Reviews
"Jonathan Haidt is one of smartest and most creative psychologists alive, and his newest book, The Righteous Mind, is a tour de force-a brave, brilliant and eloquent exploration of the most important issues of our time. It will challenge the way you think about liberals and conservatives, atheism and religion, good and evil. This is the book that everyone will be talking about." Paul Bloom, Yale University, Author of How Pleasure Works "As a fellow who listens to heated political debate daily, I was fascinated, enlightened, and even amused by Haidt's brilliant insights. This penetrating yet accessible book will help readers understand the righteous minds that inhabit politics." Larry Sabato, University of Virginia, author of A More Perfect Constitution "A profound discussion of the diverse psychological roots of morality and their role in producing political conflicts. It's not too much to hope that the book will help to reduce those conflicts." Richard E. Nisbett, University of Michigan, author of The Geography of Thought "The Righteous Mind refutes the "New Atheists" and shows that religion is a central part of our moral heritage. Haidt's brilliant synthesis shows that Christians have nothing to fear and much to gain from the evolutionary paradigm." Michael Dowd, author of Thank God for Evolution "Haidt's research has revolutionized the field of moral psychology. This elegantly written book has far-reaching implications for anyone interested in politics, religion, or the many controversies that divide modern societies. If you want to know why you hold your moral beliefs, and why many people disagree with you, read this book". Simon Baron-Cohen, Cambridge University, Author of The Science of Evil " The Righteous Mind is an intellectual tour de force that brings Darwinian theorizing to the practical realm of everyday politics. The book is beautifully written, and it is truly unusual to encounter a book that makes a major theoretical contribution yet encourages one to turn its pages enthusiastically." Christopher Boehm, University of Southern California, author of Moral Origins . "Here is the first attempt to give an in depth analysis of the underlying moral stance and dispositions of liberals and conservatives. I couldn't put it down and discovered things about myself!" Michael Gazzaniga, University of California, Santa Barbara, author of The Ethical Brain, "Jonathan Haidt is one of smartest and most creative psychologists alive, and his newest book, The Righteous Mind, is a tour de force-a brave, brilliant and eloquent exploration of the most important issues of our time. It will challenge the way you think about liberals and conservatives, atheism and religion, good and evil. This is the book that everyone will be talking about."-Paul Bloom, Yale University, Author of How Pleasure Works "As a fellow who listens to heated political debate daily, I was fascinated, enlightened, and even amused by Haidt's brilliant insights. This penetrating yet accessible book will help readers understand the righteous minds that inhabit politics." -Larry Sabato, University of Virginia, author of A More Perfect Constitution "A remarkable and original synthesis of social psychology, political analysis, and moral reasoning that reflects the best of sciences in these fields and adds evidence that we are innately capable of the decency and righteousness needed for societies to survive." -Edward O. Wilson, University Research Professor Emeritus, Harvard University "A profound discussion of the diverse psychological roots of morality and their role in producing political conflicts. It's not too much to hope that the book will help to reduce those conflicts." -Richard E. Nisbett, University of Michigan, author of The Geography of Thought "The Righteous Mind refutes the "New Atheists" and shows that religion is a central part of our moral heritage. Haidt's brilliant synthesis shows that Christians have nothing to fear and much to gain from the evolutionary paradigm."-Michael Dowd, author of Thank God for Evolution "Haidt's research has revolutionized the field of moral psychology. This elegantly written book has far-reaching implications for anyone interested in politics, religion, or the many controversies that divide modern societies. If you want to know why you hold your moral beliefs, and why many people disagree with you, read this book". -Simon Baron-Cohen, Cambridge University, Author of The Science of Evil " The Righteous Mind is an intellectual tour de force that brings Darwinian theorizing to the practical realm of everyday politics. The book is beautifully written, and it is truly unusual to encounter a book that makes a major theoretical contribution yet encourages one to turn its pages enthusiastically." -Christopher Boehm, University of Southern California, author of Moral Origins . "Here is the first attempt to give an in depth analysis of the underlying moral stance and dispositions of liberals and conservatives. I couldn't put it down and discovered things about myself!" -Michael Gazzaniga, University of California, Santa Barbara, author of The Ethical Brain "Haidt's a good thing." The Atlantic online, "Haidt's research has revolutionized the field of moral psychology. His elegantly written book has far-reaching implications for anyone interested in politics, religion, or the many controversies that divide modern societies. If you want to know why you hold your moral beliefs, and why many people disagree with you, read this book." Simon Baron-Cohen, Cambridge University, Author of Zero Degrees of Empathy and The Science of Evil "A profound discussion of the diverse psychological roots of morality and their role in producing political conflicts. It's not too much to hope that the book will help to reduce those conflicts." Richard E. Nisbett, University of Michigan, "What drives our personal morality (like judging that eating your pet dog after it dies is bad)? What determines our political or religious beliefs (like preferring burial over cremation)? Why do some people love new experiences (for example, trying new foods) whilst others treating them as 'untouchable'? Jon Haidt's highly readable book is an elegantly written revelation of how powerful evolved emotions (like betrayal or disgust) sway our judgment and our reasons for our values (like loyalty or justice). His research has revolutionized the field of moral psychology by 'Darwinizing' it, providing answers to questions that have puzzled philosophers for millenia. His book has far-reaching implications for anthropology, politics, moral philosophy and social psychology. If you want someone to get under your skin, to surgically reveal why you feel your beliefs are right, read this book." Simon Baron-Cohen, Cambridge University, Author of Zero Degrees of Empathy and The Science of Evil "A profound discussion of the diverse psychological roots of morality and their role in producing political conflicts. It's not too much to hope that the book will help to reduce those conflicts." Richard E. Nisbett, University of Michigan, "Haidt's research has revolutionized the field of moral psychology. His elegantly written book has far-reaching implications for anyone interested in politics, religion, or the many controversies that divide modern societies. If you want to know why you hold your moral beliefs, and why many people disagree with you, read this book." Simon Baron-Cohen, Cambridge University, Author of Zero Degrees of Empathy and The Science of Evil "A profound discussion of the diverse psychological roots of morality and their role in producing political conflicts. It's not too much to hope that the book will help to reduce those conflicts." Richard E. Nisbett, University of Michigan From the Hardcover edition.
Synopsis
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The #1 bestselling author of The Anxious Generation and acclaimed social psychologist challenges conventional thinking about morality, politics, and religion in a way that speaks to conservatives and liberals alike--a "landmark contribution to humanity's understanding of itself" ( The New York Times Book Review ). Drawing on his twenty-five years of groundbreaking research on moral psychology, Jonathan Haidt shows how moral judgments arise not from reason but from gut feelings. He shows why liberals, conservatives, and libertarians have such different intuitions about right and wrong, and he shows why each side is actually right about many of its central concerns. In this subtle yet accessible book, Haidt gives you the key to understanding the miracle of human cooperation, as well as the curse of our eternal divisions and conflicts. If you're ready to trade in anger for understanding, read The Righteous Mind ., NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The #1 bestselling author of The Anxious Generation and acclaimed social psychologist challenges conventional thinking about morality, politics, and religion in a way that speaks to conservatives and liberals alike--a "landmark contribution to humanity's understanding of itself" ( The New York Times Book Review ). Drawing on his twenty-five years of groundbreaking research on moral psychology, Jonathan Haidt shows how moral judgments arise not from reason but from gut feelings. He shows why liberals, conservatives, and libertarians have such different intuitions about right and wrong, and he shows why each side is actually right about many of its central concerns. In this subtle yet accessible book, Haidt gives you the key to understanding the miracle of human cooperation, as well as the curse of our eternal divisions and conflicts. If you're ready to trade in anger for understanding, read The Righteous Mind ., Why can't our political leaders work together as threats loom and problems mount? Why do people so readily assume the worst about the motives of their fellow citizens? In The Righteous Mind, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt explores the origins of our divisions and points the way forward to mutual understanding. His starting point is moral intuition--the nearly instantaneous perceptions we all have about other people and the things they do. These intuitions feel like self-evident truths, making us righteously certain that those who see things differently are wrong. Haidt shows us how these intuitions differ across cultures, including the cultures of the political left and right. He blends his own research findings with those of anthropologists, historians, and other psychologists to draw a map of the moral domain, and he explains why conservatives can navigate that map more skillfully than can liberals. He then examines the origins of morality, overturning the view that evolution made us fundamentally selfish creatures. But rather than arguing that we are innately altruistic, he makes a more subtle claim--that we are fundamentally groupish. It is our groupishness, he explains, that leads to our greatest joys, our religious divisions, and our political affiliations. In a stunning final chapter on ideology and civility, Haidt shows what each side is right about, and why we need the insights of liberals, conservatives, and libertarians to flourish as a nation.
