Malcolm Gladwell On Culture and Airplane Crashes

theodp writes "While the Asiana Airlines Flight 214 pilots' lack of communication puzzles crash investigators, readers of author Malcolm Gladwell are likely having a deja vu moment. Back in 2008, Gladwell dedicated a whole chapter of his then-new book Outliers to Culture, Cockpit Communication and Plane Crashes (old YouTube interview). 'Korean Air had more plane crashes than almost any other airline in the world for a period at the end of the 1990s,' Gladwell explained in an interview. 'When we think of airline crashes, we think, Oh, they must have had old planes. They must have had badly trained pilots. No. What they were struggling with was a cultural legacy, that Korean culture is hierarchical. You are obliged to be deferential toward your elders and superiors in a way that would be unimaginable in the U.S.'"

Comments

Re:I remember being puzzled by that chapter

[gandhi_2]

That's because you are racist.

Re:I remember being puzzled by that chapter

[0123456]

Err...Cars in India drive on the left, same as in the UK.

According to my Indian friends, when they go home to visit relatives the traffic drives on whatever side of the road they happen to feel like today.

Re:I remember being puzzled by that chapter

[OakDragon]

According to my Indian friends, when they go home to visit relatives the traffic drives on whatever side of the road they happen to feel like today.

Interesting. That's how they drive in Korea.

In Korea, the eldest gets right-of-way.

Re:I remember being puzzled by that chapter

[swillden]

American pilots had the same problem from the 40 to the 80's or so as the airlines were highering mostly exmilitary

Sir, I applaud your refusal to be dictated to by the supposed authorities who specify what they call "proper" spelling. Sadly, I lack your backbone.