The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom

The publisher's title for and capsule summary of "The Happiness Hypothesis" doesn't do full justice to the exceptional range of learning, research, and wisdom that combine in this book. It's not pop psychology or a generic self-help book: Haidt is a professor in the Psychology Department at the U. of Virginia, and a leading researcher in the "moral emotions". His working hypothesis is that human moral systems have underpinnings in evolutionary biology, but he's as far from being a reductionist as possible. Instead he believes it's impossible to understand morality, and by extension happiness, without examining their history in human cultures and religions.

Haidt covers a tremendous range of interwoven topics: the history of Western moral philosophy; ideas of virtue and the sacred in Christianity, Buddhism, and Hinduism; child development and parent-child bonding in relation to the moral emotions; modern neuroscience and the biological foundations of behavior; and the role of trauma and adversity in personal growth. He is especially gifted at explaining things in everyday language, avoiding jargon and carefully defining and illustrating new terminology.

George Wilson's narration is clear and paced appropriately, and he's solid on technical terms, foreign names, and so on. He gets a chance now and then to show his skill in creating voices for extended quotations from Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and William James.

One of the best books I have read this year, a must read. A lot of current psychological research on the human condition presented along with a good dose of ancient wisdom and philosophy. It's not just a self help book on happiness - but gives a comprehensive picture of what it's all about.

It's not really a self help book at all, it's more like a guide to the human brain, if you ever wonder why you think you are so much different then everybody else, this book will explain why you are not and why you are almost exactly like the rest of us, it also tells us what brain functions make us believe in religion, and so much more, I rate this book a must read, even if you have no knowledge about brain anatomy and functions.
The book offers some insight into early philosophy and it draws parallels to modern brain research, but that part is just publicity.
Other must read books Phantoms in the brain Ramachandran, origin of species Darwin

This book was enlightening, informing and entertaining. It is by far the best nonfiction listening I have ever experienced. Moreover I found the information in it delightful conversation starters. His analysis of philosophical, religeous, and social history as it relates to modern research on the function of the brain was astounding. Whether you agree with him or not, this is one you have to listen to.

I have spent now more than 5 researching the field. Dr. Haidt has done an excellent job in integrating science, philosophy and religion in one common framework. Although a scientist, his teaching style is gentle and based on stories, making the absorption of knowledge smooth and efficient.

This book offers a great look into what makes people happy, while at the same time illuminating some elements that may be keeping you from reaching your happiness potential. This insight, coupled with practical solutions offered in the book, provide real means for increasing one's day-to-day level of happiness. A fantastic listen for anyone interested in the way we think and perceive the world around us!

Tying in the wisdom of ancient philosophers and religions' teachings, Haidt masterfully creates an argument that we are more in control of our happiness than we could ever imagine. He connects how our brains work with why we think like we do. He explains 'elevation': an emotion I have often where I feel a rush of adrenaline and tear up when seeing/hearing masterfully done art or wondrous natural scenes like the Grand Canyon, but never understood until now.

In addition to teaching the science, Haidt also outlines possible approaches you might take to be more happy such as how to structure your day and to be more aware of your successes and to celebrate them. He looks at wealth, disability, sex, children, love and more to show how they influence (or not) one's happiness.

I usually choose to listen to novels but I am so glad that I loaded this one up! I bought the book first but was having trouble finding time to read it (and, quite frankly, novels kept getting in the way) so I decided to try out the audio version. George Wilson brought this text to life and helped me see the genius of Jonathan Haidt. Understanding human relationships is a passion for me and this book has brought new insights to my search for wisdom. Highly recommended!!!

This is my favorite genre and I've come to expect either somewhat labored attempts at humor, painfully long examples, or a dead dull list of facts. This book is different. Every sentence and chapter is interesting and meaningful. There is a great mix of psychology and philosophy - of insight and thought provoking ideas. This is the best book I've listened to (or read) in a long time.

The author has great insights on how the mind works and how did we get this far.. And the evolutionary traits that are still with us from the past, and how that influences our behavior today. Even though it helps understanding ourselves a lot, I would not call it self help, but something beyond that. Really happy about listening rather than reading too, since the narrator is great and gets you completely immersed in the narrative. In summary, way better than I expected - so much that I took the time to write this review. :)