The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell Essay Example for Free

The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell EssayThe Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwells 2000 bestseller, discusses how some curves becomes gigantic apiece(prenominal)y popular while others fade away in the background without even leaving whatsoever mark. The Tipping Point, he says, is the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point, (12) where the unexpected becomes expected, where radical change is more than possibility precisely already a certainty. (13-14)It is when certain ideas, products, messages or behaviors suddenly turn into something of an epidemic, where everyone or majority of the people all of a sudden gets caught up in it without warning. We know right away that a certain trend has become an epidemic its spread demonstrates contagious behavior, little changes had affected its growth tremendously, and it happened fast. According to Gladwell, these characteristics of an epidemic rout out be rooted to three factors. The Law of the Few is discussed in the se cond chapter aptly titled, Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen. Gladwell explains that phenomenal trends tummy be attributed to the few people that, through word-of-mouth, are able to influence others to either love or hate the trend. Gladwell explains that the success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the link of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts. (33)Connectors link different people to each other and are referred to as people specialists (59). Mavens, on the other hand, are randomness brokers that possess, share, and acquire information on a lot of different products, prices, or places. (62, 69) The third type of influential people would be the salesmen, who can persuade and convince others into believing what they want. The Stickiness Factor is a trends unique feel of being memorable, or of being able to stick to the minds of the public. The elements that make something sticky are not in truth wonderfully big or exciting in fact, they ar e actually the small and seemingly bootless things that appear to be counterintuitive to the norm or conventional wisdom.For instance, the makers of Sesame Street thought it would be a good idea to educate children through video, even though experiments and educational experts saw television as having low involvement. (99-110) The artless idea of using television to teach children surprisingly became a success, which had been followed by other educational viruses such as Blues Clues. As Gladwell puts it, there is a simple way to package information that, under the right circumstances, can make it irresistible or sticky. (132) Finally, the origin of Context consists of the conditions and circumstances of the times and places in which trends occur. The environment and historical moments where the trend originates are also accountable for making it phenomenal. Contextual changes are responsible for tipping an epidemic, as is in the graphic symbol of the umbrages in New York City , wherein crime became a contagious behavior due to the circumstances in the city. (140-143)However, Gladwell also adds that Environmental Tipping Points can be changed and reversed, and even prevented. (167) Another element in the third factor would be social groups, which makes people vulnerable to peer pressure and social norms and any number of other kinds of influence that can play a critical role in sweeping us up in the beginnings of an epidemic. (171) Socialization plays a self-aggrandizing role in context, because the popularity of a trend also depends heavily on how the public responds to it. In his conclusion, Gladwell redefines Tipping Points as a reaffirmation of the potential for change and the power of intelligence action. (259) After investigating two case studies that further exemplify the Tipping Point and its factors, he suggests that we reframe the way we think about the world, and accept that change is assertable and constant.Work CitedGladwell, Malcolm. The Tipping Point. New York Little, Brown and Company, 2000.