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| Jordan Peterson | |
|---|---|
.png) Peterson at the University of Toronto, 2017 | |
| Born | Jordan Bernt Peterson (1962-06-12) June 12, 1962 (age 62) Fairview, Alberta, Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Alma mater | McGill University (Ph.D) University of Alberta (B.A.) |
| Known for | Personality Mythology and Religion Freedom of speech Opposition to enforced use of non-binary pronouns |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Psychology |
| Institutions | University of Toronto 1998–present Harvard University 1993–98 |
| Website | jordanbpeterson |
Jordan Bernt Peterson (born 1962) is a Canadian clinical psychologist and tenured professor of psychology at the University of Toronto. His research interests include self-deception, mythology, religion, narrative, neuroscience, personality, deception, creativity, intelligence, and motivation.
Early life and education
The connection between psychology, mythology and literature is as important as the connection between psychology and biology and the hard sciences.
— Jordan Peterson
Peterson grew up in Fairview, Alberta, Canada, a small town northwest of Edmonton. His middle name is Bernt, after his Norwegian great-grandfather. As a youth, he attended the United Church of Canada with his mother.
At the age of 13, Peterson joined the New Democratic Party (NDP). He remained active with the party until the age of 18.
Peterson earned a bachelor degree in political science from the University of Alberta in 1982. He then visited Europe and, on his return, developed an interest in the psychological origins of the Cold War and its roots within the Second World War. He returned to the university to complete a second bachelor's degree in psychology in 1984.
Peterson lived in Montreal from 1985 to 1993, where he received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from McGill University, under the supervision of Robert O. Pihl and Maurice Dongier.
Career
From 1993 to 1998 Peterson lived in Arlington, Massachusetts, while teaching and conducting research at Harvard University as an assistant and an associate professor in the psychology department. There he studied aggression arising from drug and alcohol abuse. During his time at Harvard, he entertained and supervised a number of unusual thesis proposals.
After Harvard, he returned to Canada and took a position at the University of Toronto.
In March 2017, Peterson was nominated for the position of Rector of the University of Glasgow. Peterson came fifth in the election, losing to the Scottish lawyer Aamer Anwar.
Controversy
On 27 September 2016, Peterson released the first part of a three-part lecture video entitled 'Freedom Of Speech/Political Correctness', where he said he would not use the preferred gender pronouns of students and faculty. In the video, he objects to the Canadian government's Bill C-16, which proposes to add "gender identity or expression" to the list of identifiable groups against whom it is illegal to publicly incite hatred against under the Criminal Code. He stated that his objection to the bill was based on arguments about potential free speech implications if the bill is amended. Furthermore, he argued that the new amendments paired with section 46.3 of the Ontario Human Rights Code would make it possible for "employers and organizations to be subject to punishment under the code if any employee or associate says anything that can be construed as 'directly or indirectly' offensive." The videos were criticised by trans activists, who accused Peterson of helping to foster a climate where hate and discrimination could thrive.
After the videos were posted, he clarified that he would consider complying with a request from a "non-binary person" if he was asked in the right way.
Works
Peterson published Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief in 1999. The book describes a comprehensive theory for how we construct meaning, represented by the mythical process of the exploratory hero, and also provides a way of interpreting religious and mythical models of reality presented in a way that fits in with modern scientific understanding of how the brain works. It synthesizes ideas drawn from narratives in mythology, religion, literature and philosophy, as well as research from modern neuropsychology.
Peterson’s primary goal was to figure out the reasons why individuals, not simply groups, engage in social conflict, and try to model the path individuals take that results in atrocities like the Holocaust or the Soviet Gulag. Peterson considers himself a pragmatist, and uses science and neuropsychology to examine and learn from the belief systems of the past and vice versa, but his theory is primarily phenomenological. Peterson explores the origins of evil, and also posits that an analysis of the world’s religious ideas might allow us to describe our essential morality and eventually develop a universal system of morality.
Harvey Shepard, writing in the Religion column in the Montreal Gazette in 2003, states "To me, the book reflects its author's profound moral sense and vast erudition in areas ranging from clinical psychology to scripture and a good deal of personal soul searching..." He goes on to note that "Peterson's vision is both fully informed by current scientific and pragmatic methods, and in important ways deeply conservative and traditional."
Online projects
Peterson has produced a series of online writing exercises including: the Past Authoring Program, a guided autobiography; two Present Authoring Programs, which allow the user to analyze his or her personality faults and virtues in accordance with the Big Five personality model; and the Future Authoring program, which steps users through the process of envisioning and then planning their desired futures, three to five years down the road. The latter program was used with McGill University undergraduates on academic probation to improve their grades.
The Self Authoring programs were developed in partial consequence of research conducted by James Pennebaker at the University of Texas and Gary Latham at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. Pennebaker demonstrated that writing about traumatic or uncertain events and situations improved mental and physical health, while Latham has demonstrated that planning exercises that are personal help make people more productive.
Peterson records his lectures and uploads them to YouTube. His YouTube channel has amassed more than 200,000 subscribers and his videos have received more than 8 million views as of April 2017.
Peterson has also recently started recording a podcast: The Jordan B Peterson Podcast which has 14 episodes as of April 16, 2017.
Media appearances
In 2004, a 13-part TV series based on his book Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief aired on TVOntario. Peterson has appeared on TVO on shows such as Big Ideas, and has been a frequent guest and essayist on TVO's The Agenda with Steve Paikin since 2008. He has also appeared on the The Joe Rogan Experience, The Gavin McInnes Show, Reality Calls, Sam Harris's Waking Up podcast, Steven Crowder's Louder with Crowder, Dave Rubin's Rubin Report and Stefan Molyneux's Freedomain Radio.
Selected publications
- Peterson, Jordan. "The Pragmatics of Meaning"
- Peterson, Jordan. Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief. Routledge, 1999.
References
- ^ Anne C. Krendl, 'Jordan Peterson: Linking Mythology to Psychology'. 26 April 1995
- "Bernt. Pronounced Bear-ent. It's Norwegian, after my great grandfather."
- ^ Where we live...; Fairview Post, 27 January 2004
- Ferreira, Victor (March 3, 2017). "Jordan Peterson, Milo Yiannopoulos backed to become University of Glasgow rector despite clashing with gender policy". National Post. Retrieved March 20, 2017.
- "New words trigger an abstract clash". Toronto Star, November 20, 2016, pageA2. by Rosie DiManno.
- ^ Toronto Star (15/01/2017). "He says freedom, they say hate. The pronoun fight is back".
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Craig, Sean (September 28, 2016). "U of T professor attacks political correctness, says he refuses to use genderless pronouns". National Post. Retrieved October 5, 2016.
- "University of Toronto professor defends right to use gender-specific pronouns". Simona Chiose, The Globe and Mail, Nov. 19, 2016
- Kivanc, Jake (September 29, 2016). "A Canadian University Professor Is Under Fire For Rant on Political Correctness". Vice. Retrieved December 19, 2016.
- Peterson, Jordan B. "Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief" Routledge, 1999, p. 12.
- Shepherd, Harvey (November 11, 2003). "Meaning from Myths". Montreal Gazette.
- ^ Kamenetz, Anya (July 10, 2015). "The Writing Assignment That Changes Lives". NPR.
- "The Jordan B Peterson Podcast". Retrieved April 16, 2017.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - McInnes, Gavin. "The Gavin McInnes Show". www.compoundmedia.com. Compound Media. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
External links
- Official website
- Peterson quotations on Good Reads
- Jordan Peterson on Quora
- Jordan Peterson official Youtube page
- Jordan Peterson on Twitter