Jonathan Haidt's Home Page
(it's pronounced "height")

I am a Professor in the Social Psychology area of the Department of Psychology at the University of Virginia. (For the current academic year I'm the Henry Kaufman visiting professor of business ethics at the NYU-Stern School of Business.) I study morality and emotion, and how they vary across cultures. I am also active in positive psychology (the scientific study of human flourishing) and study positive emotions such as moral elevation, admiration, and awe.

My research these days focuses on the moral foundations of politics, and on ways to transcend the “culture wars” by using recent discoveries in moral psychology to foster more civil forms of politics. Morality, by its very nature, makes it hard to study morality. It binds people together into teams that seek victory, not truth. It closes hearts and minds to opponents even as it makes cooperation and decency possible within groups.

To live virtuously as individuals and as societies, we must understand how our minds are built (see ch. 1 of The Happiness Hypothesis). We must find ways to overcome our natural self-righteousness (see ch. 4). We must respect and even learn from those whose morality differs from our own (see this talk or this essay on politics, or this essay on religion).

To read about the controversy over partisanship in the social sciences, click here
To see my talk with Bill Moyers, click here

Righteous Mind Cover

The Righteous Mind:
Coming March 13, 2012

The Happiness Hypothesis

Research and Publications (full list)

Major articles:
The Emotional Dog and its Rational Tail (in Psychological Review, 2001)

The New Synthesis in Moral Psychology (in Science, 2007)
Moral Psychology and the Misunderstanding of Religion (on Edge.org, 2007)

Morality (a comprehensive review of moral psych, Handbook of Social Psych, 2010)

Major talks:

The moral foundations of political ideology (at TED.com, 2008)

The New Science of Morality (Edge.org, 2010)

The Bright Future of Postpartisan Social Psych (at SPSP 2011)

        Discussion with the Dalai Lama, on "Secular Ethics," at University of Southern California,
      May 3, 2011. My presentation begins at 17:00. My two "debates" with the Dalai Lama
          begin at 53:20 (I urge parochialism as a way to increase altruism) and 1:32:45 (I
         challenge him to defend Marxism as a way of spreading compassion)

Recent scientific articles:
       Liberals and conservatives rely on different moral foundations (Empirical evidence
          for moral foundations theory, in JPSP, 2009)
       Witnessing excellence in action (Empirical evidence about elevation and
          admiration, 2009)

Recent political essays:

How to get the rich to share the marbles. (New York Times, 2/20/12)

The moral foundations of Occupy Wall Street (Reason Magazine)

Why we celebrate a killing. (New York Times, Op-Ed, 5/7/2011)

What the tea partiers really want (Wall St. Journal, 10/16/10)

My posts on the YourMorals.org Blog
My posts on the CivilPolitics.org Blog

Other recent essays:

Review of Anthony Appiah's The Honor Code (NYT Book Review, 10/24/10)
Fast Evolution. (Chronicle of Higher Education, 9/3/10)

Articles about my work, and other talks available online

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Teaching

Positive Psychology Stuff

Haidt Lab Group

Curriculum Vitae

Websites I run:
.... Measure your morals at www.YourMorals.org
. .....www.HappinessHypothesis.com
......www.MoralFoundations.org (homepage for moral foundations theory)
.. .....www.DisgustScale.org (resources for studying disgust)
... ....www.CivilPolitics.org (resources to promote civil politics)
... ....www.RighteousMind.com (homepage for my next book)

Upcoming Talks I'm Giving:
--On Bill Moyers' new show, Feb 5 and 6
--Long Beach CA, Feb 28, TED conference, speaking on hive psychology
--Charlottesville VA, March 19, 2012, Miller Center, UVA, lecture on civility in politics
--Charlottesville VA, March 20, 2012: Lecture on morality and politics (with David Brooks), at the Batten School of Public Policy, UVA
--Washington DC, March 21, 7:00 pm, at 6th and I
--New York City, March 29, 6:30 pm, NYU Bookstore, with Jonathan Moreno
--Vancouver BC, April 2 and 3: lectures at U. of British Columbia
--Seattle WA, April 4 2012: talk on The Righteous Mind at the American Philosophical Association annual meeting.
--Seattle WA, April 4 2012, 7:30-9pm, Seattle Town Hall
--London UK, April 10 and 11, several talks incluing RSA
--Philadelphia PA, April 21, Book Festival, and science festival, at Free Library
--Binghamton NY, April 23, EVOS lecture, at Binghamton U.
--May 1, Westport CT, Coyle Lecture at Greens Farms Academy, public lecture in evening
--Princeton NJ, May 8, 4:30 pm, Madison lecture at Princeton U.
--Stanford CA, May 23, colloquium at Stanford dept of psychology
--Chicago IL, May 25, noon, talk at Union League
--Chicago IL, May 25, 6:30pm, Winnetka Congregational Church
--Chicago IL, May 26: Talk on The Righteous Mind, at Association for Psychological Science
--Tuscaloosa AL, Sept 10, Meador lecture at U. of Alabama Law School
--Columbus GA, Oct. 11, Chattahoochie Valley Library
--San Antonio TX, Nov 9, Kohlberg Memorial Lecture, at Association for Moral Education

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Mailing address (Until July 2012):
NYU-Stern School of Business
Business and Society Program, Tisch Hall 434
40 West 4th Street
New York, NY 10012

Email: haidt at virginia.edu

Follow me on Twitter here

For speaking engagements contact the Lavin Agency

Literary agent: Brockman Inc.

Flourishing

(this is a more academic book, a collection of essays that I co-edited)

Last Updated on Feb 20, 2012 by Jon Haidt

unique visits since March, 2001 ...

Jonathan Haidt's Home Page (it's pronounced "height")

Jonathan Haidt's Home Page
(it's pronounced "height")