Steven Arthur Pinker, born on September 18, 1954, is a Canadian cognitive psychologist, psycholinguist, and popular science author. He is known for his work in evolutionary psychology and the computational theory of mind. Pinker is currently the Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. His research spans visual cognition, psycholinguistics, and social relations, with recent investigations into the psychology of common knowledge and its impact on social phenomena.
Pinker gained prominence with his book "The Language Instinct" (1994), which argues that language is an innate human faculty shaped by natural selection. He has authored several other influential books, including "How the Mind Works" (1997), a Pulitzer Prize finalist, "The Blank Slate" (2002), "The Better Angels of Our Nature" (2011), which examines the decline of violence over time, "Enlightenment Now" (2018), advocating for reason and science, and "Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters" (2021). Pinker's upcoming book, "When Everyone Knows that Everyone Knows...: Common Knowledge and the Mysteries of Money, Power, and Everyday Life," is slated for release in 2025. In December 2025, Pinker expressed concerns about "neo-reactionary" movements in Silicon Valley, criticizing ideological shifts within the tech industry.