Books by Jonathan Haidt
Jonathan Haidt is Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical Leadership at NYU Stern School of Business. Previously, he was a psychologist at the University of Virginia. He is the author of The Happiness Hypothesis.
“Another must-read, out in March, is The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness. It’s by psychologist Jonathan Haidt, author of one of my favourite books, The Happiness Hypothesis. Since 2010, rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide have risen sharply among teenagers around the developed world, and Haidt explores why. This is something that touches all of us: I live in rural Oxfordshire, but the bridge at the end of my road is currently closed after more than one person jumped off it. Instinctively, I blame it on social media, but look forward to reading a more nuanced analysis of what’s going on—as well as some possible solutions.” Read more...
Nonfiction Books to Look Out for in Early 2024
Sophie Roell, Journalist
The Coddling of the American Mind
by Greg Lukianoff & Jonathan Haidt
New paperback release: 20th August 2019 (US); 6th June 2019 (UK)
The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure was named the best book of 2018 by Bloomberg, as well as spending four weeks on the New York Times best-seller list. Written by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt and president of FIRE Greg Lukianoff, it has been a fiercely controversial book, addressing the rise of what the authors call "safetyism" on college campuses. As such, it examines the rise of "safe spaces", "no-platforming", and "trigger warnings" alongside inflammatory free speech debates.
In The Coddling of the American Mind, the authors propose the provocative thesis that many of the steps currently taken to safeguard psychological health on college campuses may, in fact, be doing more harm in the long run. With rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide rising, the authors say this is a call for alarm.
Jonathan Haidt spoke to Five Books about the best books on happiness.
“Haidt has a formula for happiness: Genetics + conditions + choices. This is a formula for a realistic approach to trying to achieve the good life. There’s something out of your control, which is your genetic heritage. We’d be foolish to deny that this has something to do with who we are…But conditions and choices are things that are more under our control. He talks about how the conditions that you live under affect your happiness…He uses a lot of Eastern as well as Western philosophy. He looks at some of the major insights and chunks of wisdom within these traditions, but then he relates them to contemporary psychological research, and he assesses them in relation to that.” Read more...
The best books on Philosophy and Everyday Living
Emrys Westacott, Philosopher
Interviews with Jonathan Haidt
The best books on Happiness, recommended by Jonathan Haidt
Most of us want to be happy, and yet it’s hard to achieve. Jonathan Haidt, psychologist and author of the classic The Happiness Hypothesis, talks us through five books, old and new, to better understand happiness.
Interviews where books by Jonathan Haidt were recommended
The best books on Philosophy and Everyday Living, recommended by Emrys Westacott
Philosophy is sometimes assumed to be a dry, academic subject but it also has much to say about how we live, love and relate to each other. Emrys Westacott chooses the best books on philosophy and everyday living.
The best books on Neuroscience, recommended by David Brooks
It’s hard to understand many things about the world around us without a knowledge of the unconscious workings of the brain, argues the New York Times columnist David Brooks. He chooses five accessible books that’ll get you into neuroscience as well.
-
1
The Shortest History of Economics
by Andrew Leigh -
2
Maurice and Maralyn: A Whale, a Shipwreck, a Love Story
by Sophie Elmhirst -
3
Vagabond Princess: The Great Adventures of Gulbadan
by Ruby Lal -
4
How the World Made the West: A 4,000-Year History
by Josephine Quinn -
5
Third Millennium Thinking: Creating Sense in a World of Nonsense
Saul Perlmutter, Robert MacCoun and John Campbell
Nonfiction Books to Look Out for in Early 2024, recommended by Sophie Roell
Nonfiction Books to Look Out for in Early 2024, recommended by Sophie Roell
From the origins of sex to the effects of social media, from the invention of the wheel to the race against climate change, Five Books editor Sophie Roell gives an overview of the new nonfiction books appearing in January, February and March of 2024.
