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I believe that in some situations thin-slicing can be very accurate and useful, but sometimes it can be harmful as well. If you walk into a job interview and the boss decides to see if you are equipped for the job by answering one question, they aren't going to get an accurate view of who you are. It would be especially bad if it was a yes-or-no question, and either you answer the way they want or you're out. Thin-slicing works in certain situations, but I feel you have to be looking at things like behavior and attitude rather than speech. Maybe if an employer asked a couple more questions and was looking for how your body motions (ex. fidgeting or avoiding eye contact) lined up with your response, then it would be a bit better for thin-slicing.
ReplyDeleteCristin was absolutely right when she mentioned how a boss on a job interview thin-slices their potential employees. I remember my boss saying that she bases who she hires mainly on her first impressions of people because she does not have much else to go by. She essentially takes into account how people present themselves and how well their social skills are. In this case, thin-slicing could possibly not work if the person is typically shy in front of people that he or she just met. One nerve-wracking job interview might not be an accurate representation of a person's personality because anxiety is heightened. It's would not be a precise depiction of that person in his or her natural environment.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Cristin on the job perspective but I also think that thin-slicing would not be accurate if someone was to come into my house or room specifically and make a judgement on me; just as we discussed in class today. If someone was to come into my room today they would think that I was very unorganized and may make other judgments on my messy room at the moment when in fact I am very organized in other aspects of my life. Looking into someone's room or house does not allow you to see the whole person but only how they present themselves and things. You cannot learn about a person just by their appearance, you have to talk to them and get to know them on a personal level to understand their personality and attitude.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Christin was saying about thin-slicing, and how it depends on the situation for it either to be accurate and useful, or it can be a mistake as well. I believe that sometimes if someone takes a small amount of information to make a decision, than the choice all together could possibly be a mistake. For example, I know from previous experiences when joining a club that you could sit through the first meeting and not want to be in the club anymore. However, if you take the time to continue to go to a couple more meetings you might find out you really like the club. I believe that thin-slicing would work in this situation because you could quit the club after only one meeting and then find out from other people’s experience that it was really fun, and that is making a decision with only a narrow amount of experience.
ReplyDeleteI believe thin-slicing most definitely is dependent on the situation. Thin-slicing is the belief that our unconscious is able to find patterns in situations and behavior based on very narrow slices of experience, by the key words "very narrow" it is easy to perceive that it doesn't always apply to all situations in life. Thin-slicing very much reminds me of the saying "Don't judge a Book by its cover," although we often find ourselves judging books by their cover we know its not the right thing to do. But if you were to start reading the back of the book and know after the first sentence its not for you, than thats a whole different story, that's when I feel thin-slicing is appropriate. You gave the book the opportunity you needed to figure it out and then by your past experiences of what you like and dislike you decided not to read it.
ReplyDeleteI believe people thin-slice in almost every situation they are in whether or not they are aware of it or not. I think thin-slicing is just our brains reacting to new people or a new environment. Thin-slicing a situation is the easy part, but I think determining whether your judgements are accurate or not is the difficult part. From experience, I think thin-slicing while on college visits can be both helpful or hurtful. It can be helpful in a way where I've been on campus tours where I've just stepped onto a campus and was able to tell by the vibe of the students buzzing around me and the way the college is set up that it was my dream school OR that I knew that it wasn't the right fit for me. Thin-slicing can also be hurtful in this same situation where you can see one thing, or run into one person that just turns you off or you do not like and it can shut down your whole mind to a school that you could end up really liking but you won't give it a chance because of a snap judgement you had made.
ReplyDeleteThin-slicing, whether you want to call it judging a book by its cover or first impression, or as my father would say "a tell in poker” for the most part I think is a very good way to judge how a person or situation is going to be. For instance maybe you are going to have a class with a teacher that you think is going to be a tough or maybe be placed in a dangerous situation where your first instance is screaming out for you to leave. I think this probably works 80% of the time but every once in a while you get that teacher that you think is going to be one of the roughest classes you've ever taken and that first day you walk out with a smile with a totally different opinion.
ReplyDeleteThis chapter talks about John Gottman who is a psychologist by training but also has an extensive mathematics background. He specifically talks about a young couple in a rough marriage situation and I think our first impression of these people would be very different then his trained eye. It takes him hours of going through videotaped interviews of this couple to really get to the heart of the problem. So this is why I think this does not lead itself to thin-slicing because he spent more hours studying and analyzing them longer then we could have ever had, giving him a totally different opinion then our first impressions.
I do not think that there is a situation in which a person does not thin-slice. It seems that every experience in our life has created some type of impression on us whether we are aware of it or not. We judge things as soon as we them based on their appearance, intuition, or plainly on the things we hear.Thin-slicing is not always accurate but that is something we come to find over time. For example, if you do not like a person and you meet someone with that same name odds are you will think of something negative right off the bat. It may not be about the new person you had just met, but your mindset is automatically changed and is much less open minded. In a situation like that, thin-slicing is hurtful because you do not know the person yet have already passed some sort of judgement. Thin-slicing can shut down your whole mind set of a person or a thing but it could also whined up to be very positive.It all depends on the situations you are dealt with at hand.
ReplyDeleteI believe thin slicing is common among all people. Although we dont mean to judge, its in our nature and automatically do it without realizing. Thin slicing is not always accurate, most of the time we judge a book by its cover and then get a wake up call and realize we were totally wrong. For example one of my really good friends on my softball team isnt in the best athletic shape, and if someone that didnt know her saw her they would automatically think she looks unathletic, short, or chubby. People would just look at her an judge her right then and there and question her ability by thin slicing and assume she is not talented. Meanwhile if the person watched her play or asked where she was going to college she could have easily proved them wrong and told them about her full scholarship to play softball at UCLA, that person would be in for a good wakeup call and learn not to judge people by appearance, its not what you look like its how you play.
ReplyDeleteThin-slicing is always seen in society today. Thin-slicing should never been used when identifying someone in a lineup who has committed a murder or some type of crime. Like commonly seen on Law and Order Special Victims Unit or even The Green Mile, people make mistakes. Making mistakes with such a big choice like this can cause people their lives or life imprisonment. Now sometimes people are just scared and chose someone that they “think” is the person who committed the crime when in fact they are just in shock or scared. I feel that people cannot help but thin-slice because everyone is always doing it.
ReplyDeleteI can also relate to Lauren and Cristin. To me, thin slicing can be negative or positive. When I got interviewed for my job at the day care center, my boss was looking for a responsible, fun, cool, and educated teen who would be able to watch and help the kids with homework. I was told that the reason my boss hired me was because of those things including my personal representation. I wasn't sloppy or rude, I had manners. However, thin slicing could be a bad thing when judging people on their cover because we wouldn't have such a great worker with us if it were all based on "first impression". A co-worker of mine is about 30 years old and her physical appearance lacks for many reasons. BUT.. My boss did not hire her for her looks, she hired her for the responsible adult and teacher she is. She may not be the best of the best but she is a nice person and she genuinely cares about the children and their needs. Her first impression of her may not have been WOW but she looked to what really mattered when hiring teachers for the daycare.
ReplyDeleteI believe thin slicing is in our nature. People today are very quick to judge and put in their state of mind in certain situations. I think thin slicing is done towards famous singers. I think people judge them because of their fame they feel that they know so much about them. People don't truly know who they really are as a person. For example, if a famous singer makes a mistake on stage performing, people are quick to judge them because they don't sound like they do on their cd. That singer who messed up could have been really sick that night when they messed up performing. This shows that people never really know what someone is going through. In this situation thin slicing is negative because negative judgments are made towards famous performers. Criticizing someone when you don't know them is judging someone by their physical appearance. People judge singers today because they don't know them and will never know them.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Chloe and Amy that thin slicing occurs in most situations weather you know it or not. People judge other people and things without even knowing anything about the person or situation based on the things they hear from other people. I think of it kind of like food and when people make assumptions about food because of the way it looks or because someone else said they didnt like it and how would they know if they like it or not without even trying it themselves? Also I play lacrosse and my friends on my team will make judgments about the other girls on the other team because of the kind of stick they are using or the way their hair looks. The girl could be playing with the crappiest stick or the messiest hair do but still be the best player in the world and they would never know until they watch her play. Thin-slicing in these sorts of situations is negative but it could be positive if people make good judgments from their personal experiences.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Chloe and Amy that thin slicing occurs in many situations whether you're aware of it or not. For example, when I first came to IHA, I judged the school solely on the way the hallway looked.All I saw were the boring lockers and I decided immediately that I didn't love the school. In that case, thin slicing was negative. However, it's not always a bad thing. Depending on the situation, thin slicing can be positive. If you make a judgement on a situation based on just a little bit of information, you may actually benefit. This all goes back to what Gabby said where thin slicing "could be positive if people make good judgments from their personal experiences"
ReplyDeleteThin slicing occurs in every new encounter of our lives. We have no control over the way our brain works or interprets situations in those first brief moments. I agree completely with Chloe and Amy. As much as we try not to thin-slice, we cannot avoid it. It is easy for an individual to say they to do not pass judgments on first time situations, however we are all guilty of judgment whether we want to admit it or not. From a personal experience I've realized that we may not verbalize our judgement's but they do remain in our minds. We do this unconsciously. For example: the first time I went on a midnight run at IHA, I looked at what the event would be like and said to myself this isn't going to be fun at all, I'm not going to get anything out of it and I'm wasting my time. I felt foolish because after the event was over, it felt so rewarding, I had a great time and looked forward to the next opportunity to sign up.
ReplyDeleteFrom a very young age we are told "do not judge a book by its cover" of course we all know this does not only refer to books it also refers to everyday people. By thin slicing someone we only see one side of a person. What if that person was upset that day and showed anger? That does not mean they are typically an angry person. A situation thin slicing would be a disadvantage is on a college interview. Students are nervous and may not elaborate on their responses. This does not mean they are always nervous or not social, but that is what will show. Personally when I was cut from soccer, I was judged on my skill and personality after a few days of tryouts. The next year after actually getting to know me and seeing my improvement they admitted they made a mistake the previous year and gave me a spot on the team. We really need to take the time to get to know people before we jump to conclusions.
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