HAVE you ever judged a stranger by some superficial marker – their shoes, how they speak or what’s on their bookshelves? In the absence of any better information, it is only natural to resort to crude indicators like these to get some idea of what kind of person you are dealing with. If the outward signs suggest the two of you have things in common, don’t you respond more favourably to them? It is, after all, easier to interact with someone who is on your wavelength.
As this illustrates, humans have a deeply ingrained tendency to form groups. Now try replacing…
