Jonathan Haidt: We are on a path to ‘catastrophic failure’ of our democracy if we don’t change

Jun 12, 2022 by

by Jacob Hess, Deseret News:

An interview with the renowned social psychologist on the perils our nation faces and how we might combat them.

Few have done more to raise national awareness about the potential implications of the hyperpartisan, toxically polarized spiral we are in than Jonathan Haidt, the Thomas Cooley professor of ethical leadership at New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Haidt’s recent essay in The Atlantic captivated the chattering class by comparing what has happened in the U.S. over the last decade to the biblical Tower of Babel — how we’ve become disoriented and “unable to speak the same language or recognize the same truth” to the point of “becoming like two different countries” with divergent ideas about “the Constitution, economics, and American history.”

f an image from the Old Testament is an especially fitting metaphor for current worrisome trends, it’s not hard to see Haidt himself as filling that ancient, unpleasant role of standing up on the wall to raise some warnings that many of us hope are not prophetic.

He recently wrote, “If we do not make major changes soon, then our institutions, our political system, and our society may collapse during the next major war, pandemic, financial meltdown, or constitutional crisis.” Although always pointing to possible steps we might take, Haidt adds that there is “little evidence to suggest that America will return to some semblance of normalcy and stability in the next five or 10 years.”

We all love expressions of hope. But sometimes it’s refreshing to hear some plain talk about the dangers ahead. Beyond raising concerns alone, however, Haidt has also helped lead the way toward specific actions that can help.

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