Greg Lukianoff is the president and CEO of the Foundation
for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE). Lukianoff is a graduate
of American University and Stanford Law School. He specializes in
free speech and First Amendment issues in higher education. He is
the author of Unlearning Liberty: Campus Censorship and the End
of American Debate and Freedom From Speech.
Jonathan Haidt is the Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical
Leadership at New York University's Stern School of Business. He
obtained his Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of
Pennsylvania in 1992, and then taught at the University of Virginia
for 16 years. He is the author of The Righteous Mind and
The Happiness Hypothesis.
"A disturbing and comprehensive analysis of recent campus trends... Lukianoff and Haidt notice something unprecedented and frightening... The consequences of a generation unable or disinclined to engage with ideas that make them uncomfortable are dire for society, and open the door - accessible from both the left and the right - to various forms of authoritarianism." -- Thomas Chatterton Williams, The New York Times Book Review (cover review and Editors' Choice selection)
So how do you create 'wiser kids'? Get them off their screens.
Argue with them. Get them out of their narrow worlds of family,
school and university. Boot them out for a challenging Gap year. It
all makes perfect sense...the cure seems a glorious
revelation.-- Philip Delves Broughton, Evening Standard "The
authors, both of whom are liberal academics -- almost a tautology
on today's campuses -- do a great job of showing how 'safetyism' is
cramping young minds. Students are treated like candles, which can
be extinguished by a puff of wind. The goal of a Socratic education
should be to turn them into fires, which thrive on the wind.
Instead, they are sheltered from anything that could cause offence.
. . Their advice is sound. Their book is excellent. Liberal
parents, in particular, should read it."-- Edward Luce,
Financial Times "Their distinctive contribution to the
higher-education debate is to meet safetyism on its own,
psychological turf... Lukianoff and Haidt tell us that safetyism
undermines the freedom of inquiry and speech that are indispensable
to universities." -- Jonathan Marks, Commentary "The
remedies the book outlines should be considered on college
campuses, among parents of current and future students, and by
anyone longing for a more sane society." -- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"Perhaps the strongest argument in Haidt and Lukianoff's favour,
though, is this: if you see this issue as being about little more
than a few sanctimonious teenagers throwing hissy fits on campus
then, yes, it is probably receiving too much attention. But if you
accept their premise, that it's really a story about mental
wellbeing and emotional fragility, about a generation acting out
because it has been set up to fail by bad parenting and poorly
designed institutions, then their message is an urgent one. And it
is one that resonates well beyond dusty libraries and manicured
quadrangles, into all of our lives."--Josh Glancy, The Sunday
Times (UK) "Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff's new book,
The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad
Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure, persuasively unpacks
the causes of the current predicament on campus - which they link
to wider parenting, cultural and political trends. . .The Coddling
of the American Mind is both an enlightening but disquieting read.
We have a lot of challenges in front of us." -- Quillette, Matthew
Lesh The authors remind us of some of the campus happenings that,
since 2015, have afrighted old liberals like me... In the end
[despite some objections] I agreed with Messrs Lukianoff and Haidt
that protecting kids has gone too far, and that some campus
behaviour is absurd and worrying. -- David Aaronovitch, The
Times (UK) The speed with which campus life has changed for
the worse is one of the most important points made by Greg
Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt in this important if disturbing book.
--Niall Ferguson, Sunday Times "Rising intolerance for
opposing viewpoints is a challenge not only on college campuses but
also in our national political discourse. The future of our
democracy requires us to understand what's happening and why--so
that we can find solutions and take action. Reading The Coddling of
the American Mind is a great place to start." --Michael
Bloomberg, Founder of Bloomberg LP & Bloomberg Philanthropies, and
108th Mayor of New York City "Our behavior in society is not
immune to the power of rational scientific analysis. Through that
lens, prepare yourself for a candid look at the softening of
America, and what we can do about it." --Neil deGrasse Tyson,
director, Hayden Planetarium, and author of Astrophysics for
People in a Hurry
"Lukianoff and Haidt explain the
phenomenon of "helicopter parenting" and its dangers--how
overprotection amplifies children's fears and makes them less
likely to become adults who can manage their own lives. Children
must be challenged and exposed to stressors--including different
perspectives--in order to thrive." --Susan McDaniel,
University of Rochester, former President of the American
Psychological Association "An important examination of dismaying
social and cultural trends." --Kirkus Reviews
I lament the title of this book, as it may alienate the very people
who need to engage with its arguments and obscures its message of
inclusion. Equal parts mental health manual, parenting guide,
sociological study, and political manifesto, it points to a
positive way forward of hope, health, and humanism. I only wish I
had read it when I was still a professor and a much younger mother.
--Anne-Marie Slaughter, President and CEO, New America,
and author of Unfinished Business
"A compelling and timely argument against attitudes and practices
that, however well-intended, are damaging our universities, harming
our children and leaving an entire generation intellectually and
emotionally ill-prepared for an ever-more fraught and complex
world. A brave and necessary work." --Rabbi Lord Jonathan
Sacks, Emeritus Chief Rabbi of UK & Commonwealth; professor,
New York University; and author of Not in God's Name
"No one is omniscient or infallible, so a willingness to evaluate
new ideas is vital to understanding our world. Yet universities,
which ought to be forums for open debate, are developing a
reputation for dogmatism and intolerance. Haidt and Lukianoff,
distinguished advocates of freedom of expression, offer a deep
analysis of what's going wrong on campus, and how we can hold
universities to their highest ideals." --Steven Pinker,
professor, Harvard University, and author of Enlightenment
Now
"This book synthesizes the teachings of many disciplines to
illuminate the causes of major problems besetting college students
and campuses, including declines in mental health, academic
freedom, and collegiality. More importantly, the authors present
evidence-based strategies for overcoming these challenges. An
engrossing, thought-provoking, and ultimately inspiring read."
--Nadine Strossen, past President, ACLU, and author of
HATE: Why We Should Resist it with Free Speech, Not Censorship
"How can we as a nation do a better job of preparing young men and
women of all backgrounds to be seekers of truth and sustainers of
democracy? In The Coddling of the American Mind, Greg Lukianoff and
Jonathan Haidt provide a rigorous analysis of this perennial
challenge as it presents itself today, and offer thoughtful
prescriptions for meeting it. What's more, the book models the
virtues and practical wisdom its authors rightly propose as the
keys to progress. Lukianoff and Haidt teach young people--and all
of us--by example as well as precept." --Cornel West,
professor, Harvard University, and author of Democracy
Matters; and Robert P. George, professor, Princeton University,
and author of Conscience and Its Enemies "Objectionable words
and ideas, as defined by self-appointed guardians on university
campuses, are often treated like violence from sticks and stones.
Many students cringe at robust debate; maintaining their ideas of
good and evil requires no less than the silencing of disagreeable
speakers. Lukianoff and Haidt brilliantly explain how this drift to
fragility occurred, how the distinction between words and actions
was lost, and what needs to be done. Critical reading to understand
the current campus conflicts." --Mark Yudof, president
emeritus, University of California; and professor emeritus, UC
Berkeley School of Law
This book is a much needed guide for how to thrive in a pluralistic
society. Lukianoff and Haidt demonstrate how ancient wisdom and
modern psychology can encourage more dialogue across lines of
difference, build stronger institutions, and make us happier. They
provide an antidote to our seemingly intractable divisions, and not
a moment too soon." --Kirsten Powers, author of The Silencing
We can talk ourselves into believing that some kinds of speech will
shatter us, or we can talk ourselves out of that belief. The
authors know the science. We are not as fragile as our
self-appointed protectors suppose. Read this deeply informed book
to become a more resilient soul in a more resilient democracy."
--Philip E. Tetlock, author of Superforecasting: The
Art and Science of Prediction "In this expansion of their 2015
piece for the Atlantic, Lukianoff and Haidt argue that the urge to
insulate oneself against offensive ideas has had deleterious
consequences, making students less resilient, more prone to
undesirable "emotional reasoning," less capable of engaging
critically with others' viewpoints, and more likely to cultivate an
"us-versus-them" mentality... the path they advocate--take on
challenges, cultivate resilience, and try to reflect rather than
responding based solely on initial emotional responses--deserves
consideration." --Publishers
Weekly
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