BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS:
(Available as Print: ©12/26/2006; PAGES: 297; Unabridged.)
(Available as Digital: Yes)
*This version: Audio : ©5/23/2018; DURATION: 10:18:00; Unabridged
Other media: I don’t think so.

SUMMARY/ EVALUATION:
This book skillfully combines science with philosophy. Among the topics of discussion are passionate vs companionate love, and how one may or may not segue into the other; nurture vs nature studies—is our most pervasive world-view/attitude in our genes; physical indications of pessimism in the brain; and more. I enjoyed this book QUITE a bit.

AUTHOR:
Jonathan Haidt October 19, 1963. According to Wikipedia, Jonathan “s an American social psychologist, Professor of Ethical Leadership at New York University Stern School of Business,[1] and author. His main areas of study are the psychology of morality and moral emotions.
Haidt's main scientific contributions come from the psychological field of moral foundations theory,[2] which attempts to explain the evolutionary origins of human moral reasoning on the basis of innate, gut feelings rather than logical reason.[3] The theory was later extended to explain the different moral reasoning and how they relate to political ideology, with different political orientations prioritizing different sets of morals.[4] The research served as a foundation for future books on various topics.
Haidt has written three books for general audiences: The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom (2006) explores the relationship between ancient philosophies and modern science;[5] The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion (2012) examines how morality is shaped by emotion and intuition more than by reasoning, and why differing political groups have different notions of right and wrong;[6] and The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure (2018), co-written with Greg Lukianoff, explores the rising political polarization and changing culture on college campuses, and its effects on mental health.”

NARRATOR:
Ryan Vincent Anderson. According to IMDb, “Ryan was born and raised in Queens, NY. After a five year architecture degree program at the esteemed Carnegie Mellon university in Pittsburgh, PA, Ryan was accepted into the MFA Acting program at CalArts. There he spent three years honing his craft in theater, film, and voice over. Immediately after CalArts he ventured off to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival for two full seasons before returning to his home base in Los Angeles. Aside from being a well-rounded actor, Ryan's passions also lay in art and design.”
Ryan does a wonderful narration of this book.

GENRE:
Non-Fiction; Psychology; Philosophy

SUBJECTS:
Philosophy; Psychology; Science; Emotions; Happiness

DEDICATION:
“for Jayne”

SAMPLE QUOTATION: From Chapter One “The Divided Self”
“At this point in the story, we’ll be ready to ask: Where does happiness come from? There are several different “happiness hypotheses.” One is that happiness comes from getting what you want, but we all know (and research confirms) that such happiness is short-lived. A more promising hypothesis is that happiness comes from within and cannot be obtained by making the world conform to your desires. This idea was widespread in the ancient world: Buddha in India and the Stoic philosophers in ancient Greece and Rome all counseled people to break their emotional attachments to people and events, which are always unpredictable and uncontrollable, and to cultivate instead an attitude of acceptance. This ancient idea deserves respect, and it is certainly true that changing your mind is usually a more effective response to frustration than is changing the world. However, I will present evidence that this second version of the happiness hypothesis is wrong. Recent research shows that there are some things worth striving for; there are external conditions of life that can make you lastingly happier. One of these conditions is relatedness—the bonds we form, and need to form, with others. I’ll present research showing where love comes from, why passionate love always cools, and what kind of love is “true” love. I’ll suggest that the happiness hypothesis offered by Buddha and the Stoics should be amended: Happiness comes from within, and happiness comes from without. We need the guidance of both ancient wisdom and modern science to get the balance right.”

RATING:
5 stars. Well written and narrated.

STARTED READING – FINISHED READING
1/26/2022 – 2/13/2022 ( )

The first 8 chapters were good, but maybe a little bit of a theoretical stretch without research to back up his hypothesis in chapter 8 and forward. I liked his idea of the rider and the elephant as an analogy to our selves and life. It may not be completely accurate, but it does encompass a good deal of the research that does back up his hypothesis.

The end fell apart for me with the last few chapters when he tries to balance his atheism with life purpose and happiness. It just seems like believing a falsehood because you know it works. Confusing. Maybe I read into it with my Christian beliefs, and think he is trying to reason his way out of faith even though the evidence is staring him in the face. ( )

First, let me state that this is NOT a self-help book. It is a survey of various ideas concerning happiness that cross various cultural, philosophical and religious boundaries.

Each idea is examined in the light of the latest neurological, psychological and sociological science. Some are found wanting, some very accurate and some useful in particular circumstances or cases.

It is a fascinating read, at times depressing because of just poorly our minds work in some cases, but at other times very inspiring. Today we really do have a vast body of knowledge and set of tools to apply to both our own happiness and well-being as well as understand that of others.

The facts and analysis presented are more broadly applicable - in politics most especially, but he dips into other fields as well.

I can't thinking of anyone who shouldn't read this book for the knowledge and analysis it contains alone. ( )

Jonathan Haidt is psychologist who primarily researches how people come to ethical opinions/actions. This book takes an evidence based look at some big ideas of philosophy and great thinkers through history about how to be happy.


It uses a pretty wide array of illustrations of ideas, referencing scenes from The Godfather to demonstrate social strategies, Edwin Abbott’s Flatworld, and using the Bible, Buddha, and Machiavelli to present the history of ideas, then examines some of the experiments by modern psychologists that are applicable to those ideas. It’s not a perfect book and I won’t claim to agree with every conclusion made, but it’s fairly easy to follow the difference between citing research and conclusions drawn from that research.


I have a hard time judging the approachability of this one because I’ve read a disproportionately high number of books in psychology, but it doesn’t seem to assume that much knowledge. It does get somewhat dense and technical at points, and I intend to give it a second read, but I believe it’s something you can follow without a strong background if you know what you’re getting into.

It covers a wide range of ideas from structural elements of the brain, to childhood development, the role of trauma in personal growth, religious experiences, psychedelics, and how ideas about ethical decision making differ and contribute to happiness. It’s a lot, packed through with citations, but it’s reasonably well structured and presented. Overall, if you read everything printed in psychology you’ll recognize a lot of the research, but might think about some of it in new ways. If you haven’t read much, it might be a bit daunting but even if you miss details I think you could take away a lot of understanding of how our brains work by reading this book. ( )

4.5 stars.

I found very interesting the hypotheses described in this book, and will definitely study more some of the concepts that the author explained in order to improve my own “happiness level” and become more conscious of my own behavior. I fully recommend this book to anyone that wants to understand more clearly how our mind and emotions work together. ( )