Photo: Miller Center of Public Affairs flickr page, Charlottesville, VA / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Haidt has a rare gift for taking academic moral psychology and turning it into ideas that ordinary people actually argue about at the dinner table. Moral Foundations Theory reframed how I think about the left-right divide, the notion that people are not stupid or evil but tuned to different moral intuitions. Lately The Anxious Generation has made him the loudest voice warning about smartphones and adolescent mental health, and whether or not you buy every causal claim, he has forced an overdue conversation. He is a public intellectual who prizes persuasion over dunking, which feels increasingly rare.
Overview
Jonathan Haidt (born October 19, 1963) is an American social psychologist and author, currently the Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical Leadership at New York University's Stern School of Business. He is best known for developing Moral Foundations Theory and for his bestselling books The Righteous Mind, The Coddling of the American Mind (with Greg Lukianoff), and The Anxious Generation. His work focuses on the psychology of morality, political polarization, and the effects of social media on youth mental health.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Jonathan Haidt
- Name (Japanese)
- ジョナサン・ハイト
- Reading
- じょなさん・はいと
- Born
- October 19, 1963 (age 62)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Libra / Rabbit
- Origin
- New York, New York, United States
- Occupation
- Psychologist / University professor / Author / Researcher
2. Background
- High school
- Scarsdale High School
- University
- Yale University
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major work | Moral Foundations Theory | — | Unknown |
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Jonathan Haidt born?
Born October 19, 1963 (age 62).
Where is Jonathan Haidt from?
Jonathan Haidt is from New York, New York, United States.
What does Jonathan Haidt do?
Jonathan Haidt works as Psychologist, University professor, Author, Researcher.
What is Jonathan Haidt known for?
Notable works include Moral Foundations Theory.
Psychologist — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.