Moral Principles - How Do You Rate?

I'm reading Justice by Michael J. Sandel, who teaches one of the most popular courses at Harvard (some classes have exceeded 1,000 students). The course concerns justice, how we develop our sense of it, and how we reveal our biases in practical everyday circumstances.

It's a terrific read and for those of you looking to recommend a book to managers who like to have their colleagues read a book and hold discussions, I would recommend this one. It pricks under your skin like a chigger bite. And it will make you think. What's also wonderful is that Sandel helped produce a series of videos in cooperation with WGBH on the subject.

Further ideas on the topic can also be found in Jonathan Haidt's work. A psychologist at the University of Virginia, he and his colleague Jesse Graham have surveyed over 110,000 individuals from many different countries. They have investigated the moral differences between liberal-minded and conservative-minded individuals. You can even take the test yourself and see how you rate.

Any leader aspiring toward self-improvement would benefit from either of these scholar's work.

And for those of you interested in generational differences, a new paper shows that individuals growing up during recessions tend to believe that success in life depends more on luck than effort, support more government redistribution, but are less confident in public institutions.