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Like Freakonomics (reviewed here recently), the new work from the author of bestseller The Tipping Point inhabits a far broader territory than most traditional business books. Having already established the term "tipping point" as standard business parlance, Gladwell now turns his attention to those moments when we "know" something without knowing why. The actual term is rapid cognition, when our subconscious makes an instant decision based on experience long before our conscious brain comes to its own conclusion. Although comparatively few of the author's illustrative examples come directly from the business world, it's a process which has huge implications for the way marketing is conducted, as well as other areas of daily life and work. Anyone who's ever had to interview a job applicant is familiar with that flash of instinct which tells us within a minute or two whether or not this person is right. There is also a powerful body of opinion which mourns the sad decline lack of gut instinct when it comes to modern corporate decision-making.

Gladwell's book examines the cons as well as the pros of the snap judgement in detail, offering a wealth of illustration from all walks of life. On the pro side, his opening example is the true tale of a seemingly genuine antique statue which appeared to pass all scientific tests, but which numerous experts knew instinctively was a fake without even knowing why. The balance is provided by former US President Warren Harding who looked every inch the perfect leader, but who turned out to be one of the worst Presidents the country had ever known. The same presidential bearing appears to be a given for corporate leaders, though not necessarily with the same results. Fewer than 4% of American men are 6 feet tall 2 inches tall, but Gladwell found that an astonishing one-third of Fortune 500 CEOs look down from those lofty heights. Specifically in the field of marketing, Gladwell turns his attention to the celebrated example of New Coke and the Pepsi Challenge, a perfect example of how hard it is to work out how and what people really think. He also covers other areas in which packaging and design can be shown to have huge implications for the success or failure of a product, from brand mascots to the colour of margarine, because of the secret messages they impart to consumers. 

However the underlying message of the book is that the snap judgement is intrinsically flawed, a part of our psychological make-up that we must respect for its powers of instinctive deduction, but which we must also be wary of abusing. For every example in which rapid cognition gets it right, there is another where gut instinct can lead to a poor or even - in the case of police officers under fire - a tragic decision. This is a fascinating book, and one which offers significant insights into the way we humans behave.

Added 13th April 2006