Sentient Insight: the business blog for consumer psychology and consumer marketing

Researchers in the field of social psychology have long been interested in one of the most significant malaises of society in developed countries: stereotyping. One study in particular stands out as a foundational breakthrough in showing how subconscious priming (presenting information to people in a manner that is not perceived consciously) can illuminate the true strength of stereotypes in the every-day individuals.

Do you remember the pop science trivia factoids about Einstien’s brain that used to travel freely through social parlance? “His brain was so much bigger than the average human’s!” “It’s science, man, he used sixty percent more of his brain than the rest of us.” The real science, actually, has shown repeatedly that brain size has nothing to do with intelligence and that there are no “dead zones” in the brain that we just don’t use. Evolution probably wouldn’t build us with heaps of junk built into our most adaptive and most active human resource– that would be quite the luxury indeed. (Although on a side-note, there has been research showing how Einstein was smarter than the rest of us, if that’s really any surprise.)

What do you do when you get sad and find yourself in a bad mood? I for one try and reflect on what has happened in that day, that week, that month, and find the root of the issue in the hopes of eradicating it forcibly and without mercy. Naturally, such efforts usually end in failure. Even if I can identify what might be making me feel so down, that knowledge rarely helps me get back on track emotionally. In fact, having that target just gives me a discernible target to which I can direct my brooding until some accidental incident comes along and I find myself feeling better all of a sudden.

As a culture (or perhaps just a cold New England culture) we’ve developed stereotypes about some of the warmer states like sunny California (72 and sunny!) or the renowned hospitality of the genteel Southern states. There might be a scientific explanation for this kind of thinking. Research on interpersonal impression shows that warmth in particular can exert considerable power on how we judge people. When given a hot cup of coffee to hold by a stranger in an elevator for just a few moments, people rated this stranger’s personality more warmly. The opposite was true, too: if given a cup of ice coffee in identical circumstances, participants in the experiment rated the personality of the stranger as being colder.

Take a moment and let your mind wander; inhale deeply, exhale, and find your neutral state. Now click play on the video below. You might want to turn down your speaker volume a little. Are you smiling? Did you laugh out loud? My guess is that, like me, some of this little boy’s infectious (even zealous) excitement rubbed off on you. Look at how wide his mouth gets. That thunderous enthusiasm flooding his body makes his arms tremble as he holds the box in front of him. His hungry hands claw across its surface, proving to himself that it is, in fact, Christmas morning and not a deceitful dream. The tidal volume of his voice never drops below a bestial shriek. Now watch the video again, but this time pay careful attention to the arguably more interesting character in this gripping melodrama:...

Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein wrote Nudge with optimism and dedication as primary tools while arguing for ways which we could improve our world. And there’s no government policy shift necessary – we only need to pay closer consideration to how we present decisions to individuals.

The advent of the digital age and the ease of data storage and collection have been a true blessing for the market research industry. It’s easier than ever to get a glimpse of what consumers are doing simply by looking at web traffic statistics for different sites. The success of an online ad is at least partly visible in the number of clicks it gets. And to answer questions that cannot be resolved by direct observation, online survey distribution has allowed for cheaper and faster data collection than ever before.

Coming Home to Eat is a personal story. A man’s personal experience trying to grow crops in Arizona, a man’s personal relationship with indigenous groups trying to reclaim their ancestral dietary traditions, even a man’s (graphically) personal intimacy with his girlfriend blindfolded under a peach tree. It is a hyper-idealized narrative about Gary Paul Nabhan’s endeavor to experience his daily nutritional intake on a more fundamental and traditional plain.

A dairy farmer. A stockman. An organic farmer. There, that’s it, that’s Deeply Rooted. If you choose to pick up this visual, emotional, well-written book by Lisa Hamilton, that’s what you’ll find. Perhaps her background as a photographer coupled with her writing experience produced a book that is more a series of three portraits than a structured narrative. There is no over-arching argument.

The current environmental crisis is the biggest generational challenge that the world has ever faced. You’ve undoubtedly read that before. The gravity and ubiquity of the statement have unfortunately made it cliché. If you’re liberal, you might be fed up with stonewall conservatives that don’t want to interfere with the economy to ensure the planet’s health as we move into an uncertain future.