The Coddling of the American Mind

How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure

Greg Lukianoff & Jonathan Haidt

Book Synopsis

"The Coddling of the American Mind" by Greg Lukianoff is a thought-provoking exploration of the rising trends of fragility and intolerance on college campuses. Lukianoff, along with co-author Jonathan Haidt, offers a comprehensive analysis of the psychological and societal factors contributing to this phenomenon.

Drawing on psychological research and personal anecdotes, Lukianoff delves into the three great untruths currently plaguing American universities. These untruths, which include the idea of fragility, emotional reasoning, and the belief in moral rightness, have led to an environment where students are shielded from discomfort or differing viewpoints.

Through thorough investigation, Lukianoff highlights the negative consequences of this coddling culture, such as increased anxiety and depression rates among young adults, decreased resilience, and an erosion of free speech. He argues that the desire to protect students from potential harm is hindering their growth and ability to engage in constructive debate.

Additionally, Lukianoff proposes practical solutions to combat this problem, emphasizing the importance of intellectual resilience, cognitive behavioral therapy techniques, and creating a campus culture that encourages open dialogue. He also explores the role of parents, schools, and society as a whole in fostering healthy development.

"The Coddling of the American Mind" serves as a wake-up call, challenging readers to reevaluate their beliefs about safety, discomfort, and intellectual growth. Lukianoff's accessible writing style and grounded research make this book a must-read for anyone concerned about the future of higher education and the intellectual development of the next generation.

Explore More Books

See All
Euclid's Elements
The Case Against Sugar
Fables
Flowers for Algernon
For The Love Of Physics
The Humane Economy
Memoirs
The Great Mental Models
Think and Grow Rich
History Has Begun
The Story of Civilization: Rousseau and Revolution
The Social Animal
The Worlds I See
Mismatch
The E-Myth Revisited
Citizen Coke
Last Chance to See
The World Without Us
A Confederacy of Dunces
It's Not How Good You Are - It's How Good You Want To Be
Pre-Suasion
The Art of Stillness
What We Owe the Future
Maverick
Letters to a Young Poet
You
Black Box Thinking
Being Nixon
The Black Book of Communism
In Patagonia
Deep Learning
Economics in One Lesson
Monetizing Innovation
Deep Learning
The Dream of Reason
Why Minsky Matters
Everything All At Once
Gay Like Me
Benjamin Franklin
Why Information Grows
The Sympathizer
Home Game
Dancing In The Glory Of Monsters
Go To
The Water Dancer
The Myth of the Strong Leader
Where Do School Funds Go?
So Good They Can't Ignore You
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Best Evidence
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold
Gang Leader for a Day
Gridiron Genius
T
Who Am I
Shook One
Letters of Note
Algorithms to Live By
The Psychology of Money
The Quest for El Cid
This Explains Everything
Spain in Our Hearts
Night Sky with Exit Wounds
Apollo's Arrow
Bitcoin
Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It
The Great Revolt
Unstoppable Prosperity
A Pattern Language
Red Star Over The Pacific
Collected Fictions
The Book of Laughter and Forgetting
Life After Power
Who Is Michael Ovitz
On Immunity
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth
Let Your Life Speak
The End of Power
Secrets of Closing the Sale
Lincoln In The Bardo
Chaos
Well
How to Teach Your Baby Math
Dead Wake
What Technology Wants
A Universe From Nothing
Fall of Constantinople
Simple Rules
The New Jim Crow
A Very Expensive Poison
Never Eat Alone
Hold 'em Poker
Born To Run
Devouring Freedom
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
The War of Art
René Girard's Mimetic Theory
Radical Son
How To Be a No Limit Person
On Drugs