gladwell has been praised for his gift of translating the results of research into entertaining story-telling in Blink, which has been favourably reviewed by critics and readers worldwide. "The book features the fascinating case studies, skilled interweavings of psychological experiments and explanations and unexpected connections among disparate phenomenon that are Gladwell's impressive trademark." - Howard Gardner in The Washington Post. Number one business bestseller on the New York Times and Business Week. Taken from Career Times 8 April 2005 Your comments are welcome at [email protected]