The Coddling of the American Mind
by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt
Three untruths, what does not kill you makes you weaker, always trust your feelings, life is a battle between good and evil people, and how they spread through parenting, schools and social media to produce anxious, fragile young adults. The authors propose antifragility, CBT and free play. Controversial and widely discussed.
Read it if…
you are raising or teaching young people and worry about fragility.
Skip it if…
you find the premise politically loaded; engage with the argument anyway.
Three things you will actually use
- Children are antifragile; overprotection weakens.
- Feelings are not always reliable guides; teach CBT.
- Charitable interpretation is a skill.
Do this first
Identify one way you protect a young person from discomfort that they could handle.
Our verdict
Provocative and important.
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