Issues and debates - free will vs determinsim Flashcards
Hard determinsim
Human behaviour is completely determined by factors outside of their control. I.e., we have no free will.
Soft determinism
Human behaviour is generally predetermined by factors outside of their control, but have the option to exercise free will in some situations. Accepts humans have a perception of control.
Determinism
Proposes that an individual’s behaviour is shaped or controlled by internal or external forces, rather than their own will.
Free will
Assumes individuals have an active role in controlling their behaviour and are not controlled by biological or external forces.
Biological determinism
This refers to the belief that behaviour is caused by biological influences that we cannot control. These influences could include genes, hormones, neurotransmitter levels, brain damage or evolutionary explanations for behaviour.
Environmental determinism
This refers to the belief that behaviour is caused by envirnmental influences that we cannot control. These influences could include stimulus-response links (learned associations), or operant conditioning (learning through consequences OR could be the influence of those around us as proposed by Social Learning Theory.
Psychic determinism
This refers to the belief that behaviour is caused by unconscious conflicts that we cannot control, which may stem from early childhood.
These influences could include the influence of the id on our behaviour (particularly if we have a weak ego) or the influence of childhood traumas that have been repressed into the unconscious mind but continue to influence behaviour.
Evaluation- evidence (Chun Siong Soon)
P- Chun Siong Soon et al (2008) found that brain activity relating to whether to press a button with the left or right hand occurs in the brain up to 10 seconds BEFORE pps report being consciously aware of making such a decision.
E- Although unscientific, harbouring ideas of FW can be good for your mental healthRoberts et al (2000) found adolescents with a strong belief in fatalism (that their lives were determined by factors outside their control) were at significantly greater risk of depression.
L- Hence, individuals with a high internal locus of control (so believe they have some degree of free will) tend to be mentally healthier. This suggests the debate can have far reaching implications
Evaluation- interactionist perspective
P-An interactionist perspective may offer the best compromise in the free will vs determinism debate.
E- Some approaches include aspects of both determinism and free will. The cognitive explanation of phobias suggests they are due to faulty thinking ( a deterministic view). However, cognitive therapies encourage individuals to use their own free will to change their behaviour.
E- Similarly, approaches in psychology that have a cognitive element (like SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY), tend to adopt an interactionist or soft determinism perspective. For example, Bandura argues that environmental factors are key to learning behaviour, but that we are free to choose (or make decisions about) who or what to attend to and when to perform certain behaviours (think about the FOUR Cognitive mediational factors in social learning theory).
L-This perspective offers perhaps the most complete explanation of many behaviours.
Evaluation,
Free will is not real
P- The behaviourist, Skinner, would argue that the concept of free will can be explained by determinism.
E- For example, if free will is the product of conscious thinking, and this can be explained by brain activity, then the ability to use ‘free will’ is determined by the internal factors of the connections in our brain.
L-This suggests… as Skinner (and Freud) suggested, free will is a convenient illusion
Evaluation,
Diathesis-stress
P- The diathesis stress approach can be seen as a more holistic alternative account that incorporates several types of determinism.
E- For instance, in patients with schizophrenia, the diathesis-stress account assumes that they had a vulnerability to developing the condition (diathesis) such as a genetic predisposition caused by a faulty variant C4 gene leading to hyper-pruning in the brain. Saying this is the sole cause could be regarded as biological determinism. However, the model then explains how other factors (stressors) are also needed for the predisposition to be triggered, such as having a schizophrenogenic mother (environmental determinism).
L- This implies that, although deterministic, the explanations are at least less reductionist, increasing their explanatory power.
