Free Will And Determinism Flashcards
What is free will
The notion that humans have the power to make choices about their behaviour
What is determinism
The notion that behaviour is controlled by internal or external factors acting upon the individual
What is hard determinism
The view that all behaviour can be predicted and there is no free will
What is soft determinism
The view that human behaviour has causes but it can also be determined by our conscious choices
What is biological determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by biological influences that we cannot control
What is environmental determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by features of the environment that we cannot control
What is psychic determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by unconscious conflicts that we cannot control
What are the 3 approaches which are hard deterministic
Behaviourist, biological, psychodynamic
What are the 2 approaches that are soft deterministic
SLT and cognitive
Why is science deterministic
Science aims to establish general laws by identifying and measuring the cause of all events. An IV is manipulated to observe the causal effect on a DV- this proposes that all events can be determined by an external or internal factor
Which approach takes a free will stance
Humanism
Outline and describe the case study that highlights free will vs determinism
Stephen Mobley
- Stephen shot manager in Domino’s pizza and found guilty of murder and sentenced to death
- Mobley’s attorney appealed his sentence on basis that he had inherited a ‘criminal gene’ due to family history of criminal acts; not responsible for his actions
- appeal was thrown out by judge and Mobley executed
- sparked questions as to whether an individual’s genetic makeup could ever be used as defence in criminal cases
