# An interview with Prof. Jonathan Haidt on the divide between conservatives and liberals

1 Faculty News August 22, 2012>

Excerpt from [The Economist](http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2012/08/jonathan-haidt-conservative-and-liberal-morality) -- "The thought that you are going to change someone's mind on a moral issue by giving them logical arguments and reasoning is an error. If somebody doesn't care about the conclusion - if they think that it's faster to get to the airport by subway than by car and you know otherwise - you can give them reasons, you can change their mind. But moral beliefs are very different. They bind us to other people, they bind us into a team, they give us a sense of meaning and purpose in life, and so you can't wedge people -- you can't move them -- just by giving them logical arguments."

[Watch the video](http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2012/08/jonathan-haidt-conservative-and-liberal-morality)