The World's Best Book Summaries
Is it possible to predict divorce? What are the most telling signs the relationship won’t last? The signs of an impending divorce are often evident from casual interactions of partners, even at the beginning of a relationship. Psychologist John Gottman has identified these signs by conducting observations of interactions of couples, predicting divorce with impressive accuracy. Here’s what he found.
How accurate are snap judgments? What are the dangers inherent in making snap judgments—sizing up a situation based on superficial information, without much conscious deliberation? Snap judgments can go wrong for a few reasons: First, we can be overly superficial when making a judgment. Second, we can fail to recognize when our conscious and unconscious attitudes don’t match, which leads us to make decisions that are inconsistent with our conscious beliefs. And third, we’re far more susceptible to the effects of priming than we think. Learn about the psychology of snap judgments and how they can go wrong.
What factors are at play when we’re interpreting art? Why do different people see art in different ways? Images are inherently subjective—our experiences and beliefs influence what we see. When we look at visual art, we often place ourselves within images, which influences how we interpret their meaning. Keep reading to learn more about the factors that influence the way we interpret art.
Are you looking for Blink quotes by Malcolm Gladwell? What are some of the most noteworthy passages worth revisiting? We usually think of snap judgments as lazy, superficial, and probably wrong. But are they really? In Blink, Malcolm Gladwell argues that snap judgments can be just as good as—or even better than—the decisions that we make when we analyze a situation carefully. Below is a selection of quotes from Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell.
How do we make snap decisions? In what circumstance is it a good idea to make a snap decision, trusting your gut? Snap decisions are made on the fly—unconsciously, without rational deliberation. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. According to Malcolm Gladwell, the author of Blink, in some circumstances, it’s better to decide on the fly than to deliberate on how to proceed. Keep reading to learn about the power of snap decision-making, why some snap decisions are better than others, and how to make better snap decisions.
What is a narrative fallacy? Why do we have such a strong urge to rationalize our decisions and behavior through narrative? A narrative fallacy is the tendency to explain random or irrational decisions, events, and behavior with coherent stories. The narrative fallacy is a form of rationalizing: We tend to feel that there’s a rational reason for everything we do. When we don’t know why we’ve made a certain decision, we make up a coherent narrative about how we arrived at it. Learn about the narrative fallacy, why it occurs, and how to counteract it.
What is the difference between nude and naked when it comes to art? What deeper meanings do nudity and nakedness symbolize? Not all naked paintings are nudes. According to art critic John Berger, to be naked is to be yourself and to be seen by others for who you are—it’s vulnerability and honesty. To be nude, on the other hand, is to hide oneself and be seen by others as an object—usually for sexual fantasy. Keep reading to learn about three key distinctions between nude and naked.
What is a victim mentality? Where does it come from? How can it impact our lives? Joyce Meyer argues that the devil attacks our minds with negative thoughts. One category of negativity is self-pity, or a victim mentality. Not only does this mentality trap us in a dark mindset, it makes us believe that we can’t make choices and changes. Keep reading to learn more about the pitfalls of self-pity.
Are you more like Jesus today than you were yesterday? What can you do to think like Christ? What difference would it make in your life? Joyce Meyer explains that Jesus is the paragon of maintaining a positive mind in the face of suffering. Therefore, as we try to live a positive life ourselves, we should try to emulate his mindset. While this may seem like an impossible task, Meyer reminds us that God invites all Christians to share the mind of Christ through the Holy Spirit. Read more to learn about the steps toward having the mindset of Christ.
What are microexpressions? Can facial microexpressions be detected by the naked eye? We can get better at understanding others, and consequently make more accurate judgments about them, by practicing reading people’s microexpressions—facial expressions that last for only a fraction of a second. Microexpressions are almost imperceptible to an untrained, naked eye, but with training, you can become better at detecting them. Let’s take a closer look at how we “thin-slice” people, or make judgments about them by reading (or failing to read) their microexpressions.