deepstash
Beta
The hipster effect: Why anti-conformists always end up looking the same
The important role of hipsters
Aside from the choice of clothing, there may be important implications in understanding the synchronization of nerve cells, investment strategies in finance, or emergent dynamics in social science.
40 SAVES
This is a professional note extracted from an online article.
Read more efficiently
Save what inspires you
Remember anything
IDEA EXTRACTED FROM:
4
Key Ideas
The hipster effect
The hipster effect is when people who oppose mainstream culture find out that their unique choices are similar to millions of other people. In an attempt to be different, they all end up looking the same.
Similar effects show up among investors and in other areas of the social sciences.
Delayed reaction
People do not react instantly when something highly fashionable becomes available. The information spreads slowly through online platforms, word of mouth, and so on.
In general, the population of hipsters first act randomly, then go through a phase transition into a synchronized state.
Synchronization
When there are equal proportions of hipsters and conformists, the entire population tends to switch randomly between different trends.
For example, if the majority of individuals shave their beards, then most hipsters will want to grow a beard. If this trend becomes the norm, hipsters will switch to shaving.
The important role of hipsters
Aside from the choice of clothing, there may be important implications in understanding the synchronization of nerve cells, investment strategies in finance, or emergent dynamics in social science.
SIMILAR ARTICLES & IDEAS:
5
Key Ideas
The bandwagon effect
It's a cognitive bias that causes people to think or act in a certain manner because they believe that other people are doing the same.
For example, the bandwagon effect might cause...
Examples of the bandwagon effect
- The bandwagon effect can influence people’s political choices.
- It can influence consumers’ decisions regarding which products to buy.
- It can influence users’ decisions regarding how to rate stories or comments.
- It can influence investors’ financial choices.
- It can influence doctors’ medical decisions.
- It can influence organizations’ implementation of new technologies.
Why the bandwagon effect happens
It serves as a mental shortcut that people instinctively use in order to make a decision quickly.
Specifically, bandwagon cues, which are signs that other people believe something or are doing something, can trigger the thought that “if other people like this, then I should too”.
2 more ideas
7
Key Ideas
Creating quantitative models
Most of the psychological theories are verbal, but words can be imprecise. If "cooperation is intuitive", it needs to state when. And what does "intuitive" mean?
In order to solve this, compu...
The Sims computer simulation
These models represent collections of individual people described by computer algorithms that capture a specific set of traits, such as a tendency to cooperate or not.
- You can give them new personalities to see how they would behave.
- You can observe social processes in action.
- You can observe time scales, from seconds to generations.
- You can watch the spread of certain behaviors throughout a population and you can see how certain behaviors influence other behaviors.
The patterns that emerge can tell you things about large-scale social interaction that lab experiments and real people never could.
The human instinct to cooperate
There seems to be evolutionary logic to the human ability to cooperate but adjust if necessary. To trust, but verify.
We generally collaborate with other people because it benefits us. Our rational minds let us work out when we might occasionally gain by acting selfishly instead.
4 more ideas
8
Key Ideas
Ego Depletion
Ego depletion happens when people use up their available willpower on one task.
We all have natural urges, desires, and tendencies that demand attention. When we curb those ...
Self Control
People having a high level of self-control experience better relationships and have higher achievement levels. Lack of self-control is associated with social conflict and low-grade academic performance.
Example: While following a diet regime, a person spends a lot of willpower the whole day trying to avoid junk food, but by the end of the day, all his mental energy has been exhausted, and there is no self-control left, resulting in snacking on unhealthy food.
Causes of Ego Depletion
Many emotional and physical factors contribute to ego depletion, like:
- Emotional distress
- Struggling to learn something new
- Mental fatigue due to anxiety
- Low levels of blood sugar
- Too much choice
- Conflicting beliefs and actions (cognitive dissonance)
- Heart Rate
- Hormonal imbalance
- Being young and immature.
5 more ideas