The definition of an outlier varies depending on the situation and the perspective. Malcolm Gladwell gives the definition "something that is situated away from or classed differently from a main or related body" or "a statistical observation that is markedly different in value than the others in the sample." This definition is nearly identical to the one provided by Webster's dictionary. However, the real meaning of outlier is more complicated than a two- line definition.
In some cases, the word outlier is considered a negative title. For example, if someone is a social outlier, this usually means that they are unable to, or unwilling to, get along with others in social situations. In this case, being an outlier has harmful impacts on the overall health of the person.
However, the word outlier can have positive connotations as well. For example, Gladwell mentions Bill Joy who is considered an outlier because of his prodigious skills in the computer programming world. Joy began programming when the process was tedious, but he created programs that are still used to this day. In this case, his intelligence and natural ability made him an outlier.
In order to make a definition that incorporates both of these ideas, one must be sure to include the positive and negative connotations. A good definition could be: "any person that is, for some reason, very noticeable in a large group and this difference, whatever it may be, has a significant impact on their life." Notice that this definition only builds on the one that Gladwell provided. It is impossible to provide a concrete definition for the word outlier because the word can be used in so many different contexts. Gladwell did a pretty good job with his definition because he left it open to interpretation. This proves to be the most important part because whether a person represents an outlier is all a matter of interpretation. While this explanation, of an outlier will not provide a clear definition for every situation, it does provide a solid base with which one can judge a situation.
I completely agree with what you mentioned about the definition of an outlier being open to interpretation. Being an outlier can be a good or bad thing. It depends largely on how society views it.
ReplyDeleteI think anytimes society is left to interpret whether something is good or bad you have a variety of opinions contridictions, like whether being and outlier is good or bad. I really like how you combined all the definitions and incorporated them into one, bringing both positive and negative aspects to the table.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you kinda put the definition of an outlier into categories "social" and "smarts". I agree that it's open to interpretation. I like how you show both the bad and good side of being an outlier. I agree that society tends to define success, making people social outliers.
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