Taking It All In
Chapter 6 goes on to provide example of how we, as people, mind read or "thin slice" to make sense of the world and people in different kinds of situations. The examples that I summarize below were especially captivating to me:
1- Silvan Tomkins and his student, Tom Ekman, both enthralled with the face and the information that could be gleaned from an expression, spent years researching and fine tuning their ability to read people. Ekman set out to what he called, "unpack the face." Ekman discovered that the face reveals what is going on in our minds and often has a mind of its own, revealing raw emotions. So, really, as Gladwell points out, we are all mind readers in a sense. We pick up on these expressions or clues, using them to size up a situation or person.
Have you ever read into a person or situation based solely on facial expressions? I can think of the first time that I met my husband and the immediate feeling of comfort and trust that he exuded simply with a glance. On the other hand, I can recall meeting a co-worker for the first time and the furrowed brow that made no one want to sit at her table. I wonder how often I don't even realize that I am using facial expressions to thin slice.
2- A couple examples are shared to demonstrate Dave Grossman's (former army lieutenant colonel and author) theory of stress on performance. He argues that there is an optimal level in which stress indicated by an elevated heart rate improves performance but then under cases of extreme stress, it becomes more dangerous. When under tremendous stress, the body reacts by limiting the information we can take in and instead focuses on the most imminent threat. This means that we don't hear as well, see as well, or even process as fast. Our senses dull and out bodies react purely to protect us from attack. Grossman says that this is why police and really any other professionals in high stress situations must train, and train more. These reactions must become second nature so that when the senses are dulled, one can make decisions based upon the training.
Now, I return to the Diallo case from my previous post and think, did the extreme stress cause this officer to receive limited information? Did his training fail? Or, was it what he fell back on when his senses were limited?
Do you have an example of a time where time slowed down for you in a moment of extreme stress and you felt as though you lost use of some of your senses? Did you have to rely on prior experience/ practice?
Years ago I used to lifeguard. I experienced the sensation you are describing when an elderly gentleman was having a heart attack. Time slows way down as we removed him from the pool and began CPR. I most certainly relied on my training in this situation because I was so focused on the situation I realized later that I didn't have any sense of what else may have been happening around me.
ReplyDeleteYears ago I used to lifeguard. I experienced the sensation you are describing when an elderly gentleman was having a heart attack. Time slows way down as we removed him from the pool and began CPR. I most certainly relied on my training in this situation because I was so focused on the situation I realized later that I didn't have any sense of what else may have been happening around me.
ReplyDeleteThis may seem a bit insignificant, but I remember one time when I was part of a performing arts group in college. In one of the pieces we were starting to perform, I suddenly got a significant case of stage fright, and I was glad for all the time we had spent rehearsing, because I was able to perform the piece almost "automatically" even though I was fighting fear on the inside.
ReplyDeleteIs that the same Ekman that is the inspiration for the TV series, Lie to Me?
ReplyDeleteThat is him! Thanks for sharing because I was not aware of the series.
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