MFSA hosts Jenara Nerenberg, author of the book Trust Your Mind: Embracing Nuance in a World of Self-Silencing, at the Cambridge Innovation Center.
About Trust Your Mind:
An urgent examination of self-silencing culture and the toxic impact of groupthink, by the author of Divergent Mind and founder of The Neurodiversity Project. Nerenberg empowers readers with tools to understand the mind and navigate an increasingly polarized world, from campuses and workplaces, to the media and beyond.
Connected across geography and culture via the internet, the world is both a vast, limitless landscape and an ever-shrinking echo chamber. Communication, especially discourse over free speech, is becoming increasingly divisive; one person’s right to speak comes into conflict with another seeking to prevent harm. Our tolerance for differing opinions is also narrowing. A “wrong” remark or comment, no matter how seemingly innocent, can result in banishment, and contradictory ideas spark hysteria and backlash—what is referred to as “cancel culture.” This polarization affects everyone of us—among friends and families, workplaces and communities—and threatens the fabric of society.
In this timely book, Jenara Nerenberg analyzes this phenomenon of “self-silencing,” asking potent questions about how harmful groupthink has become accepted. Applying her expertise in journalism, psychology, and public health, she digs deep into urgent problems that are worsening under a culture of self-censorship, including loneliness, isolation, and polarization.
But there is hope. Nerenberg offers insights for how to identify and escape groupthink and transform fear into empathy, allowing space for authentic communication that reduces—rather than causes—harm to others.
About the Author:
Jenara Nerenberg lectures widely on psychology and viewpoint diversity and is the bestselling author of Divergent Mind, about neurological diversity. Selected as a “brave new idea” presenter by the Aspen Institute for her work on reframing mental differences, Jenara is also the author of the brand new book, Trust Your Mind, about the psychology of groupthink. She holds degrees from the Harvard School of Public Health and UC Berkeley, and her work has been featured in Fast Company, New York magazine, TIME, NPR, CNN, BBC, KQED, and elsewhere. Jenara is a frequent speaker at universities, libraries and organizations around the world and splits her time between Asia and the United States. You can find her online on Instagram and learn more about her work on her website.