Free Will and Determinism

• define biological determinism

  the idea that all human behaviour is innate and determined by genes.
• define causal explanations

  Science is heavily deterministic in its search for causal relationships (explanations) as it seeks to discover whether X causes Y, or whether the independent variable causes changes in the dependent variable.
• define determinism

  the view that free will is an illusion, and that our behaviour is governed by internal or external forces over which we have no control.
• define environmental determinism

  the view that behaviour is determined or caused by forces outside the individual. Environmental determinism posits that our behaviour is caused by previous experience learned through classical and operant conditioning.
• define free will 


  the idea that we can play an active role and have choice in how we behave. The assumption is that individuals are free to choose their behaviour and are self-determined.
• define hard determinism

  the view that forces outside of our control (e.g. biology or past experience) shape our behaviour. Hard determinism is seen as incompatible with free will.
• define psychic determinism

  Psychic determinism claims that human behaviour is the result of childhood experiences and innate drives (id, ego and superego), as in Freud’s model of psychological development.
• define soft determinism

  Soft determinism is an alternative position favoured by many psychologists. According to soft determinism, behaviour is constrained by the environment or biological make-up, but only to a certain extent.
• give an example of biological determinism in psychology

  • Research into the human genome provides evidence to support the idea of biological determinism. For example, research has found that a particular gene (IGF2r) is implicated in intelligence (Hill et al., 1999). Furthermore, Chorley et al., (1998) reported a statistically significant association between IQ test scores and the IGF2r gene on chromosome six, suggesting that intelligence is to some extent biologically determined.
• give an example of environmental determinism in psychology

  • Environmental determinism posits that our behaviour is caused by previous experience learned through classical and operant conditioning. For example, Bandura (1961) found that children with violent parents are more likely to become violent parents themselves, as a result of observational learning.
• give an example of psychic determinism in psychology

  • Psychic determinism, claims that human behaviour is the result of childhood experiences and innate drives (id, ego and superego), as in Freud’s model of psychological development.
• evaluate free will and determinism debate in psychology (1)

  • Humanistic psychologists argue against determinism, claiming that humans have self-determination and free will and that behaviour is not the result of any single cause.
  • There is plenty of evidence to support humanistic psychologists. For example, identical twin studies typically find an 80% similarity in intelligence scores and a 40% similarity in the likelihood of depression. However, as identical twins share 100% of their genes, these results suggest that 20% is caused by other (environmental) factors.
• evaluate free will and determinism debate in psychology (2)

  • Many psychologists, theorists and legal experts do not favour a deterministic point of view.
  • If behaviour is determined by outside forces, that provides a potential excuse for criminal acts. For example, in 1981 Stephen Mobley argued that he was ‘born to kill’ after killing a pizza shop manager, because his family had a disposition towards violence and aggressive behaviour. An American court rejected this argument. Therefore, a truly determinist position may be undesirable as it provides an ‘excuse’,
• evaluate free will and determinism debate in psychology (3)

  • Some psychologists, such as Skinner, argue that free will is an illusion. Skinner insisted that our behaviour is in fact environmentally determined. Also, more recent evidence provides some support for Skinner’s claim. For example research found that the motor regions of the brain become active before a person registers conscious awareness of a decision. This strongly suggests that many responses are biologically determined
• what is the scientific approach on determinism?

  • Science is heavily deterministic in its search for causal relationships as it seeks to discover whether X causes Y, or whether the independent variable causes changes in the dependent variable. For example, in Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) research, they manipulated the verb used in the critical question (IV), to measure the effect on the participant’s estimate of speed (DV).
• evaluation of determinism on science (1)

  • Even in the natural sciences, it is now accepted that there is no such thing as hard determinism. This type of determinism seemed more appropriate in the 18th and 19th centuries when most physicists believed they would eventually be able to make very precise and accurate predictions about everything relevant to physics. However, discoveries in the 20th century suggested they were unduly optimistic.
• evaluation of determinism on science (2)

  • While experiments are keen to establish causation, where X causes Y, they typically discount or minimise the importance of extraneous variables that have not been controlled. Furthermore, experiments often make sweeping generalisations about human behaviour and don’t acknowledge that at a different time, in a different place, our behaviour may not be influenced by X. There are so many variables that influence human behaviour that it is impossible to control them effectively.
• evaluation of determinism on science (3)

  • Finally, according to Baumeister (2009), psychological causality as revealed in psychology laboratories is arguably never deterministic. Statistical tests show the probability that something occurred by chance. This means that our entire statistical enterprise is built on the idea of multiple possibilities rather than a single cause.