I am currently reading The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt. Jonathan is a social psychologist and author known for his research on moral psychology, political psychology, and the psychology of religion. It is an insightful and thought-provoking book in which Jonathan sheds light on why we hold different moral beliefs and how they impact our social and political interactions.
He argues that we are not rational beings, but rather intuitive ones, as evidenced by our immediate formation of opinions on moral issues, which we then struggle to justify through rationalization.
His research confirms the view of David Hume:
Reason is, and ought only to be the slave of the passions, and can never pretend to any other office than to serve and obey them.
I couldn’t agree more with his statement:
Anyone who values truth should stop worshiping reason.
Repeatedly, I hear people advocate teaching children critical thinking to enhance their reasoning abilities. Yet, research suggests that proficiency in critical thinking often leads to easier rationalization of unsupported opinions.
I’m, of course, not arguing against teaching critical thinking, but it alone cannot enhance our reasoning abilities.
I highly recommend the book to anyone, who like me, is interested in understanding the complexities of human morality and its role in shaping our world.
Knowledge Letter: Issue: 274 (Subscribe)
Tags: David Hume (5) | Jonathan Haidt (7) | morals (9) | reasoning (53) | religion (12)
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