Jordan B. Peterson

Jordan Bernt Peterson born 12 June 1962 is a Canadian psychologist author and media commentator He received widespread attention in the late 2010s for his views on cultural and political issues Often described as conservative Peterson selfidentifies as a classical liberal and traditionalist Born and raised in Alberta he graduated from the University of Alberta with undergraduate degrees in political science and psychology and earned his PhD in clinical psychology from McGill University After researching and teaching at Harvard University he returned to Canada in 1998 and became a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto In 1999 he published his first book Maps of Meaning The Architecture of Belief which became the basis for many of his subsequent lectures The book combined psychology mythology religion literature philosophy and neuroscience to analyze systems of belief and meaning In 2016 Peterson released a series of videos on YouTube criticizing a proposed federal law Bill C16 that would prohibit discrimination against gender identity and expression Peterson argued that the bill would make the use of certain gender pronouns compelled speech and related this argument to a general critique of political correctness and identity politics receiving significant media coverage and attracting both support and criticism The bill became law in 2017 Peterson has been widely criticized by climate scientists for denying the scientific consensus on climate change and giving a platform to climatechange deniers In 2018 he paused both his clinical practice and teaching duties and published his second book 12 Rules for Life An Antidote to Chaos Promoted with a world tour it became a bestseller in several countries In 2019 and 2020 Peterson suffered health issues related to benzodiazepine dependence In 2021 he published his third book Beyond Order 12 More Rules for Life resigned from the University of Toronto and returned to podcasting In 2022 Peterson became chancellor of the newly launched Ralston College a private unaccredited liberal arts college in Savannah Georgia United States In 2025 Peterson suffered chronic inflammatory response syndrome causing his hospitalization for five months Affected by health problems since attaining prominence Peterson has been under assisted care at his residence and remained out of public life since June 2025 His various lectures and conversations available mainly on YouTube and podcasts have garnered millions of views Description above from the Wikipedia article Jordan Peterson licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia