Sam Harris’ views on Values

See: Concept: Values

Notes about Sam Harris’ views on Values (via Google Bard):

Sure, here is a summary of Sam Harris’ views on values:

• Science can be used to identify values. Harris argues that values are facts that can be scientifically understood, such as the effects of specific laws and social institutions on human relationships, the neurophysiology of happiness and suffering, etc. He believes that scientific principles are appropriately applied in this domain because human well-being entirely depends on events in the world and on states of the human brain.
• The conceptual basis for morality and values is well-being. Harris defines well-being as “the state of being well or in a good state of health and happiness.” He believes that well-being is the only thing that is ultimately good in itself, and that all other values are instrumental insofar as they contribute to well-being.
• There is an objective moral landscape. Harris argues that there is an objective moral landscape, meaning that there are some things that are objectively right and wrong, regardless of what anyone believes. He believes that this can be determined by using science to identify the values that contribute to human well-being.

Harris’ views on values have been controversial, but they have also been influential. His work has been praised by some for its rigor and clarity, while others have criticized it for being too simplistic or for failing to take into account the full complexity of human morality.

Here are some additional resources that you may find helpful:

• The Moral Landscape: https://www.samharris.org/books/the-moral-landscape by Sam Harris
• The Science of Values: The Moral Landscape by Sam Harris: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3501430/ by Johnathan Schooler
• Sam Harris and His Failure to Justify Objective Moral Values and Duties: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh12JCCEV88 by Michael Huemer

I hope this helps!

[Author’s Note: The above text was AI-generated and may not be accurate. The overarching intent behind this blog post is to provide a starting point for discussions among aspiring community builders. Just as startup founders can benefit from startup oriented content (such as those provided by accelerators and incubators), community builders can benefit from community building oriented content. If you are an aspiring community builder, please contribute to the discussion by commenting on this post]