An Analysis of James Surowiecki's The Wisdom of Crowds

In The Wisdom of Crowds, New Yorker columnist, Surowiecki, explores the question of whether the many are better than an elite few - no matter their qualifications - at solving problems, promoting innovation and making wise decisions. Surowiecki's text uses multiple case studies and touches on the arenas of pop culture, sociology, business management and behavioural economics among others. Surowiecki's is a fascinating text that is key to considerations and theorisations about economics, politics and sociology.

Nikki Johnson Springer is currently a joint MBA and PhD Student at Yale University. Her dissertation focuses on the development of utility-scale solar energy on public lands in the American Southwest and the competing needs of industry incentives, habitat conservation, and federal regulation. Springer is the former Garvan Chair & Visiting Professor in Landscape Architecture at the University of Arkansas and has worked in design and sustainability roles for Walmart and the Walt Disney Company. She holds a Master of Landscape Architecture and Master of Urban Planning from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Ways in to the text Who is James Surowiecki? What does The Wisdom of Crowds Say? Why does The Wisdom of Crowds Matter? Section 1: Influences Module 1: The Author and the Historical Context Module 2: Academic Context Module 3: The Problem Module 4: The Author's Contribution Section 2: Ideas Module 5: Main Ideas Module 6: Secondary Ideas Module 7: Achievement Module 8: Place in the Author's Work Section 3: Impact Module 9: The First Responses Module 10: The Evolving Debate Module 11: Impact and Influence Today Module 12: Where Next? Glossary of Terms People Mentioned in the Text Works Cited