A group of college seniors dives into a unique discussion about privilege during a seminar led by Malcolm Gladwell. They explore how aspects like birth month and relative age impact educational outcomes, revealing surprising advantages tied to arbitrary systems. Students reflect on their experiences in Ivy League settings, confronting the often-ignored dynamics of privilege. The conversation also considers the idea of applying maturity-based adjustments to create fairness in education, paralleling concepts used in sports.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Outliers and the Relative Age Effect
Malcolm Gladwell revisits his book Outliers and the relative age effect in hockey.
He explains how a birthdate advantage can lead to a real advantage due to early selection bias.
insights INSIGHT
Systemic Bias in Meritocratic Systems
Despite decades of awareness, the relative age effect remains prevalent, highlighting systemic bias.
Gladwell questions the lack of change despite the evidence.
question_answer ANECDOTE
The Iron Law of Canadian Hockey
Roger Barnsley, the researcher who discovered the relative age effect, recounts his initial findings.
He demonstrates that the bias still exists in Canadian hockey by analyzing the 2021-22 junior team roster.
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In 'Outliers: The Story of Success', Malcolm Gladwell examines the often-overlooked factors that contribute to high levels of success. He argues that success is not solely the result of individual talent or hard work, but rather is influenced by a complex web of advantages and inheritances, including cultural background, family, generation, and luck. The book delves into various examples, such as the success of Bill Gates, the Beatles, and Canadian ice hockey players, to illustrate how these factors play a crucial role. Gladwell also discusses the '10,000-hour rule' and the impact of cultural legacies on behavior and success. The book is divided into two parts: 'Opportunity' and 'Legacy', each exploring different aspects of how success is achieved and maintained.
This week, we’re sharing a special episode from one of Adam's favorite podcasts, Revisionist History. Revisionist History is Malcolm Gladwell’s podcast about things misunderstood and overlooked. This season, Malcolm is obsessed with experiments – natural experiments, scientific experiments, thought experiments. And in this episode, Adam Grant got to help out. Malcolm wanted to talk with a group of college seniors or recent graduates. So Adam invited him to a special seminar at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. Adam’s students become guinea pigs as Malcom tries to help them identify and then discuss a very specific type of privilege, a category of privilege that’s often ignored. If you know Malcolm Gladwell, he does sometimes seem to have it out for Ivy League schools like Penn. But this episode is not what you might expect: Malcolm winds up pointing the finger of blame quite firmly in his own direction, too.
Worklife with Adam Grant 