ethics - freewill Flashcards
to understand all aspects of freewill within ethics
what is meant by the term ‘freewill’?
freewill is the ability to make reasoned and conscience choices.
what is hard determanisum
Hard determanisum is the rejection of freewill, following the beleif that nothing is random and nothing is free. - based upon the concept of universal causation (everything has been caused by something that came before it)
what is the core concept of scientific hard determanisum
scientific hard determanisum states that there is a complete sequence of cause and effect going all the way back to the big bang. So everything is caused by something before hand.
How may a scientific determanist refer to physics to support their arguement
Physics determans everything, meaning every event in the universe has been caused by physics. So therefore would the future not also be determaned by physics.
what french mathmatition and scientist grappled with hard determanisum
‘Laplace’
What did Laplace conlude on the topic of scientific determanisum
Laplace concluded that if an indevidual had complete knowledge of everything in the universe at any given time, then that person would be able to perfectly predict the future as well as retrace the past.
what is phychological determanisum based upon?
The concept that human behaviour is determaned by genetic and enviromental conditions.
What study was conducted that supported phychological determansium
the ‘Little Albert experement’
Describe what happened in the ‘Little Albert experement’
In this experement a baby was given a varity of different stimulents to see his reaction. The doctors particularly focused upon the sitimulents that little Albert was afraid off. The main one being his fear of a loud bang noise. Then the professours paired the loud noise with something that the child liked such as a dog. Overtime the baby became afraid of the dog without even hearing the loud bang through learned ascoiation.
Outline the viewes held in theological determansium
Theological determansium is grounded in the idea that God in omnsciencent. So God must be aware of any past presesnt or future event. This suggests that all of our decisions have been pre-determined and God is aware of them.
This could also suggest that some of us are pre-determaned to go to either heaven or hell.
Why would st Thomas Aquinas have disagreed with theological determansium
Aquinas beleived that God in timeless and views the past present and future all at once.
What is the view of libertrian freewill
Libertarian free-will is the beleif that moral agents are completly free to do and act as they please.
What scholar supports libertarian freewill
Jean-Paul Startre takes a libertarian stance as he states ‘ There is no determanisum, man is free, man is freedom’
what arguemnt of Swinburn supports libertarian freewill
Swinburn argued that the most likly explanation is always the simplist
what is the common sense arguement to support libertarian freewill
fiilings of gult and shame indicate that we do in fact carry freewill -why would we feel guilt for a predetermined action in which we had no control over?
