Haidt on Liberals Versus Conservatives

Like many people, I had heard snatches of Jonathan Haidt on NPR.  Then I decided to listen to his TED Talk.  Then I decided to buy his popular book, The Righteous Mind.

Perhaps the entire key to Haidt's thesis can be encapsulated in the graphic to the right.  Haidt argues that of six sacred values, liberals put a great deal of emphasis on two and largely neglect three.  The six legs under the conservative stool, so to speak, tend to be of more equal diameter; they care much more about loyalty, respect for authority, and sanctity than liberals do, but they also value caring and liberty (though they often express these moral values differently from liberals).

Not only that, but research indicates that conservatives are less likely to misjudge liberals than vice versa.  In fact I often notice this among my friends and family.  Conservatives tend to view liberals as misguided and naive--though there are certainly many radio talk-show hosts who go far beyond that characterization.  Liberals often view conservatives as selfish, even evil.

Haidt suggests that we would understand each other much better if we saw each other as having different moral priorities rather than assuming or asserting that the other side is simply without morals.