free-will and determinism

Question 1

free will

Answer 1

the view that humans have a choice, ability to make their own decisions, are agents of their behaviour, and are under their own control

Question 2

hard determinism

Answer 2

the view that all behaviour is caused by forces outside a persons control or from internal/external factors

Question 3

soft determinism

Answer 3

the view that behaviour is still caused but not by external events but by conscious internal processes

Question 4

environmental determinism

Answer 4

behaviour is caused by environmental factors
e.g. conditioning and modelling

Question 5

psychic determinism

Answer 5

behaviour is caused by unconscious forces
e.g. instincts, repressed experiences, fears

Question 6

biological determinism

Answer 6

behaviour is caused by biological factors
e.g. genes and brain structures

Question 7

existence of free-will conflicts with scientific enquiry

Answer 7

• science is based off causal explanations, whereas free-will implies that behaviour and thinking are non-deterministic
• science aims to predict and control behaviour, whereas free-will implies that behaviours and thinking result from a persons complete freedom to control what he or she does or thinks
• the idea of a non-physical phenomenon like free will can have an effect on the physical world in the form of behaviour is at odds with the assumption of science that a physical effect must have a physical cause

Question 8

free will AO3

Answer 8

• ## face validity, feels like we have free-will, feel like we have the ability to choose; however determinists argue that this is an illusion

Question 9

biological determinism - strength

Answer 9

• successfully predicted human behaviour, such as cause and effects in mental illness and neurotransmitter imbalances, led to development of drug treatment, good economic implication

Question 10

determinism limitation

Answer 10

oversimplification of human behaviour, should really consider multiple factors (holism)