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The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference

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"The best way to understand the dramatic transformation of unknown books into bestsellers, or the rise of teenage smoking, or the phenomena of word of mouth or any number of the other mysterious changes that mark everyday life," writes Malcolm Gladwell, "is to think of them as epidemics. Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread just like viruses do." Although anyone familiar with the theory of memetics will recognize this concept, Gladwell's The Tipping Point has quite a few interesting twists on the subject.For example, Paul Revere was able to galvanize the forces of resistance so effectively in part because he was what Gladwell calls a "Connector": he knew just about everybody, particularly the revolutionary leaders in each of the towns that he rode through. But Revere "wasn't just the man with the biggest Rolodex in colonial Boston," he was also a "Maven" who gathered extensive information about the British. He knew what was going on and he knew exactly whom to tell. The phenomenon continues to this day--think of how often you've received information in an e-mail message that had been forwarded at least half a dozen times before reaching you.Gladwell develops these and other concepts (such as the "stickiness" of ideas or the effect of population size on information dispersal) through simple, clear explanations and entertainingly illustrative anecdotes, such as comparing the pedagogical methods of Sesame Street and Blue's Clues, or explaining why it would be even easier to play Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon with the actor Rod Steiger. Although some readers may find the transitional passages between chapters hold their hands a little too tightly, and Gladwell's closing invocation of the possibilities of social engineering sketchy, even chilling, The Tipping Point is one of the most effective books on science for a general audience in ages. It seems inevitable that "tipping point," like "future shock" or "chaos theory," will soon become one of those ideas that everybody knows--or at least knows by name. --Ron Hogan

"The best way to understand the dramatic transformation of unknown books into bestsellers, or the rise of teenage smoking, or the phenomena of word of mouth or any number of the other mysterious changes that mark everyday life," writes Malcolm Gladwell, "is to think of them as epidemics. Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread just like viruses do." Although anyone familiar with the theory of memetics will recognize this concept, Gladwell's The Tipping Point has quite a few interesting twists on the subject.

For example, Paul Revere was able to galvanize the forces of resistance so effectively in part because he was what Gladwell calls a "Connector": he knew just about everybody, particularly the revolutionary leaders in each of the towns that he rode through. But Revere "wasn't just the man with the biggest Rolodex in colonial Boston," he was also a "Maven" who gathered extensive information about the British. He knew what was going on and he knew exactly whom to tell. The phenomenon continues to this day--think of how often you've received information in an e-mail message that had been forwarded at least half a dozen times before reaching you.

Gladwell develops these and other concepts (such as the "stickiness" of ideas or the effect of population size on information dispersal) through simple, clear explanations and entertainingly illustrative anecdotes, such as comparing the pedagogical methods of Sesame Street and Blue's Clues, or explaining why it would be even easier to play Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon with the actor Rod Steiger. Although some readers may find the transitional passages between chapters hold their hands a little too tightly, and Gladwell's closing invocation of the possibilities of social engineering sketchy, even chilling, The Tipping Point is one of the most effective books on science for a general audience in ages. It seems inevitable that "tipping point," like "future shock" or "chaos theory," will soon become one of those ideas that everybody knows--or at least knows by name. --Ron Hogan

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Reviews

Love it (79%)  |  Hate it (12%)  |  On the Fence (9%)  |  Didn't Rate it (0%)
From: Amazon Posted: Jun 25, 2008 Type: User Review Great Information On The Theory of Tipping Points

The Tipping Point was a very, very, good book. The only thing that kept it from being perfect is that there's really only a half-book's worth of material here, so the author basically expanded what could have been written in 100 pages to a longer...
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4.00 Star Rating
4.00/5
From: Amazon Posted: Jun 23, 2008 Type: User Review The Law of the Few, the Stickiness Factor and the Power of Context.

There are few books that introduce a new idea that can be applied to multiple disciplines - The Tipping Point is a thought-provoking and well-written book in that category. This book contains more than an idea: it introduces a new way of...
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From: Amazon Posted: Jun 16, 2008 Type: User Review "THINK OF THEM AS EPIDEMICS"

This book asserts that the best way to understand popularity and social behavior, such as the rise in popularity of a book, teen behaviors, or word of mouth phenomena, is to model them as epidemics. The author suggests that ideas, behaviors, and...
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5.00 Star Rating
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From: Amazon Posted: Jun 15, 2008 Type: User Review Real Page Turner

This book is absolutely great; you won't be able to put it down. Gives very interesting insights into social phenomenons. I highly recommend this book!
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From: Amazon Posted: Jun 14, 2008 Type: User Review Great read

Nutshell review - This is a great book. Lots of interesting insights and discussions about how social phenomenon can transition from one state to another, more extra-ordinary state.
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