Stereotypes, for instance, are a characteristic -- or bundle (or product) of System One. Stereotypes essentially consist of clumping people who 'belong 'to us in 'in groups and people who are alien to us in 'out' groups. This in turn evokes our response to them. Although it can lead into prejudicial and non-ethical as well as possibly harmful behavior -- and harmful both to self and others -- stereotypes can also be useful. With the rapid, almost unknowing pockmarking of people into groups we are able to quickly formulate decisions and choose our friends as well as avoid our enemies. This comes in useful not only in times of war, but also during other times when we have to be on our guard.
It is not for naught that gurus of pop-psychology frequently recommend that we listen to our intuitions or that 'small, thin' voice', That small thin voice is System One. And sometimes it can help us.
Camilla's response;
Camilla is struck by Kahnaman's description of his method:
The introduction starts off with Kahneman describing himself as a water cooleru by aiming to improve the reader's ability to identify and understand errors of judgment by providing a richer and more precise language to discuss them. u (pg.4) & #8230; The way I perceived it is that flow for Kahneman is reaching perfection.
I thank Camilla for pointing this out. It made me contrast this with another philosopher's description of his...
Socrates. And Socrates compared himself to a midwife. It was striking to me how each thinker, both classical and modern, used images that were evocative of their times. Ancient Greece was absorbed in giving birth. This was often done at home, the natural, tedious way. No epidurals or penicillin then. The midwife was the one who labored, hand in hand breath with the laboring woman. She helped the woman give birth. Socrates compared himself to laboriously helping people develop their thoughts.
Kahanamn employed an image that is far more passive and automatic than that of Socrates. Work is almost non-existent for us today. We have technology. We receive rather than work at something. Kahanman's image is the water-cooler. It spurts water at us. Presumably at the other end it is mechanized and a machine (the electricity) forces the water out. In the first place, Socrates had the person manually and laboriously works at his own thinking. In the second place, Kahanman of the 20th century had the water-cooler spurt the enlightenment on the person. Socrates' analogy actually seems closer to reality, since being informed of the Systems is insufficient. One has to internalize the knowledge (labor on it), in order to yield the practical and pragmatic results of the process.
Source
Kahneman, D. Thinking, Fast and Slow, Macmillan, USA, 2011
