They both use emotions first, then fill in gaps with data. The reason Haidt brings this up in the Righteous Mind and why I bring it up in the Righteous Mind book summary is simple – The elephant brain governing your behavior helps explain why different sides of the political aisle both think they’re right at the same time.
The rider - you - think it’s in charge, but it’s not.ĭaniel Kahneman is known for making a similar analogy in his book Thinking Fast and Slow – the fast brain is the elephant and the slow brain is the rider. In short, the impulsive, emotional, quick thinking brain represents a massive part of your behavior. The elephant is the older part of the brain you developed through evolution before the creation of the pre-frontal cortex. The rider is your prefrontal cortex – the rational, conscious, decision-making part of your brain. He uses the analogy of an elephant and a rider.
Haidt first presented this idea in The Happiness Hypothesis. More often than not, we use intuition - emotion - first, then fill in the gaps with information second. We all like to believe we make careful, conscious, and rational decisions. Humans Use Intuition First and Reasoning Second You start with the foundations of your personality, belief systems, and values, then your environment and interactions with other people help shape them all over time. Instead, he compares it to the first draft of a book that can be revised. He doesn’t believe in determinism – meaning your wiring can’t change. He makes an important distinction when he uses the word innate. Haidt argues that each human being has an innate set of character traits and personalities that affect the way we behave. The book is based on some core ideas about the way we evolve emotions, beliefs, and values and what can be done to (if anything) to change them. It also explores why the sides disagree with each other so much and what we can do about it.Ĭonsider these your Righteous Mind spark notes. The book explores both evolutionary and cultural reasons why some people are liberals, conservatives, or libertarians.
Haidt is an expert in moral psychology, which examines how we come to adopt our beliefs about morality. The Righteous Mind by Jonathan Haidt explores the origins of our political differences. The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion The Righteous Mind Book Summary
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