Does free will exist?

Answer 1

Do human beings have Free Will? Are we the masters of our destiny or are we puppets on a string? Oh yes, another examination of the laws of nature dealing with causality and randomness.

In addition to scientific considerations, common sense insists that Free Will exists. Who would deny that we have Free Will when we put one foot in front of the other and decide, of our own volition, of our own Free Will, to go for a walk or not go for a walk this afternoon?

It is clearly irrational to believe that a chain of causality at the time of the Big Bang determines if we go for a walk this afternoon, or not.

Answer 2

Lots of different points of view on this one. Here goes...

Some people deny free will on the grounds of determinism, ie that because all effects predictably follow causes, the future must be set in stone, therefore we cannot have free will. However, I dispute this because:
1. I'm not 100% sure of the assumption that all effects do *predictably* follow causes (quantum mechanics has something to say about that), and
2. Even if the future is set in stone, then it is still our personalities and characteristics that have charted the course of future events. It's as if all the decisions we were ever going to make were all made right at the beginning - but they were still *our* decisions. I think that "Matrix Reloaded" says it best - "You've already made the choice. You're here to figure out *why* you made it".

From a neurological point of view: there is an area in our brain responsible for making decisions. Experiments have shown that this area becomes stimulated, ie makes a decision, then acts on that decision (eg makes finger push a button) *before* we become consciously aware of it. Some people say that this means that free will is an illusion, that some non-conscious part of the brain makes the decision and fools the conscious part into thinking that it's in control.

I'm quite attracted to this point of view, but am not quite convinced of it because:
1. I'm not sure that the experimenters sufficiently distinguished between fast responses, ie reflex actions which are largely unconscious anyway, and slow responses, ie consciously considered decisions;
2. Even if the conscious part of the brain takes no part in making decisions, then it's still *our brain* which makes decisions, just a non-conscious part. We still know very little about the brain - if it turns out that there is less of a difference between the conscious and non-conscious "parts" than we currently think, then it will still be free will on our part that is responsible for decisions and actions.

The Theistic point of view: some say God, in his omniscience, denied himself knowledge of the future, because if the future was pre-ordained then mankind could not have free will. I dispute this argument, on the same grounds as the "Matrix Reloaded" argument above. The end result, as with most theological discussions, is that we don't really know one way or the other.

My personal point of view is that we have free will, but only if you include as being part of oneself all of the non-conscious actions we take, eg acting like a nana to impress the opposite sex and lots of other things dictated by our hormones, and conscious / subconscious social influences.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you for your time.

Answer 3

I think it does exist. Why do people neglect it? Because that's how you justify your failures. It's easier to say, "It's my destiny, it couldn't have been otherwise." than "I failed, it's my fault."

Actually, I find the statement that everything's pre-determined quite funny. It cannot be like that. That means I can do nothing: I can stop learning, just sit in front of the TV and eat chocolate all day long because everything's already pre-determined and whatever I do, I cannot do otherwise. That's ridiculous, but it's a good excuse, I I've mentioned already.

I think there is free will and we are responsible for whatever that happens to us, which is also very hard to accept somehow.

Answer 4

Hello,

(ANS) Free will is a very confusing term in my opinion. "Will power" or the power of the will, definitely exists. Will power is an aspect or feature of the ego. It is also related to basic drives and to dreams or imagination.

**The "Will power" is the psychological process or force used to transform a dream or a desire (from imagination) into a real world experience, or attain a goal i.e. determination too obtain something.

In that sense (as above) YES! certainly free will definitely exists.

**The term "free will" is highly misleading, it makes no rational sense. How could the "will" be any thing other than free??

Ivan

Answer 5

Yes, Free Will exists, or we all would be dead by now … and if we were not dead, then at least we would all be mute. I speak, your listen; or you speak I listen, this, to me is the simplest form of expression of free will. As I respond to your question I use my Free Will to compose an answer her and now. I am free to skip your question, but choose not to, as I choose to post an open response. This is Free Will. I might take your question far too serious and delve into philosophical argument, raging ever since the dawn of human thought, to debate the issue its fullest possible details, but then I will subject myself to the disciplines of philosophical argumentation and decorum of pedantic search for truth. I will then lose my freedom to a wider world of thought around me.

I could be free to think laterally, and creatively, but the more I see, more I absorb my environment the more I become subjective in my expression. Everything is binding in mind for the reality it represents; mind is ornate with wide range of things in the world, and is dependent upon empirical experience for its proper sense. How is it possible that no two minds are ever similar to on another? This is because they have Free Will to compose themselves into their own unique formations; each mind appears just like a view from the eyepiece of a kaleidoscope.

Answer 6

This is a complex question. Sociobiologists would say that we are programmed to act the way we do because of genetics, while strict behaviorists would say we are programmed by our experiences. It's the old nature vs. nurture question. I would guess that we either have free will or that a combination of nature vs.nurture, along with the complexity of the brain give the appearance of free will.

Answer 7

yes free will exists..... we have so many rules it may be hard to tell where the free will does exist...but the bottom line is when ever we have a choice to decide that is where our free will comes into play

Answer 8

I don't believe it does.

It seems that from when we are are born (and probably before that) we are all exposed to influences outside of our minds and bodies.

So whatever things cause a sensation, then they must have an effect on our consciousness. If our consciousness can be changed by sensations, then I don't believe that we have free will.

Answer 9

Try reading FREE WILL & RESPONSIBILITY by Jennifer Trusted. OUP 1984. ISBN 0-19-289170-7.

Answer 10

How do you define free will?

Have animals free will?
From where does free will comes, if we are descended from animals?

Has your computer free will? Does it sometimes act in a way you can’t explain? Would you call this behavior free will?