In his widely praised book, award-winning psychologist Jonathan Haidt examines the worldt kill you makes you stronger-can enrich and even transform...
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Apr 18, 2010
Chris
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When pitching Jonathan Haidt's "Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom" to friends, I often find myself explaining away the title -- no, it's not another self-help book and yes, it's about more than just plastering a silly smile on your face. With that said, the title is appropriate; Haidt is chiefly concerned with what's responsible for making humans happy.
The title fails, however, to convey the breadth and depth of Haidt's search, which touches on philosophy, ps More...
The title fails, however, to convey the breadth and depth of Haidt's search, which touches on philosophy, ps More...
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Jun 15, 2011
Richard
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As I was reading the first few chapters, I put this book on my "to buy" list, but my enthusiasm ebbed as I finished to book, and my natural inclination not to buy books I never expect to re-read has taken over.
But it's still a book I think I can recommend: it has plenty of interesting and thoughtful points to make, a few that are confusing and disconcerting, as well as some advice towards the front of the book.
The early chapters have a bit of a "self- More...
But it's still a book I think I can recommend: it has plenty of interesting and thoughtful points to make, a few that are confusing and disconcerting, as well as some advice towards the front of the book.
The early chapters have a bit of a "self- More...
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Feb 10, 2012
Nancy
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The Happiness Hypothesis is a synthesis of information from positive psychology, social psychology, philosophy, biology and religion to explore what is most likely to make individuals lead satisfying, happy lives. Although the author makes it clear that he is an atheist, he should be given credit for his recognition of the strengths offered to individuals and communities by religion and his respectful treatment of the subject of religion.
This could have been a very dry book. The More...
This could have been a very dry book. The More...
Jul 29, 2011
Jason
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I loved this book. Jonathan Haidt presents a very balanced discussion on positive psychology with allusions to themes from Eastern and Western philosophies and religions and empirical evidence from various psychology experiments.
He writes in a language and tone that is personal and accessible and I appreciate his honesty in sharing his personal journey. Unlike many other positive psychology pieces I've come across, Haidt does not advocate any particular worldview, other than the idea that ther More...
He writes in a language and tone that is personal and accessible and I appreciate his honesty in sharing his personal journey. Unlike many other positive psychology pieces I've come across, Haidt does not advocate any particular worldview, other than the idea that ther More...
Jul 27, 2011
Michael
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Finished reading this last night. Two things first - 1) the book is not really about ancient wisdom. It's primarily about current research/thinking in the field of Psychology on emotional happiness. 2) The first third of the book is among the most depressing things I have ever read. The book starts by focusing on the view that humans have virtually no control over our own ability to be happy (or miserable). It's genetic - we are born with an innate predisposition towards personal happiness or
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Mar 07, 2011
Julie
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I've been slogging away at this book for nearly a month, which is unusual for me. Usually, if I stall on a book (as I did with three other books I started reading over the month of February), I simply put it down with a note that it's been partially read. But The Happiness Hypothesis was so compelling that I kept coming back after putting it down and letting my mind digest the material. It's a book that's designed to be read slowly.
I discovered this book through Switch, by Chip and Dan More...
I discovered this book through Switch, by Chip and Dan More...
Dec 24, 2010
Monthly Book Group
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The proposer had found the book to be stimulating and thought-provoking. It was a cross-disciplinary amalgam of fable, literature, psychology, philosophy, literature, and genetics and own-life experience. Haidt’s approach was based on evidence rather than assertion. The style was very accessible and readable, and revealed enough personal information about the writer to humanise the book without making it irritating.
The proposer had been sufficiently impressed to read the book twice, a More...
The proposer had been sufficiently impressed to read the book twice, a More...
Jul 22, 2010
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Jun 26, 2010
Nathanael
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This book captured exactly why I was uncomfortable with Acton's 'behavioral economics' discussions. The author assumes that science is the ultimate arbiter of truth. This book brings the wisdom of the ancients (philosophy) to contemporary science, and judges philosophy with the ultimate of scientific tests: correlative studies. Some cool ideas emerged about why the ancients may have been right; but what I saw emerge was far more troubling.
The author assumes we can then connect the 'i More...
The author assumes we can then connect the 'i More...
May 05, 2010
New York Times columnist David Brooks has chosen to discuss The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom by Jonathan on FiveBooks as one of the top five on his subject – Neuroscience, saying that:
“…Haidt uses the metaphor of a boy riding an elephant. The boy is the conscious reasoning part of the brain and it can see very far, and make certain steering decisions, but most of the work is done by the elephant, which is the unconscious part of the brain. Haidt’s work i More...
“…Haidt uses the metaphor of a boy riding an elephant. The boy is the conscious reasoning part of the brain and it can see very far, and make certain steering decisions, but most of the work is done by the elephant, which is the unconscious part of the brain. Haidt’s work i More...
Jan 22, 2010
Bob
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At the end of his book, Haidt says there are two ways we look at the meaning of life. One way looks at humans from the outside, where people are objects within a broader cosmic context. Meaning here is speculative, ranging from God-given hope and destiny to a mechanical and meaningless universe. The other way looks at humans from within, where people exist as subjects. Here, Haidt argues that science can establish some basic empirical truths.
Drawing on a wide variety of evidenc More...
Drawing on a wide variety of evidenc More...
Oct 18, 2009
Mike
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This book has a lot going against it. The title is dippy, it's filed under self-help, and the author is attempting to condense the wisdom of the world's great traditions into easily consumed pop psychology.
He is, ultimately, quite successful.
I'm taking a star off, mostly because he has a few weak chapters and he's not a fabulous writer, but make no mistake: I consider this book to be a fine achievement that blends moral philosophy and current directions in psychology More...
He is, ultimately, quite successful.
I'm taking a star off, mostly because he has a few weak chapters and he's not a fabulous writer, but make no mistake: I consider this book to be a fine achievement that blends moral philosophy and current directions in psychology More...
Aug 27, 2009
Lynn
rated it:
I picked up this book because of recommendations by other people who generally have good taste, my taste :). I was hesitant because it seemed like a pop psychology self help book. Self help books always consist of authors hectoring people to change their attitude about the world. This book acknowledged the fact, but didn't pretend to have a secret formula.
Here are a few ideas the author developed throughout the book which resonated with me.
- How we think about the wor More...
Here are a few ideas the author developed throughout the book which resonated with me.
- How we think about the wor More...
Aug 07, 2009
Orton Family Foundation
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I’ve often marveled at how seemingly rational people can forgo reason when engaged in public debate over a land use issue. A few years back I was involved in a community meeting about a new village scale project being proposed for the center of a small Vermont town. Even faced with a plethora of facts, figures and testimonials to the contrary, many people held fast to their belief that the project—designed to mimic the design and spacing of the clustered houses already in the village center—woul
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Jul 24, 2009
Debbie (Readerbuzz)
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And thus we move, logically, to The Happiness Hypothesis. Ben Tanaka, main character of Shortcomings, could use The Happiness Hypothesis. Ginger Pye and the rest of the Pye family apparently intuitively knew The Happiness Hypothesis.
Haidt looks at ancient wisdom and compares it to the result of the new science of positive psychology. Some of the things I learned from this book:
*Reciprocity is the best guide to life. This is the classic “Do unto others” thought.
*Th More...
Haidt looks at ancient wisdom and compares it to the result of the new science of positive psychology. Some of the things I learned from this book:
*Reciprocity is the best guide to life. This is the classic “Do unto others” thought.
*Th More...
Dec 17, 2009
Melissa
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This book is witty, well-researched, well organized, helpful... and I love the author's voice. It's a great Great GREAT book to read if you find yourself with a bit of a black cloud over your head... It's the opposite of an "Atkins Diet"-like book: he doesn't propose some sort of whacky 14-step program to become happy. He just dissects all of the various aspects of life and lays out the results logically, and you find yourself with a mirror in your hand. It's really a great book.
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Oct 23, 2011
Sandy
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This is a highly accessible and practical book for both how to incorporate more happiness into your life as well as why those things work. Here's an example: Most Americans, if given the choice would rather have a raise than an extra week of vacation, but the extra time off would actually make you happier. And the corollary to that is that if you spend your money on 'things' you won't be as happy as if you spent your money on 'time', especially if the time is spent with people doing things you l
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Jul 15, 2009
Matildabrown2003
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Such an amazingly interesting read, this book came recommended by my mother at a time when I was feeling particularly sorry for myself. And slapped it right out of me. You may find this book in the 'self-help' section at your local book store but it is so much more. Haidt makes learning fun!!! It's true. From what I remember... psychological explanations on the human brain and all it's complexities to philosophies on love, religion and even the hygiene differences between our fellow homo-sapiens
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Apr 26, 2010
Dara
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Jonathan Haidt, associate professor of psychology at the University of Virginia,read the ancient and classical philosophers in light of the modern psychology.And what a great job he does!
For example, in his chapter “The Uses of Adversity,” he starts out with this famous quote from Nietzsche, “what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” But is this really true? Haidt reviews the psychological literature, and concludes that it’s only true if a person learns to cope with adversity the righ More...
For example, in his chapter “The Uses of Adversity,” he starts out with this famous quote from Nietzsche, “what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” But is this really true? Haidt reviews the psychological literature, and concludes that it’s only true if a person learns to cope with adversity the righ More...
Dec 21, 2009
Peter
rated it:
I would have liked to give this 4.5 stars but seeing I don't have that option in goodreads and because it was great I'm giving it 5 stars.
Why was it so good:
*It really made me think
*It was superbly written and really interesting
*It's a really important topic
This is not a self-help book. I don't have a particular aversion to self-help books and I have read quite a few of them. In fact I think they are much maligned form of literature which has a noble More...
Why was it so good:
*It really made me think
*It was superbly written and really interesting
*It's a really important topic
This is not a self-help book. I don't have a particular aversion to self-help books and I have read quite a few of them. In fact I think they are much maligned form of literature which has a noble More...
Dec 02, 2011
Cheryl in CC NV
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I enjoyed this a lot, but it's so rich, so concise (fifty of those pages are unimportant addendum), I want to discuss it with others. And I've needed time to think about how to write the review.
It is good science, written by a psychology professor who is a Jewish atheist. He just wants us to think about universal axioms from a balanced perspective. We who are atheists can't deny that religion and spirituality are important to lots of people, so we need to explore that. He does most More...
It is good science, written by a psychology professor who is a Jewish atheist. He just wants us to think about universal axioms from a balanced perspective. We who are atheists can't deny that religion and spirituality are important to lots of people, so we need to explore that. He does most More...
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Apr 24, 2008
I wish all my friends would read this book...look at the cover, it's a photograph of a person riding an elephant in the ocean...aren't you interested?
...check out the author's lecture to the New Yorker Symposium
NEW YORKER SYMPOSIUM
...check out the author's lecture to the New Yorker Symposium
NEW YORKER SYMPOSIUM
Jan 12, 2012
Rachel
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Balancing the best of both worlds--philosophical yet practical, and entertaining to boot!--in The Happiness Hypothesis, Jonathan Haidt blends discussions of ancient wisdom with findings from modern studies on happiness and positive psychology. The result is a compelling and resonant picture of the factors comprising and affecting human fulfillment; what we can control about our own state of happiness; and why we can't control the rest.
I often find the last third of popular nonfictio More...
I often find the last third of popular nonfictio More...
Apr 30, 2010
Anita
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Going into this book, I thought it would fall into one of two camps: either research-dense and footnote-heavy, or new-age and cheesy. I was surprised when it didn't fall into either trap and was actually very readable: well-organized and well-written.
The author covers a lot of ground in a short amount of time, so he never bogs down the reader with a ton of detail. That could be frustrating for some readers, especially if you want to apply some of the lessons and need a lot of convincing More...
The author covers a lot of ground in a short amount of time, so he never bogs down the reader with a ton of detail. That could be frustrating for some readers, especially if you want to apply some of the lessons and need a lot of convincing More...
Aug 12, 2009
Trevor
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First of all there is a tone to this book that I thought from the beginning was really going to be a problem for me. I guess that is the tone of self-help books. All the same, this book was much more interesting and much more challenging (at least, to me) than most other self-help books I’ve read. I actually found parts of this book quite confronting.
The parts of this book that I liked the most were those where he was discussing his elephant and rider metaphor. Essentially, he bel More...
The parts of this book that I liked the most were those where he was discussing his elephant and rider metaphor. Essentially, he bel More...
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May 19, 2010
Hans
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In a life that does not come with its own instruction manual and in a world where the narratives of religion and culture are weakening people increasingly find a vacuum or void in their lives. Since no one is going to just give you the meaning of your life, one must find or create it on their own. This frightens people, it is the essensce of both true freedom and responsibility. Creating your life purpose and then owning it, all of it. Happiness is enjoying the direction of your narrative, k
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Feb 01, 2012
David
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This book has some good insights. I like the parts about positive psychology. However, when Dr. Haidt talks about religion and moral psychology, I think his critical thinking and understanding of science go out the window. He seems to be guilty of the sort of emotional judgment that he talks about when humans make facing moral matters. For instance, he seems so obsessed with proving that religion was adaptive that he resorts to using bad science to "demonstrate" it. He uses group
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Jun 25, 2011
Jeremy
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I can't remember when I last read a book that gave me as much to think about as this book did; the amount of penciling I did is testament to the fact. Heavily referenced, Haidt (a Jewish atheist like me!), educated in philosophy and psychology, utilizes these fields to their full extent to present a broad exposition and argumentation of human nature. It is not a self-help book but he promises the answer to the meaning of life, and I think he succeeds.
My only criticism is the title do More...
My only criticism is the title do More...
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Mar 24, 2010
Cy
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Really enjoyed it. What interested me most was its psychology and sociology research. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn’t annoying self-help-ey. It’s a mammoth. Probably the longest audio book I’ve listened to. Like 14 hours or something but it covers a huge range of topics. Also, the guy sounded like Leonard Nemoy / Sean Connery. He did fantastic impersonations when quoting. His propositions took a scientific and psychological Dale Carnegie-esque approach. Eh, also filled with evo
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Oct 09, 2011
Mike
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Simply put, this book gave me a new way of thinking of life.It does a great job of combining a wide range of both ancient and modern philosophies to find common factors. It does it all the try to answer the simple question "what does it take to make someone happy." I always had a problem following specific philosophies; mainly because they seemed so ethnocentric and demanded blind faith. Haidt shows that many different ways of living follow similar beliefs but describe them in differen
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