How Are Those Luxury Beliefs Working Out? Rob Henderson and the coinage that keeps on giving (FULL INTERVIEW)

Aug 26, 2025

This conversation features Rob Henderson, a social psychologist and author who coined 'luxury beliefs.' Rob discusses the mating crisis plaguing young people as they hesitate to form partnerships and families. He critiques societal shifts, exploring how luxury beliefs influence cultural norms around family and relationships. The discussion also touches on declining birth rates and the emergence of societal figures like Zohran Mamdani, highlighting the impact of these beliefs on marginalized communities. Prepare for an engaging dialogue on social dynamics!

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INSIGHT

What Luxury Beliefs Explain

Luxury beliefs are ideas that elevate elite status while harming lower-income people.
Rob Henderson traces their origin in universities and shows how they spread into politics and culture.

INSIGHT

The Growing Gender Political Divide

Young women are shifting left politically while men trend differently, creating a growing gender divide.
Henderson links this to changing identities and cultural signals rather than simple voting shifts.

ANECDOTE

A Student Turns To Pickup Theory

A well-dressed college senior told Rob he found 'The Rational Male' helpful despite the author's reputation.
This surprised Henderson and revealed crossover appeal of pickup and 'red pill' ideas among mainstream young men.

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This week, I welcome back Rob Henderson, the social psychologist, author, and commentator who coined the concept of luxury beliefs: ideas that confer status on the upper class while inflicting real costs on lower-income communities. Rob was last here in early 2024 discussing his memoir, Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class, which chronicles his journey through California’s foster system to the Air Force, and onward to Yale and Cambridge. In this conversation, we explore what he’s been thinking about since the book’s release—particularly the so-called “mating crisis,” why many young people delay or avoid partnerships and family, and what that means for the future. We also dissect the emergence of Zohran Mamdani, the New York City mayoral hopeful who, according to Rob (and I would concur), embodies luxury beliefs in action. Finally, Rob answers questions from Substack readers.

Rob will be a speaker at our Unspeakeasy Small Gathering for Big Ideas weekend, October 11-12 in New York City. Programming and ticketing info here.

GUEST BIO

Rob Henderson is the author of Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class. He grew up in foster homes in Los Angeles and in the rural town of Red Bluff, California. After enlisting in the U.S. Air Force at the age of seventeen, he subsequently attended Yale on the GI Bill and was then awarded the Gates Cambridge Scholarship to study at the University of Cambridge, where he obtained a PhD in psychology in 2022. He is currently a Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, and his Substack newsletter is sent each week to more than 70 thousand subscribers.

HOUSEKEEPING

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Stuff to read and listen to:

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