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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