Free Will Study Guide

Question 1

generic formulation of free will

Answer 1

ability to choose what one does, even if one did X, could have done Y

Question 2

link from free will with moral responsibility

Answer 2

only acts done freely deserve praise/blame, typically don’t blame for actions done while mentally ill/coercion/reflexes, if not done freely then will not blame or praise

Question 3

the main issues in the free will debate

Answer 3

classical: is world deterministic (everything HAS to happen)? If world is deterministic can free will exist
alternative: is world materialistic (mind is physical and mind and brain are one)? And if it is does free will exist?

Question 4

thesis of determinism, and why it threatens free will

Answer 4

every event in the universe is such that it HAD to happen, given laws of physics and state of the universe before event, if actions are determined then may not have free will because don’t have free choice

Question 5

quantum physics and why it doesn’t seem to help free will

Answer 5

brain operates on chemical responses and electrical signals governed by physics, so if determined then no free will, view world mechanicalistic, everything is due to physics like billiard balls, microphysical level that occurs only with a probaility - quantum randomness doesn’t help make room for free will, instead is determined by randomness and electrons move by possibility

Question 6

compatibalist view

Answer 6

if determinism is true, there could still be free will because it requires only ability to do otherwise if one had decided to, one has this as long as not in jail/mentally ill/controlled, so make one’s decision free in relavent sense

Question 7

incompatibalist view

Answer 7

if determinism is true, then no free will because free will requires ability to do otherwise

Question 8

main shortcomings that compatibalism is commonly considered to have

Answer 8

compatibalist gives free actionbut not sure if enough for moral responsibility, might only be morally responsible for actions undetermined and not random (kind that would be if dualism is true)

Question 9

argument for compatibalism

Answer 9

WT Stace, soft determinist, if determinist is true then compare stereotypical case of free and non-free action is determined, whether action is determined or not doesn’t dictate if free or not, so incompatibalism is false, definining whether free or not is if it is in line with one’s desires - free acts

Question 10

original formulation of free will in terms of determinism

Answer 10

is world deterministic (or close), if is deterministic can free will exist (aka dualism is false)

Question 11

alternative conception/formulation of free will

Answer 11

is materialism true? if materialism is true can there be free will?

Question 12

hard determinism

Answer 12

incompatibalism, determinism is true, don’t have free will

Question 13

libertarianism

Answer 13

incompatibalist view, determinism is false, and we have free will

Question 14

conpatibalism view (brief def)

Answer 14

whether or not have free will (means there is soft determinism) that says determinism is true but we have free will

Question 15

connection between free will and conscious will

Answer 15

need for robust kind of free choice is for it to come to some sort of directed, non-physical causal force, like a soul, certain actions are precipitated by our willing them or consciously deciding to do them, perhaps an action shouldn’t be considered free unless it comes from one’s conscious will

Question 16

dualism

Answer 16

mind is nonphysical, exists outside space, maybe immortal, AKA substance dualism, dualism - 2 things mind and body

Question 17

interactionist substance dualism

Answer 17

brain affects nonphysical mind (stove cause pain), nonphysical midn affects body and brain (pain so rub finger), soul, mind nonphysical substance that interacts with brain

Question 18

substance dualism

Answer 18

every physical part of you is non-continous, but is something continuous who is you, this most be nonphysical mind

Question 19

materalism

Answer 19

mind is physical and is protons/electrons arranged in new way, form of monism, brain and mind are one thing

Question 20

how materialism/dualism relate to free will and true free choice

Answer 20

interactionist substance includes personally directed, non-deterministic force that seems important for truly free action, nonphysical force that affects

Question 21

argument against dualism

Answer 21

mind damage, because damage to brain makes mind damage, shouldn’t happen if mind is nonphysical, phineas gage, if brain does all this (ToM, mental states, new/old memores), what’s left for nonphysical mind

Question 22

argument for dualism to combat phineas gage issue

Answer 22

dualism says not unexpected because need all pieces together for something to work - brain is a tool/apparatus

Question 23

antedating of sensation experiment with libet

Answer 23

left S1 stimulation causes tingle on right hand only if more than 500ms, left S1 stimulated at same time, right hand tingle felt after left hand touch

Question 24

details of somatosensory cortex and location

Answer 24

is just posterior to central sulcus, superior to lateral sulcus on postentral gyrus, contains representation of surface of body (is somatopic)

Question 25

conscious will experiment (brief)

Answer 25

explore when consciously will an action and when brain initiates action

Question 26

measurements for conscious will experiment

Answer 26

time of wrist flex - emg
time subject says they initiated action
time of readiness potential - eeg, negative shift in brain’s electrical activity that reliably precedes voluntary motor actions wich is thought to be decision to flex

Question 27

libet results

Answer 27

readiness potential started RP 553ms before action, subjects said initiated 193ms before action, so wrist flex started before they knew, so action not caused by conscious will (epiphenomenon - by product - of unconscious decision making), W is awareness of intention

Question 28

how EEG works

Answer 28

spiking of neurons makes electrical signals, electrodes placed on scalp pick up electrical signals, mental events can be identified by patterns of electrical activity (ERPs - event related potentials), good temporal resolution, but bad spatial and only measures outside of brain

Question 29

what libet results mean for hard determinism

Answer 29

determinism is true so no free will, this on still works

Question 30

Libet results meaning for libertarianism

Answer 30

determinism is false so have free will - this is a problem and doesnt work now, 2 problems are conscious will might be determined/random AND not source of voluntary action

Question 31

what libet results means for compatibalism

Answer 31

whether or not determinism is real we still have free will, but need action to be caused by conscious if considered free so 1 problem ehre that conscious will looks to be not the source of voluntary action

Question 32

idea of free wont

Answer 32

idea that you don’t make the urge to do something but still have the ability to do both

Question 33

study for free wont

Answer 33

conscious veto trials, asked people to do wrist flex then veto action right before (100-200ms), libet said means can’t consciously initiate action but can veto, so conscious is gatekeeper - might assume dualism

Question 34

problems with conscious veto study

Answer 34

question if it has unconscious source, 300ms cerebral preparation

Question 35

objections to libet experiment - that libet actions are not free actions

Answer 35

actions done in experiment are not good examples of the kind of intentional action in question in free will debate, action initiation doesn’t actually precede conscious willing

Question 36

why simple flexing action might not be considered act of free will

Answer 36

free action is grounded in reason and motivation but libet actions aren’t, conscious willing actually happens at time subject accepts experimenter instructions and wrist flex is automatic, aka wrist flex is bad example

Question 37

idea that libet experiment free action occurs way earlier than decision to flex

Answer 37

argument that time of conscious willing is actually earlier than subjects report and that initiation is actually later than measured

Question 38

two ways to show action initiation doesnt precede free will

Answer 38

time of willing is earlier or readiness potential is later

Question 39

prior entry effect criticism of libet experiment

Answer 39

attention to one modality will make event seem to have happened earlier than simultaneously and unattended event in another modality, cause 70ms shift at most, cannot close 300ms gap between W and RP

Question 40

high variability in subjects judgement for libet experiment

Answer 40

extreme cases with one subject high and low means 231ms and 80ms before movement, another subject 542 and 351ms before movement

Question 41

reason to think subjects are mistaken in when decision happens

Answer 41

other studies show RP always precedes W high variability notwithstanding, libet results have been replicated, makes general results look valid

Question 42

relevant experiments and what they were generally about for that subjects mistaken when decision happens

Answer 42

divided attention studies show that RP always before W, libet experiment replicated lots, I spy study, time-locked beep, induced conscious willings

Question 43

banks and isham view and experiments they ran

Answer 43

subjects infer W from its cues so retrospective inference, ask if we have physiological mechanism telling us when to act, moving time of observable event also move W, subjects were asked to push a button which would make a beep, delayed beep caused later W

Question 44

argument against RP being sufficient for wrist flex

Answer 44

decision to flex wrist precedes will then conscious will doesn’t make it happen, EEG is messy so neural activity can vary, detect RP with back average (averaged trials), so needs fixed point which wrist is flexed to compare to back average so non-flex trials not counted

Question 45

argument against RP being necessary for wrist flex

Answer 45

pocket and purdy say not necssary nor sufficient, need neural signature of decision but if RPs happen when no intentional act maybe not neural signature, RP like waveforms precede other events like stimulus perception so maybe signature of anticipation not decision

Question 46

skepticism of if conscious willing exists at all, how it might lead to idea that is no definitive moment of conscious decision

Answer 46

subjects get W from cues, moving time of event results in moving time of willing, so like introspective opacity - I spy study with mous then stop one thing after someone says it and they think they did it when they didn’t, induce free choice with click TMS raise finger and subjects think they did when they didnt

Question 47

general conclusion for libet experiment

Answer 47

seems that conscious willing somthing we infer rather than direct percieve, may be no such thing as conscious willing, libet experiment made on mistaken assumption, worry is not if W is good measure, rather there is nothing for W to measure