Issues And Debates: Free Will And Determinism

Question 1

Define free will

Answer 1

The notion that humans can make choices and are not determined by biological or external forces

Question 2

What is determinism

Answer 2

Contrast to free will
- the view that an individuals behaviour is shaped or controlled by internal or external forces rather than an individuals will to do something

Question 3

What are the 5 main types of determinism

Answer 3

Hard and soft determinism
Biological, environmental and psychic determinism

Question 4

Outline ‘hard determinism’

Answer 4

• sometimes referred to as ‘fatalism’
• suggests all human behaviour has a cause (internal or external events) and in principle, it should be possible to identify and describe these causes

Question 5

Outline ‘soft determinism’

Answer 5

• first proposed by Willian James
• whilst acknowledge all human behaviour has a cause, soft determinists suggest some room for manoeuvre in that people have conscious mental control over the way they behave

Question 6

Outline biological determinism

Answer 6

• the belief that behaviour is caused by biological (genetic, hormonal, evolutionary) influences that we cannot control

Question 7

Outline environmental determinism

Answer 7

-Skinner described free will as ‘an illusion’ + argued all behaviour is the result of conditioning
- the belief that behaviour is caused by features of the environment (such as systems of reward and control) that we cannot control

Question 8

Outline psychic determinism

Answer 8

• Freud agreed free will is an illusion but placed more emphasis on the influence of biological drives and instincts than behaviourists
• behaviour is caused by unconscious conflicts we cannot control

Question 9

Outline the scientific emphasis on causal explanations

Answer 9

• one of the basic principles in science is that every event in the universe has a cause which can be explained using general laws
• in psychology, the laboratory experiment enables researchers to simulate the conditions of the test tube + remove extraneous variables to establish cause and effect

Question 10

Outline the case for determinism

Answer 10

• determinism is consistent with the aims of science
• the experience of mental disorders like schizophrenia, where individuals experience a total loss of control over their thoughts and behaviour casts doubt on free will concept
• at least, in terms of a mental disorder, behaviour would appear to be determined

Question 11

Outline the case against determinism

Answer 11

• the hard determinist approach is not consistent with the way in which our legal system operates
• in courts of law, offenders are held morally accountable for their actions
• determinism as an approach is also unfalsifiable, it assumes the cause of behaviour will always exist even if it cannot be found

Question 12

Outline the case for free will

Answer 12

• every day experience ‘gives the impression’ we are constantly exercising free will through choices we make
• this gives face validity to the concept of free will - it makes cognitive sense
• research suggests people with a internal locus of control tend to be more mentally healthy
• so even if we don’t have free will,believing that we do can have a positive impact on mental health

Question 13

Outline the case against free will

Answer 13

• neurological studies of decision masking have revealed evidence against free will
• researchers found the activity related to whether to press a button with the left or right hand occurs in the brain up to 10 seconds before participants report being consciously aware of making the decision