Haidt's Moral Taste Buds Tool

Haidt encourages us to think of the "Righteous Mind" like a tongue with six receptors.  See Part 2, especially Figure 6.2, in his book the Righteous Mind.

His hypothesis is that Moral Taste Buds evolved in response to Adaptive Challenges facing human beings:

The six Moral Taste Buds are:

1. Care/Harm:  Adaptive Challenge:  Protect and care for children.

2. Fairness as Proportionality:  Adaptive Challenge: Reap benefits of cooperation. Haidt explains that our propensity to punish is one of the keys to large-scale cooperation…  People’s strong desires to protect their communities from cheaters, slackers and free riders, who, if allowed to continue their ways without harassment, would cause others to stop cooperating, which would cause society to unravel.

3. Loyalty/Betrayal:  Adaptive Challenge:  Form cohesive coalitions.

4. Authority/subversion:  Adaptive Challenge: Forge beneficial relationships within hierarchies.

5. Liberty/Oppression:  Adaptive Challenge:  Live as egalitarians within hierarchical relationships. Haidt explains that human beings are innately hierarchical.  At some point during the last million years our ancestors underwent a political transition that allowed them to live as egalitarians by banding together to rein in, punish, or kill any would-be alpha who tried to dominate the group.  Triggered by signs of attempted domination. This foundation operates in tension with the Authority foundation.

6. Sanctity/degradation:  Adaptive Challenge: Avoid contaminants.

Recall that Haidt provides evidence that those on the Centre-left tend to emphasize Taste Buds, 1, 5 and to a lesser degree 2.  By contrast, those on the Centre-right tend to invoke all six, and don't emphasize the Care/Harm Taste Bud as much as those on the Centre-Left.

After reflecting on the six Moral Taste Buds, ask yourself:

• Which Taste Buds are most likely to resonate with those with the power to make the change called for by the evidence? Your Constituency?  With Supporters?  With your Opposition?
• What are the implications for your K2A communications? 
  • Which Taste Buds will you emphasize, and why?
  • Which Taste Buds pose risks for your K2A communications, and why?
  • What implications do your answers have for framing your K2A Kickoff activity?