Free Will versus Determinism

1. Dialogue Education Update 3 Free Will versus Determinism Have I got any choice? THIS CD HAS BEEN PRODUCED FOR TEACHERS TO USE IN THE CLASSROOM. IT IS A CONDITION OF THE USE OF THIS CD THAT IT BE USED ONLY BY THE PEOPLE FROM SCHOOLS THAT HAVE PURCHASED THE CD ROM FROM DIALOGUE EDUCATION. (THIS DOES NOT PROHIBIT ITS USE ON A SCHOOL’S INTRANET)

2. Contents • Page 3 - Video Presentation outlining the Free Will/Determinism debate • Pages 4 to 5 - Free Will • Page 6 - Fundamental questions in the debate • Page 8 - Determinism • Page 9 - Libertarianism • Pages 10 to 11 - Compatibilism • Page 12 - Incompatibilism • Page 13 - Overview map • Pages14 to 16 - Moral Responsibility • Pages 17 to 21 - Science and the Free Will debate • Pages 23 to 24 - Eastern Philosophy • Page 25 - Jewish Philosophy • Page 26 - Islamic Philosophy • Pages 27 to 28 - Christian philosophy • Page 30 - Community of Inquiry Stimulus Material • Page 31 - Bibliography

3. You Tube Presentation on Free Will / Determinism debate • Click on the image to the left. You will need to be connected to the internet to view this presentation. • Enlarge to full screen

4. Free Will versus Determinism The question of free will is whether, and in what sense, rational agents exercise control over their actions and decisions.

5. Free Will versus Determinism • The principle of free will has religious, ethical, and scientific implications.

6. Free Will vs Determinism The basic philosophical positions on the problem of free will can be divided in accordance with the answers they provide to two questions: • Is determinism true? • Does free will exist?

7. Determinism

8. Determinism Determinism is a broad term with a variety of meanings. Corresponding to each of these different meanings, there arises a different problem of free will. .

9. Libertarianism • Libertarianism is the view that humans have free will , and that we have the freedom to choose what we want, and that our choices are not pre-determined.

10. Compatibilism Compatibilists maintain that determinism is compatible with free will.

11. Compatibilism William James' views were ambivalent. While he believed in free will on "ethical grounds," he did not believe that there was evidence for it on scientific grounds, nor did his own introspections support it.

12. Incompatibilism "Hard determinists", such as d'Holbach, are those incompatibilists who accept determinism and reject free will.

13. A Diagram showing the Different stances in relation to Determinism and Free will

14. Moral responsibility • Society generally holds people responsible for their actions, and will say that they deserve praise or blame for what they do.

15. Moral responsibility Jean-Paul Sartre argues that people sometimes avoid incrimination and responsibility by hiding behind determinism: "

16. Moral responsibility • Compatibilists argue, on the contrary, that determinism is a prerequisite for moral responsibility. Society cannot hold someone responsible unless his actions were determined by something.

17. Science… The most extreme determinists are mostly scientists, such as Richard Dawkins. One argument against determinism focuses on science and free will in relation to it.

18. Physics • Early scientific thought often portrayed the universe as deterministic,and some thinkers claimed that the simple process of gathering sufficient information would allow them to predict future events with perfect accuracy.

19. Genetics Like physicists, biologists have frequently addressed questions related to free will. One of the most heated debates in biology is that of "nature versus nurture", concerning the relative importance of genetics and biology as compared to culture and environment in human behaviour.

20. Neuroscience • It has become possible to study the living brain, and researchers can now watch the brain's decision-making "machinery" at work.

21. Experimental psychology Experimental psychology’s contributions to the free will debate have come primarily through social psychologist Daniel Wegner's work on conscious will. In his book, The Illusion of Conscious WillWegner summarizes empirical evidence supporting the view that human perception of conscious control is an illusion.

22. The spatio-temporal prison house of cause and effect

23. In Eastern philosophy In Hindu philosophy • The six orthodox (astika) schools of thought in Hindu philosophy do not agree with each other entirely on the question of free will. For the Samkhya, for instance, matter is without any freedom, and soul lacks any ability to control the unfolding of matter.

24. In Eastern philosophy In Buddhist philosophy Buddhism accepts both freedom and determinism (or something similar to it), but rejects the idea of an agent, and thus the idea that freedom is a free will belonging to an agent.

25. In Jewish Philosophy • Jewish philosophy stresses that free will is a product of the intrinsic human soul.

26. In Islamic Philosophy • Free will, according to Shia Islamic doctrine is the main factor for man's accountability in his/her actions throughout life. All actions taken by man's free will are said to be counted on the Day of Judgement because they are his/her own and not God's.

27. In Christian Philosophy • The theological doctrine of divine foreknowledge is often alleged to be in conflict with free will, particularly in Reformed circles.

28. In Christian Philosophy • The philosopher Søren Kierkegaard claimed that divine omnipotence cannot be separated from divine goodness.

29. Is there any freedom for an actor on a stage in time and space? Does existence as physical entities in time and space allow any genuine choices?

30. A community of Inquiry on Free Will vs Determinism • CLICK ON THIS LINK FOR THE STIMULUS FOR A DISCUSSION ON THE PROBLEM OF FREE WILL (You might like to print this material out and distribute it to the class.)

31. Bibliography • Bischof, Michael H. (2004). KanneinKonzeptderWillensfreiheit auf das PrinzipderalternativenMöglichkeitenverzichten? Harry G. Frankfurts Kritik am PrinzipderalternativenMöglichkeiten (PAP). In: ZeitschriftfürphilosophischeForschung (ZphF), Heft 4. • Dennett, Daniel . (2003). Freedom Evolves New York: Viking Press ISBN 0-670-03186-0 • Epstein J.M. (1999). Agent Based Models and Generative Social Science. Complexity, IV (5). • Gazzaniga, M. & Steven, M.S. (2004) Free Will in the 21st Century: A Discussion of Neuroscience and Law, in Garland, B. (ed.) Neuroscience and the Law: Brain, Mind and the Scales of Justice, New York: Dana Press, ISBN 1932594043, pp51–70. • Goodenough, O.R. (2004) Responsibility and punishment, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences (Special Issue: Law and the Brain), 359, 1805–1809. • Hofstadter, Douglas. (2007) I Am A Strange Loop. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0465030781 • Kane, Robert (1998). The Significance of Free Will. New York: Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-512656-4 • Lawhead, William F. (2005). The Philosophical Journey: An Interactive Approach. McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages ISBN 0-07-296355-7. • Libet, Benjamin; Anthony Freeman; and Keith Sutherland, eds. (1999). The Volitional Brain: Towards a Neuroscience of Free Will. Exeter, UK: Imprint Academic. Collected essays by scientists and philosophers. • Morris, Tom Philosophy for Dummies. IDG Books ISBN 0-7645-5153-1. • Muhm, Myriam (2004). Abolitoilliberoarbitrio - Colloquio con Wolf Singer. L'Espresso 19.08.2004 http://www.larchivio.org/xoom/myriam-singer.htm • Nowak A., Vallacher R.R., Tesser A., Borkowski W. (2000). Society of Self: The emergence of collective properties in self-structure. Psychological Review. 107 • Schopenhauer Arthur (1839). On the Freedom of the Will., Oxford: Basil Blackwell ISBN 0-631-14552-4. • Van Inwagen, Peter (1986). An Essay on Free Will. New York: Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-824924-1. • Velmans, Max (2003) How Could Conscious Experiences Affect Brains? Exeter: Imprint Academic ISBN 0907845-39-8. • Wegner, D. (2002). The Illusion of Conscious Will. Cambridge: Bradford Books • Williams, Clifford (1980). Free Will and Determinism: A Dialogue. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Co. • Wikipedia- Free Will- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_will