Previous
Terms
Coupling Theory is the idea that certain behaviors are “coupled,” or linked, with a particular set of circumstances. Gladwell introduces Coupling Theory in Chapter Ten in his analysis of Sylvia Plath’s suicide and suicide trends in the United States, England, and Wales across the 20th century. Drawing on research conducted by criminologist Ronald Clarke, Gladwell shows that suicide rates between World War I and the late 1970s correspond with the use of “town gas” (gas that contains high levels of deadly carbon monoxide) in household appliances. Suicide rates increased after town gas was introduced after World War II and decreased as London phased out town gas in favor of natural gas, which contains considerably less carbon monoxide. This suggests that suicide is linked with access to poisonous carbon monoxide gas. Gladwell later applies coupling theory to his analysis of the Kansas City experiments in preventative patrolling.
Coupling Theory Quotes in Talking to Strangers
The Talking to Strangers quotes below are all either spoken by Coupling Theory or refer to Coupling Theory. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 10 Quotes
Like suicide, crime is tied to very specific places and contexts. Weisburd’s experiences in the 72nd Precinct and in Minneapolis are not idiosyncratic. They capture something close to a fundamental truth about human behavior. And that means that when you confront the stranger, you have to ask yourself where and when you’re confronting the stranger—because those two things powerfully influence your interpretation of who the stranger is.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
In Chapter Ten, Gladwell introduces Coupling Theory, which argues that certain behaviors are “coupled,” or linked, with a specific context or set of circumstances. Gladwell illustrates the theory by highlighting a link between increased suicide rates and the use of “town gas” to power home appliances, and then describing the relationship between crime and location. David Weisburd’s research on crime in Minneapolis, for instance, revealed that 50% of police calls came from just 3.3 percent of the city’s streets. Knowing that certain behaviors like crime and suicide are connected with specific contexts allows us to understand and respond to these Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qu
Don’t look at the stranger and jump to conclusions. Look at the stranger’s world.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
In these closing remarks to Chapter Ten, Gladwell summarizes how we can apply the principles of Coupling Theory to help us with the complicated task of making sense of strangers. Coupling Theory argues that certain behaviors are linked with a particular context or set of circumstances. Gladwell argues that we should apply this same logic to stranger interactions, understanding which outside factors influence a stranger’s behaviors to communicate more effectively and knowledgeably with them. When we find ourselves having to interact with people we don’t know, it can be tempting to make snap judgments about them based on superficial details, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum.
Chapter 11 Quotes
There is something about the idea of coupling—of the notion that a stranger’s behavior is tightly connected to place and context—that eludes us. It leads us to misunderstand some of our greatest poets, to be indifferent to the suicidal, and to send police officers on senseless errands. So what happens when a police officer carries that fundamental misconception—and then you add to that the problems of default to truth and transparency? You get Sandra Bland.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
In the closing remarks of Chapter Eleven, Gladwell invokes the tragic death of Sandra Bland as a cautionary tale. He urges the reader to apply the principles of Coupling Theory to our stranger encounters to heighten understanding and guard against the kinds of misunderstanding that colored Bland’s encounter with Officer Brian Encinia and, ultimately, resulted in her death. When we fail to recognize that “a stranger’s behavior is tightly connected to place and context,” Gladwell insists that we compromise our ability to understand the stranger as a complex person with unique views and behaviors that may not be transparent to Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequ
Get the entire Talking to Strangers LitChart as a printable PDF.
"My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." -Graham S.
Coupling Theory Term Timeline in Talking to Strangers
The timeline below shows where the term Coupling Theory appears in Talking to Strangers. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter Ten: Sylvia Plath
The second possibility—“that suicide is a behavior coupled to a particular context”—suggests that the act of suicide is tied to circumstance. To illustrate...
(full context)
If suicide is a coupled behavior, then it’s not merely something that depressed people do: it’s something depressed people do...
(full context)
Criminologist Ronald Clarke argues in favor of suicide as a coupled behavior. In a 1988 essay, he describes how the painlessness and ease of access of...
(full context)
...offers the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco as further evidence of suicide as a coupled behavior. Since its completion in 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge has been the site of...
(full context)
...around the bridge. Gladwell attributes this delay to society’s unwillingness to see suicide as a coupled behavior. As evidence, Gladwell cites a national survey that found that 75 percent of Americans...
(full context)
...pass by might believe the women “do not have long to live,” the principles of coupling theory encourage us to take the opposite approach: States Gladwell, “Don’t look at the stranger...
(full context)
Chapter Eleven: Case Study: The Kansas City Experiments
...chapter. While these three men’s interests vary, all three are alike in their focus on coupling. To Gladwell, coupling’s relevance within law enforcement is simple: it means that cities don’t need...
(full context)
Gladwell attributes law enforcement’s unwillingness to practice concentrated policing on humanity’s misconceptions about coupling, or “the notion that a stranger’s behavior is tightly connected to place and context.” Furthermore,...
(full context)
