#644: Jonathan Haidt — The Coddling of the American Mind, How to Become Intellectually Antifragile, and How to Lose Anger by Studying Morality

Brought to you by Wealthfront automated investing , Helix Sleep premium mattresses , and Vuori comfortable and durable performance apparel. Jonathan Haidt ( @jonhaidt ) is a social psychologist at New York University’s Stern School of Business. Jonathan received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1992. His research examines the intuitive foundations of morality and how morality varies across cultural and political divisions. He is the author of The Happiness Hypothesis and the New York Times bestsellers The Righteous Mind and The Coddling of the American Mind (with Greg Lukianoff). He has given four TED Talks , and in 2019 he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Since 2018 Jonathan has been studying the contributions of social media to the decline of teen mental health and the rise of political dysfunction. He is currently writing two books: Kids in Space: Why Teen Mental Health Is Collapsing and Life after Babel: Adapting to a World We Can No Longer Share . Please enjoy! * This episode is brought to you by Wealthfront ! Wealthfront is an app that helps you save and invest your money. Right now, you can earn 3.8% APY—that’s the Annual Percentage Yield—with the Wealthfront Cash Account . That’s more than fifteen times more interest than if you left your money in a savings account at the average bank, according to FDIC.gov. It takes just a few minutes to sign up, and then you’ll immediately start earning 3.8% interest on your savings. And when you open an account today, you’ll get an extra fifty-dollar bonus with a deposit of five hundred dollars or more. Visit Wealthfront.com/Tim to get started. * This episode is also brought to you by Vuori Clothing ! Vuori is a new and fresh perspective on performance apparel, perfect if you are sick and tired of traditional, old workout gear. Everything is designed for maximum comfort and versatility so that you look and feel as good in everyday life as you do working out. Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet at VuoriClothing.com/Tim . Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase , but you’ll also enjoy free shipping on any US orders over $75 and free returns. * This episode is also brought to you by Helix Sleep ! Helix was selected as the #1 overall mattress of 2020 by GQ magazine , Wired, Apartment Therapy, and many others. With Helix , there’s a specific mattress to meet each and every body’s unique comfort needs. Just take their quiz— only two minutes to complete —that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk-free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. And now, Helix is offering up to 200 dollars off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at HelixSleep.com/Tim . * [06:51] Richard Shweder. [08:59] Making sense of assertions in anthropology. [13:50] Why I invited Jon on the show. [15:05] Moral relativism. [21:24] How an emergentist views human rights violations. [23:58] A turning point: why Jon almost never gets angry anymore. [26:35] Taking LSD for the first time. [32:21] My own transformative experience was happening simultaneously. [34:15] Were my politics influenced or altered by this experience? [40:17] What being a Jewish atheist means to Jon. [45:13] From feud to friendship with Sam Harris. [50:19] Complex dynamical system. [54:36] How safe spaces and character cancellation took over colleges. [1:00:50] Why did the University of Chicago initially resist this trend? [1:02:13] What makes businesses more resilient against this trend than colleges? [1:07:18] The University of Austin: a catalyst for academic reform? [1:11:16] The aim of Jon’s Heterodox Academy. [1:15:31] Distilling John Stuart Mill — the patron saint of viewpoint diversity. [1:17:26] Aging out of anger and the disarming power of Daryl Davis. [1:20:37] How to get smarter, stronger, and more sociable. [1:22:55] After Babbel. [1:24:46] What the holy and hitched can impart about happiness for the secular and single. [1:29:20] What’s happening to Gen Z? [1:32:17] Jon and his wife’s free-range parenting style for fostering independence. [1:37:30] Group sports vs. individualist sports. [1:40:40] A tough coach or teacher tests limits and taps potential. [1:46:38] Developing intellectual antifragility. [1:49:27] Jon’s billboard. [1:52:00] Revisiting practical philosophies when times get tough. [1:57:20] Parting thoughts. * For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show , please visit tim.blog/podcast . For deals from sponsors of The Tim Ferriss Show , please visit tim.blog/podcast-sponsors Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter ( 5-Bullet Friday ) at tim.blog/friday . For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts . Discover Tim’s books: tim.blog/books . 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