In this book, Jonathan Haidt draws on twenty-five years of research on moral psychology to explain why people's moral judgments are driven by intuition rather than reason. He introduces the Moral Foundations Theory, which posits that human morality is based on six foundations: care/harm, fairness/cheating, loyalty/betrayal, authority/subversion, sanctity/degradation, and liberty/oppression. Haidt argues that liberals tend to focus on the care/harm and fairness/cheating foundations, while conservatives draw on all six. The book also explores how morality binds and blinds people, leading to social cohesion but also to conflicts. Haidt aims to promote understanding and civility by highlighting the commonalities and differences in moral intuitions across political spectra.
In this book, Steven Pinker argues that language is an innate human ability, produced by evolution to solve the problem of communication among social hunter-gatherers. He explains how language works, how children learn it, how it changes, and how the brain computes it. Pinker refutes common ideas such as the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis and the notion that language is a human invention. He supports his argument with examples from linguistics, psychology, and popular culture, emphasizing that language is a specialized 'mental module' rather than a mark of advanced intelligence. The book also includes updates on advances in the science of language since its initial publication.
In 'Enlightenment Now', Steven Pinker presents a comprehensive argument that the values of the Enlightenment—reason, science, and humanism—have been instrumental in the progress of human society. He challenges the prevailing pessimism in modern discourse by presenting empirical evidence that life, health, prosperity, safety, peace, knowledge, and happiness are on the rise globally. Pinker uses data and graphs to illustrate improvements in various aspects of human life, such as increased life expectancy, reduced child and maternal mortality, and advancements in medicine and technology. He also addresses the psychological biases that lead people to underestimate these improvements and emphasizes the importance of continuing to uphold Enlightenment ideals to ensure further progress.
Mama's Last Hug is a compelling book that delves into the emotional lives of animals, using the story of Mama, a chimpanzee matriarch, as a central narrative. Frans de Waal explores various emotions such as love, hate, fear, shame, guilt, joy, disgust, and empathy across different species, including chimpanzees, dogs, rats, and elephants. The book argues that humans and other animals share a common emotional landscape and challenges the traditional views of behaviorism. De Waal's work emphasizes the importance of understanding and recognizing the emotional lives of animals and their implications for human behavior and ethics.
In this book, Joseph Henrich explores how Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD) populations developed their unique psychological profiles. He argues that changes in family structures, marriage, and religion, particularly influenced by the Roman Catholic Church, led to the emergence of WEIRD psychology. This psychology is characterized by individualism, self-obsession, control-orientation, nonconformity, and analytical thinking, which contrast with the more group-focused and shame-driven cultures of non-Western societies. Henrich uses research from anthropology, psychology, economics, and evolutionary biology to explain how these psychological differences contributed to the industrial revolution and the global expansion of Europe[1][4][5].
In 'The Happiness Hypothesis,' Jonathan Haidt delves into the nature of happiness, fulfillment, and meaning. He discusses the division of the self into two parts: the primitive limbic system and the rational neocortex, using the metaphor of a rider and an elephant to explain the relationship between conscious and unconscious processes. Haidt examines 'Great Ideas' from ancient thinkers like Plato, Buddha, and Jesus, and evaluates them in light of contemporary psychological research. He argues that happiness is influenced by both internal and external factors, including biological set points, life conditions, and voluntary activities. The book also explores the importance of social relationships, the role of adversity in personal growth, and the concept of 'vital engagement' in work and life[2][3][5].
In this book, Steven Pinker presents a detailed argument that violence has significantly decreased over the course of human history. He uses extensive data and statistical analysis to demonstrate this decline in various domains, including military conflict, homicide, genocide, torture, and the treatment of children, homosexuals, animals, and racial and ethnic minorities. Pinker identifies four key human motivations – empathy, self-control, the moral sense, and reason – as the 'better angels' that have oriented humans away from violence and towards cooperation and altruism. He also discusses historical forces such as the rise of the state (which he terms 'Leviathan'), the spread of commerce, the growth of feminist values, and the expansion of cosmopolitanism, which have contributed to this decline in violence[1][4][5].
The book explores how the ideas 'what doesn’t kill you makes you weaker,' 'always trust your feelings,' and 'life is a battle between good people and evil people' have become embedded in American culture. These 'Great Untruths' contradict basic psychological principles and ancient wisdom, leading to a culture of safetyism that interferes with young people’s social, emotional, and intellectual development. The authors investigate various social trends, including fearful parenting, the decline of unsupervised play, and the impact of social media, as well as changes on college campuses and the broader context of political polarization in America.
Jonathan Haidt discusses two dominant stories about capitalism: one portraying it as exploitation and the other as a liberating force. He suggests the need for a third narrative that balances economic benefits with social and environmental sustainability. This concept is part of his broader work on moral psychology and its influence on economic thinking.
Why Humans Cooperate: A Cultural and Evolutionary Explanation delves into the evolution of human cooperation by integrating evolutionary theories, economic experiments, and an anthropological case study of the Chaldeans in metropolitan Detroit. The book examines how kinship, ethnicity, and cultural traditions contribute to cooperative behavior across generations. It also discusses how cultural learning and social norms influence prosociality and cooperation.
This episode was recorded on June 6th, 2021.
Dr Peterson, Steven Pinker, and Jonathan Haidt sit down to discuss truth, how societies function, utopias, the role of religion, & more.
Steven Pinker is a psychology professor at Harvard. He's the author of Enlightenment Now and The Blank Slate. His 12th book, "Rationality," is out now. Dr. Pinker has received many awards and often writes for The Guardian and The NY Times.
Jonathan Haidt is a social psychologist at NYU Stern. His research focuses on the intuitive foundations of morality across cultures. He's the author of The Righteous Mind and The Coddling of the American Mind. His next book, "Three Stories about Capitalism," is expected by 2022.
Follow Steven's Twitter:
https://twitter.com/sapinker
Read Steven Pinker's book:
https://stevenpinker.com/publications/rationality-what-it-why-it-seems-so-scarce-and-why-it-matters
Find more Jonathan Haidt here:
https://www.thecoddling.com/
Read Jonathan's book:
https://www.amazon.com/Coddling-American-Mind-Intentions-Generation/dp/0735224919
Jonathan's most recent essay:
https://www.persuasion.community/p/haidt-monomania-is-illiberal-and
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[0:00] Intro
[00:18] Jordan introduces guests Dr. Stephen Pinker and Dr. Jonathan Haidt
[02:47] Catching up with the recent research and endeavors of Jonathan Haidt. Elaborating on the framework of moralism versus true and false when viewing the world
[07:00] How cognitive biases lead to a more pessimistic view of the world
[10:30] The problems with the idea of utopia and its beneficial uses when properly inserted into a society's belief (religious) structure
[18:00] Examining the role group religions play in bringing people together
[24:30] Jordan highlights the role he believes Christianity had in turning people's attention to the evil within us all
[29:30] Reflections on Enlightenment Now. How do you engage people towards a higher set of goals without religion as a backbone?
[38:00] Is the world we live in a new frontier based on the expanding influence of the internet and social media on individuals' decision-making?
[48:00] Discussion on the dangers posed by the new world to the endurance of liberal democracies
[56:00] Finding truth in the post-2012 social media revolution
[1:06:00] The rate of change in modern life
[1:07:00] The Righteous Mind, Haidt's interpretation of the religious instinct/impulse and why he gets a positive reaction from religious crowds
[1:06:00] Saying goodbye to Dr. Pinker due to time constraints
[1:17:30] The human ability for imitation through learning or exploring
[1:25:30] Religion as a social function? Or an inherent impulse inside us all to find higher states?
[1:29:30] Comparing views on the central uniting principle of groups, societies, or human beings for that matter
[1:33:00] Is the extreme claim that power is the central driving factor of western European civilization grounded in reality?
[1:37:52] Is having a common purpose or shared beliefs a more powerful way of bringing people together?
[1:45:00] Recounting Haidt's research on disgust in both humans and animals
[1:52:00] Exploring any correlation to disgust levels and political beliefs/alliance
[02:02:30] Wrapping up
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast 
