Free will vs determinism

• Free will: we play an active role and we have a choice in how we behave.
• The humanistic approach supports free will in saying that humans have self-determination and free will and that behaviour is not a result of any single cause.
• determinism: our behaviour is effected by external factors.
• soft determinism: The idea that we are not free to choose our actions but are influenced by our genes and environment
• hard determinism: 100% of behaviour is determined by genes and environment
• Biological determinism: all behaviour is innate and determined by genes
• environmental determinism: behaviour is down to factors outside or external to the individual
• psychic determinism: behaviour is a result of childhood experiences and innate drives
• strengths:

  • Hofling as environmental factors effecting
  • Asch’s conformity test
  • The external factor is the authoritive figure
• limitations:

  • humans are complex meaning we cannot always define the reason
  • everyone is individual
  • psychic: inference and introspection
  • hard to determine childhood
• Free will:

  • Robert et al (2000) believed fatalistic people had greater levels of developing depression
  • Supported in law as it was rare that deterministic pleas are accepted
  • Libet at al (1938) studied a random flick of the wrist and how all subconsciously thought about it before saying they did
  • The brain does not support free will