Free Will

Question 1

Animals not in control of brains

Answer 1

Snails with mind-controlling parasites
Rove beetle
Toxoplasmosis and rats

Question 2

Toxoplasmosis and humans

Answer 2

50% of Americans have it. Suggested that it is associated with increased perceived dominance and masculinity in others and increased chance of schizophrenia and suicide. In infected women, higher intelligence, dutiful, conscientious, conforming, moral, warm…opposite in men. Both have more guilt-proneness. Can stop brain deterioration to Alzheimer’s

Question 3

Libet’s Half-second delay

Answer 3

A half-second delay before people press button. 500 ms before, brain activity begins; conscious about urge 200 ms before, then act. Brain responds before we are conscious of why.

Question 4

Intention to move vs. actually moving

Answer 4

When people attended to their intention to move (rather than the movement itself), there was more activity in the pre-supplementary motor area

Question 5

Belief in freewill

Answer 5

Belief in determinism (behavior as consequence of environmental and genetic) can increase cheating. Belief in freewill gives more positive attitudes about career success; better work performance evaluation.

Question 6

Biological determinism

Answer 6

Human condition is result of calculable interactions between neurons - reductionist account of social problems.

Question 7

Biomechanism and the law

Answer 7

Evidence presented at sentencing in support of biomechanical cause of convict’s psychopathy significantly reduces sentencing.

Question 8

vlPFC

Answer 8

Choosing long-term vs short-term gain

Question 9

dlPFC

Answer 9

Choosing one action rather than another. Maintenance of behavior appropriate to a context

Question 10

Frontal pole

Answer 10

Choosing one strategy rather than another - planning, metacognition, reasoning.

Question 11

Phineas Gage

Answer 11

Ventromedial and orbital PFC damage.

Question 12

Not Guilty through reason of insanity

Answer 12

M’Naghten the first in 1844, but now the most common defense plea for murder. Patients with selective damage to PFC can know right from wrong but unable to act on knowledge

Question 13

Degenerative brain disorders

Answer 13

Lead to antisocial conduct, aggression. Huntington’s, frontotemporal dementia, Pick’s disease.

Question 14

PFC in antisocial and violent subjects

Answer 14

Antisocial disorder - 11% less prefrontal cortex grey matter

Temporal lobe epilepsy - agression and reduced prefrontal grey matter.

Question 15

Functional imaging studies of antisocial and violent subjects

Answer 15

PET - reduced activity in frontal lobes of violent subjects.

Evoked anger and imagined aggressive transgressions - reduced activity in orbital and medial frontal cortex

Question 16

When brain damage is not enough

Answer 16

Not all people with prefrontal damage exhibit antisocial behavior. Also an antisocial/violent man had reversal of condition.