Free Will

• Free will

  An individual takes an active role in controlling their behaviour (self determination)
• Humanistic Approach

  Argues that self-determism is a necessary part of human behaviour, and without it, self-development and self-actualisation are not possible.
• Moral responsibility

  An individual is in charge of their actions (by exercising free will) and all humans are accountable for their actions regardless of innate factors.
• +   Life experiences

  Seem to show that we have free will since we make all sorts of decisions every day (e.g. when to get up, what to wear). 

  >      This means it can be said that free will has face validity. 

  Research also supports this, as people with an internal locus of control tend to be more proactive and make more decisions. 
• -       Critics opinion 

  Critics such as Skinner argue that free will is an illusion and having options to choose from isn’t really free will. He said that decisions are better explained by reinforcement history.

  o   Libet et al also found brain activity in the motor cortex before pps has a conscious awareness of choosing to move their finger 

  --> This suggests that the choices in free will may just be consequences of predetermined events meaning there is no free will.
• +   Other studies

  Trevena and Miller found that brain activity preceded decisions but concluded that this represented a ‘readiness to act’. This undermined the empirical challenge to free will.

  --> On balance, the evidence on free will is inconclusive, although even if it only a belief, evidence suggests that it still has a positive impact on the mind and behaviour.