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Why do we have morals? Why do we believe? How does our DNA effect our political views?

Check out one Jonathan Haidt's talk on TED!

More than Mormonism, I like discussing why we believe, why we see the world as we do, how our families, communities, and cultures exist as they do; why some people can leave their religions and others must expand the paradigm; how are brains are impacted by our beliefs and how are beliefs create who we are.

Anyway, Cultural psychologist Jonathan Haidt has some interesting and thought provoking insight!

No, I am not paid for promoting TED! I'm just a huge fan!

truth dancer wrote:Why do we have morals? Why do we believe? How does our DNA effect our political views?

Check out one Jonathan Haidt's talk on TED!

More than Mormonism, I like discussing why we believe, why we see the world as we do, how our families, communities, and cultures exist as they do; why some people can leave their religions and others must expand the paradigm; how are brains are impacted by our beliefs and how are beliefs create who we are.

Anyway, Cultural psychologist Jonathan Haidt has some interesting and thought provoking insight!

No, I am not paid for promoting TED! I'm just a huge fan!

Without getting into commenting on what Haidt has to say, I'll offer a few
preliminary considerations:

1. Social cohesion -- Human societies develop "morals" based upon which
activities/sentiments/beliefs have promoted and protected the group.

2. Personal experience -- Just as touching a hot stove teaches us a lesson, so
do the results of our other actions. Experience may teach us functional morality.

3. Examples of others -- How we are treated by our family and close associates
in life may help "imprint" a certain set of morals upon our minds.

4. Natural empathy -- Although some would argue that altruism is merely an
artifact of natural selection in human evolution, perhaps there is indeed a
deeper, less mechanical explanation why we often treat others as we ourselves
hope to be treated.

Of the four "considerations," perhaps #4 comes closest to a religious precept.

UD

Great video. I totally agree that religion is the by-product of moral evolution (I'm paraphrasing).

I read a few chapters of his book The Happiness Hypothesis. He said some very profound things about human psychology (reminds me, I need to get my own copy of that book). He's one of those guys who you read and often think, "I've always sort of thought that but never articulated it so well."

Thanks for posting that.