Blink

I’m intrigued by Blink. In this work, Malcolm Gladwell explores subconscious decision making. Building upon case studies of marriage, triage, tennis matches, and more, he highlights the importance of focusing on thin slices of relevant behavior. To some degree this is a cognitive function that already occurs within the adaptive unconscious. Far from Freud’s primitive consciousness, the adaptive unconscious is an instinctual mechanism that sorts through the enormous amount of data necessary for everyday life. Instinctual decisions, Gladwell argues, can be as good or superior to those choices made after extended deliberation. Of course, he does qualify that no matter how much time is spent making a decision it can still be wrong.
Gladwell also concedes that many people are innately suspicious of rapid cognition. I happen to be one of them. My adaptive unconscious usually gives me wrong first impressions. As a result, I have a list of dear friends who I did not care for when we initially met. Perhaps because of these inabilities, I’m wary of those people who pride themselves on “sizing up” others instantly. This skill could be plausible if life was as shallow as a sitcom. Or, if the individual is old, really old. Despite my skepticism, Gladwell’s illusions to neuroscience keep me reading. Hopefully by the end I’ll be more in-touch with my intuitions.