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Product Details
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Basic Books; First Trade Paper Edition edition (December 1, 2006)
The blurb on the front cover of this book is "For the reader who seeks to understand happiness, my advice is: begin with Haidt." I believe this assertion is exactly right. I have never read a single volume that summarized and wove into a coherent whole the variety of insights concerning human happiness that have been discovered by philosophers and religious gurus of the past and modern social psychologists. Moreover, this book is beautifully written, the exposition of various theories always taking a fresh viewpoint, however venerable the source. Finally, I think this book is a vigorous endorsement of modern social psychology, which beautifully complements and supplements the insights of the grand masters. I am generally critical of social psychology because it does not use the rational actor model and hence consists of a grab-bag of nano-insights with no structural core. But, this body of empirical findings contributes richly to our understanding of human happiness (the reference section of this book is truly a masterpiece, by the way).
Haidt claims there are ten great principles for understanding happiness, and he devotes a chapter to each. The first is the "divided self," we may be summarized as "Our minds are loose confederations of parts, but we identify with and pay too much attention to one part: conscious verbal thinking." (p. 22) Haidt analogizes our mind as a conscious rider on an unconscious elephant. The elephant mostly goes where it wants to go, although our conscious mind never gives up the illusion that it should not only be in the driver's seat, but have a powerful steering wheel. The references here are many, but typical are Freud's Ego vs. Superego/Id, emotional brain vs. rational brain, left vs. right brain and split-brain studies, and the like.Read more ›
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209 of 212 people found the following review helpful
I saw Chris Anderson (Wired Editor and TED co-founder) asked by Charlie Rose to name his favorite book of the last few years. "The Happiness Hypothesis" was the immediate response. Now this book is one of my favorites, too. The Happiness Hypothesis compares traditional philisohpical traditions with the lastest scientific discoveries, and the two ends meet well in the center. The author's own experiences provide narrative glue.
A major finding is that happiness is a set point for us, and that after good times and bad, we tend to return to our general level of happiness. At the same time, we can do things that help or hurt our happiness, and we can understand better how our minds and emotions work.
Factors that decrease happiness include persistent noise, lack of control, shame, dysfunctional relationships, and long commutes. Strong marriages, physical touch, meaningful relationships and religious affiliation tend to improve happiness. Activities with others enhance our happiness; status objects tend to separate us from others.
In terms of parenting, Haidt finds that secure children are well supported by parents who are nearby, providing safety and security. Avoidant children are neglected by their parents. And resistant children have parents who alternate between support and neglect. Haidt also shows how moral relativism is not good for children.
I was also fascinated by Haidt's observation that modernity and commercial culture slowly replaced the ideal of character with the idea personality, leading to a focus on individual preferences and personal fulfillment. This movement reached a height during the "values clarification" movement of the 1960s which taught no morality at all.Read more ›
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In reading this book, I increasingly felt that this book wasn't a prescriptive note on how to be happy. That to a large degree, given the generalities & varieties of circumstances it has to be applicable to, it is; but it is much more.
By & large, this book tries to build up three different points of view - the scientific, the philosophic, & the sacred. These are applied to the ways we live our lives & the ways we behave (love, reciprocity, fear, our self-view, disposition, meaning & greater purpose at work etc.)
In taking this approach, Haidt ensures that the happiness formula is but an incidental byproduct of a larger phenomenon. There are aspects to being happy that we can help, then there are those that we cannot. Many reviewers note what these are, so I would not go into that. However, what I found really interesting are specific discussions that illuminated age old questions.
A chapter, for example, dwells on adversity. While adversity can be good for you, if you overcome it, it can also be debilitating. Our belief about adversity governs how we parent which is in turn governed by the love we feel towards our children. Another chapter illuminates the contradictions between theorizing about morality & defining it in intellectually satisfying terms while also dwelling on the fact that it makes for better, stronger character if you live in a well-defined group with common values that you see prescribed & lived, though some or much of such values may indeed be logically inconsistent. The chapter on the sacral dimension is another important one & discusses our manifest lives (what we do, how we live, our social circle etc) as it aligns/does not align with our views about divinity.
I've re-read many of the chapters in isolation to assimilate such diverse discussions for this book packs a lot. I'd say that so far it is the most riveting, most involving book I've read this year & I'd recommend it very highly.
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This item: The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom
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