In Blink I read of an experiment where a fellow by the name of Samuel Gosling had strangers and friends look at college student's dorm rooms. He used what is called
"the Big Five Inventory, a highly respected, multi-item questionnaire that measures people acroos five dimensions:
1. Extraversion. Are you sociable or retiring? Fun-loving or reserved?
2. Agreeableness. Are you trusting or suspicious? Helpful or uncooperative?
3. Conscientiousness. Are you organized or disorganized? Self-disciplined or weak willed?
4. Emotional stability. Are you worried or calm? Insecure or secre?
5. Openness to new experiences. Are you imaginative or down-to-earth? Independent or conforming?"
In
another experiment Gosling gave observers 15 minutes to look around
dorm rooms judging the students with a "series of very basic
questions." On a scale of 1 to 5, does the inhabitant of this room seem
to e the kind of person who is talkative? Tends to find fault with
others? Does a thorough job? Is original? Is reserved? Is helpful and
unselfish with others? And so on." Gosling found that "the dorm room
observers weren't nearly as good as friends in measuring extraversion.
If you want to know how animated and talkative and outgoing someone is,
clearly, you have to meet hm or her in person. The friends also did
slightly better than the dorm room visitors at accurately estimating
agreeableness - how helpful and trusting someone is. I [Malcolm
Gladwell] think that also makes sense. But on the remaining three traits
of the Big Five, the strangers with the clipboards came out on top.
They were more accurate at measuring conscientiousness, and they were
much more accurate at predicting both the students' emotional stability
and their openness to new experiences. On balance, then, the strangers
ended up doing a much better job."
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