Issues & Debates : Free Will vs Determinism

Question 1

What is free will?

Answer 1

The idea we play an active role and choose how we behave (we have agency over our brain and our behaviour is self determined)

Question 2

What is determinism?

Answer 2

Free will is an illusion and our behaviour is governed by internal and external forces that we have no control over (our behaviour is predetermined and predictable)

Question 3

What’s hard determinism?

Answer 3

Behaviour is constrained by the environment or biology, but only to a certain extend and that there is an element of free will in all behaviour

Question 4

What’s soft determinism?

Answer 4

Forces outside our control shapes all of out behaviour and there’s no free will.

Question 5

What’s biological determinism?

Answer 5

All human behaviour is innate and determined by genes (eg… MAOA gene is a candidate gene for aggression)

Question 6

What’s environmental determinism?

Answer 6

Behaviour is caused by forces outside the individual (behaviour is caused by previous experiences learned through classical and operant conditioning – environment and childhood)

Question 7

What’s psychic determinism?

Answer 7

Human behaviour is a result of childhood experiences and innate drives (eg… ID, ego, superego).

Question 8

What is causality?

Answer 8

A basic principle of the scientific approach that every event has a cause that can be explained by general principles. Establishing these principles enables prediction, and control of events.

Question 9

What’s determinism is the behaviourist approach?

Answer 9

Hard, environmental determinism

Question 10

What’s determinism is the social learning theory approach?

Answer 10

Soft, environmental, biological determinism

Question 11

What’s determinism is the cognitive approach?

Answer 11

Soft, biological determinism

Question 12

What’s determinism is the biological approach?

Answer 12

Hard, biological determinism

Question 13

What’s determinism is the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 13

Soft, psychic determinism

Question 14

What’s determinism is the humanist approach?

Answer 14

Free will

Question 15

What’re the strengths of the theory of free will?

Answer 15

• Free will has face validity → Roberts (2000) demonstrated that adolescents with a strong belief in fatalism (lived were decided by events outside their control) were ,more likely to develop depression

Question 16

What’re the limitations of the theory of free will?

Answer 16

• Empiracle evidence from neurological studies supporting determinism → Libet et al. (1983) found that brain activity in motor areas occurred before Ps were consciously aware of their decision to move a finger, suggesting that the brain executed a pre-deter inked action before we’ve made a conscious decision.

Question 17

What’re the limitations of the theory of hard determinism?

Answer 17

• Inconsistency with principles that underpin our legal system → Mobley (1994) argues in court he was ‘born to kill’ after murdering a pizza shop manager claiming his family has a tendency for violence

Question 18

What’re the limitations of the theory of biological determinism?

Answer 18

• Does not account for the complexities of human behaviour as no behaviour is determined by genes alone → Bouchard and McGue (1981) completed a meta-analysis comparing MZ twins and found an 80% similarity in intelligence and a 40% in depression, suggesting genetic factors contribute to behaviour but doesn’t fully determine it.

Question 19

What’re the limitations of the theory of determinism?

Answer 19

• It oversimplifies human behaviour, failing to account for the complexity and variability inherent in human actions → eg, aggression cannot be solely because of the endocrine system and effects of adrenaline as cognitive roles and emotions play a crucial role in …