Link to a recent IPA event I helped to organise. Thanks again to all those who participated.
December 04, 2009
November 28, 2008
Gladwell @ The Lyceum 24.11.08
There was a real buzz about Malcolm Gladwell's short but interesting lecture with its two central themes – the potential for misunderstanding caused by mitigation in language compounded by the effect of legacy on the way we think and behave (particularly towards authority) to describe the events leading to a tragic air disaster Avianca Flight 052.
The vivid reading of the final words of the flight crew were a stark reminder of the importance of precise language in communication to accurately convey meaning.
The effect of legacy on the way we think and behave bought to mind Cicero's quote - “To be ignorant of what happened before you were born is to be ever a child”. What Cicero meant by this, in lineage obsessed Ancient Rome, is that to understand yourself (a pre-requisite for manhood) requires you to be aware of where you have come from.
Gladwell had a similar point to make using Dutch psychologist Geert Hofstede's power distance framework. Citing the high violent crime rate of Appalachia (an area of the US that stretches from Southern New York State to Georgia) as a product of the fact that the original settlers where from the borders regions of the UK, where in the 17th and 18th centuries the ability to fight one’s corner was a distinct social and economic advantage.
The unfortunate Co-pilot in his extended story of the air crash was a Columbian, a country with the highest index to be differential to authority, which lead to his tragic inability to stand-up to either the pilot or the air traffic controller and effectively communicate how low their fuel really was.
As communication professionals the challenge to convey an understanding of cultural heritage as an influence on attitudes is both complex and intriguing.
As an aside Gladwell has some interesting things to say about the anatomy of disasters which is worth bearing in mind when planning. In the majority of cases disasters are caused by the compounding of six or seven small errors, which by themselves are not enough to create failure. Catastrophe occurs when these factors occur together at the same time, again using the air crash metaphor; tired pilots, bad weather, backed-up airports, the pilot and co-pilot are on their first flight together, obscured instrumentation and lack of clear and precise communication - planes rarely break!
Matt
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