The Wisdom of Crowds
by James Surowiecki
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Book Summary Information
Author: James SurowieckiEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-08-16
ISBN: 0385721706
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Anchor
Book Reviews of The Wisdom of Crowds
Book Review: A mind-expanding read
Summary: 4 Stars
If you loved The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell you'll probably enjoy this most unusual book. Gladwell's front cover endorsement of The Wisdom of Crowds reads "dazzling...the most brilliant book on business, society and everyday life that I've read in years". Both authors are New York based investigative journalists with a deep interest in social change.
Subtitled "why the many are smarter than the few", The Wisdom of Crowds argues that "if you want to make a correct decision or solve a problem, large groups of people are smarter than a few experts". We had a great example of this in the Australian election before the last one. The polls, both nationwide and in marginal electorates, repeatedly predicted a knife-edge result, with the lead changing often from pollster to pollster and from poll to poll. But throughout the campaign the betting agency Centrebet (in response to bets placed) had the (incumbent) government coalition parties firm favourites. Close to polling day the Prime Minister was $1.16 for a win (for a $1 bet) while the Opposition Leader was $4.60 for a win. The gamblers continuously predicted a landslide to the government coalition, and so it was. The polls were wrong. The crowds had the wisdom.
The first half of The Wisdom of Crowds is mostly theory, but with loads of examples. It covers the main types of problems we encounter: cognition, coordination and cooperation problems. Then it outlines the governing conditions for crowds to be wise: diversity, independence, and "a particular kind of decentralisation". The second half is mostly case studies organized into chapters on: traffic, science, small groups, companies, markets and democracy.
Apart from guarding against "groupthink", particularly at executive level, it's not easy to see how communication professionals can translate the message of The Wisdom of Crowds into organizational action, despite the claim that this is a book "for anyone interested in what makes things happen". Certainly there is a clear warning for gung-ho leaders who don't consult broadly (such as the Australian political leader who lost the recent election).
For communicators, my first thought was that to get "many" involved in significant organizational decisions suggests greater use of "future search" and "appreciative enquiry" techniques (such as the BBC consultation and involvement efforts in recent years). I'm sure this is the case, but there was no mention of such techniques as far as I could see (and despite lots of reference notes and suggestions for further reading, there is no index in an "academic" book of 295 pages).
In short, a wonderful, mind-expanding read but don't expect loads of ideas about how to improve communication in your organisation.
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