Social psychologist to speak at Northern

MARQUETTE, Mich.—Jonathan Haidt, a social psychologist, best-selling author and expert on human nature, will present “Why Are Good People Divided by Politics and Religion?” at Northern Michigan University. His talk is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14, in the University Center Great Lakes Rooms. Admission is free to NMU students and $2 for others.

Haidt will discuss how we can use moral psychology to transcend the red versus blue culture wars of American politics and foster more civilized political discourse. He has been featured on “The Colbert Report” Haidt’s research focuses on the psychological bases of morality across different cultures and political ideology.

He is best known for his “Moral Foundations Theory,” a notion describing the different values that citizens of opposing political identities place on principles such as fairness, loyalty and purity. The presentation is sponsored by NMU Platform Personalities.