Free will – two simple words. What do they mean?
Free:
unconstrained [1]
independent - free from external control and constraint [2]
not limited or controlled [3]
Synthetic Definition
Free: “independent, unconstrained, not limited, not subject to external control.”
Will:
“the faculty of conscious and deliberate action; the power of control the mind has over one's actions” [4]
“to cause or try to cause (something) to happen by using the power of your mind” [5]
“the mental power used to control and direct your thoughts and actions” [6]
“the power of control over one's own actions or emotions” [7]
Transcendent Philosophy’s Definition
Will: “the process of converting desires into decisions” (this definition subtracts any unproven metaphysical baggage like powers of deliberate control)
Basic Desert:
“the sense that the agent would deserve to be blamed or praised just because she has performed the action” [8]
Free Will:
“lack of necessity in human will” [9]
"the will does not have to be such as it is" [9]
“the ability to do otherwise” [10]
“the strongest control condition—whatever that turns out to be—necessary for moral responsibility [i.e. basic desert]” [10]
a type of decision-making process that is not controlled by algorithm, such that it could not be replicated in a robot
a type of control over one's behavior that does not reduce to randomness
Basic Desert Definition:
Free Will: “the capacity for a process of converting desires into decisions that, at the level of the will, is independent, unconstrained, not limited, not subject to external control, such that it can provide the foundation for basic desert; not algorithmic nor robotic in nature.”
Non-Basic Desert Definition:
Free Will: “the capacity for a process of converting desires into decisions that, at the level of the will, is independent, unconstrained, not limited, not subject to external control, not algorithmic nor robotic in nature.”
Agent:
a being with the capacity to act [25]
a unified entity that is distinguishable from its environment and that is doing something by itself in accord with a certain goal [25]
Agency:
the capacity to act intentionally [25]
the property or capacity of actors to make things happen [26]
the capacity, condition, or state of acting or of exerting power [27]
intentional actions initiated by the agent, explained in terms of causation by the agent’s mental states and events; initiation by the agent consists in causation by the relevant desire-belief pairs [25]
a power to act or not to act, according as the mind directs [28]
Operational Definition:
Agency: “the capacity for a process of converting decisions into actions; goal-oriented, uncoerced, intentional, and not random in nature.”
Free Agent:
someone whose actions are not limited or controlled by anyone else [29]
Free Agency:
Causal Responsibility Definition:
Free Agency: “the capacity for a process of converting decisions into actions that, at the level of the agent, is independent, unconstrained, not limited, not subject to external control, such that it can provide the foundation for causal responsibility; goal-oriented, uncoerced, intentional, and not random in nature.”
Non-Causal Responsibility Definition:
Free Agency: “the capacity for a process of converting decisions into actions that, at the level of the agent, is independent, unconstrained, not limited, not subject to external control; goal-oriented, uncoerced, intentional, and not random in nature.”
Causation:
"A relation that holds between two temporally simultaneous or successive events when the first event (the cause) brings about the other (the effect); C -> E. [16]
According to David Hume, when we say of two types of object or event that “X causes Y” (e.g., fire causes smoke), we mean that (i) Xs are “constantly conjoined” with Ys, (ii) Ys follow Xs and not vice versa, and (iii) there is a “necessary connection” between Xs and Ys such that whenever an X occurs, a Y must follow." [16]
Meta-Cause:
The cause of a cause
Determine:
to cause, affect, or control; fix or decide causally [11]
think "causation + necessity + predictability"
single possible causal pathway
"tightly determined"
to be the cause of or reason for (something) [12]
think "causation"
multiple possible causal pathways
"loosely determined"
Determinism:
all events are determined
all events have a cause [32]
all events are the outcome of chains of cause and effect
everything has a cause that fixes its future necessarily to one predictable-in-principle fate
all events, including human action, are ultimately determined by causes external to the will. [13]
all events in the universe, including human decisions and actions, are causally inevitable. [13]
it is never true that people could have decided or acted otherwise than they actually did. [13]
Indeterminism:
some events are not determined
some events do not have a cause [32]
some events are not the outcome of chains of cause and effect
some things lack a cause that fixes its future necessarily to one predictable-in-principle fate
at least some events have no deterministic cause but occur randomly, or by chance. [13]
indeterminists do not have to deny that causes exist. Instead, they can maintain that the only causes that exist are of a type that do not constrain the future to a single course; for instance, they can maintain that only necessary and not sufficient causes exist. [23]
indeterminism can be defined as the existence of multiple real possibilities for the future [24]
Determinism is the logical opposite of Indeterminism
Random:
in a way that does not follow a particular plan or pattern [17]
Events or data that acts of its own accord. It will show no recognized pattern or direction that can be plotted for the anticipation of future actions. A random event or action is not planned and cannot be determined. [18]
proceeding, made, or occurring without definite aim, reason, or pattern [19]
every point or location in an area has an equal chance of being chosen for sampling as any other point in that area. [20]
it should be impossible to guess the next session key based on knowledge of past session keys [20]
Determined solely by chance [21]
A value in a set of numbers that has an equal probability of being selected from the total population of possibilities and, in that sense, is unpredictable. [22]
every possibility is of equal probability
not caused or determined
Types of Determinism
Single Causal-Chain Pathway (Pure Determinism)
Nomological determinism [14]
It is the notion that the past and the present dictate the future entirely and necessarily by rigid natural laws and that every occurrence inevitably results from prior events.
Predeterminism [14]
It is the idea that all events are determined in advance.
Necessitarianism [14]
It is a metaphysical principle that denies all mere possibility and maintains that there is only one possible way for the world to exist.
Fatalism [14]
It is normally distinguished from determinism, as a form of teleological determinism. Fatalism is the idea that everything is fated to happen, resulting in humans having no control over their future.
Wave Function Determinism [15]
Lawrence Krauss emphasizes that the evolution of the quantum wave function is governed by the deterministic Schrödinger equation, a second-order differential equation, which allows the prediction of a system's state at any future time if its initial state is known. While acknowledging that the outcomes of quantum measurements, such as the position or momentum of a particle, are probabilistic, Krauss maintains that these outcomes occur within a deterministic framework that governs the wave function itself. He further suggests that despite the apparent randomness in individual quantum events, the collective behavior of many particles, like decay rates in radioactivity, can be deterministically described, highlighting a macroscopic predictability in quantum systems. This perspective bridges individual quantum randomness with overarching deterministic principles, suggesting a coherent deterministic view of quantum mechanics at larger scales.
Multiple Possible Causal-Chain Pathways (Possibly Mixes in Indeterminism)
Causal Determinism [14]
It is the idea that every event is necessitated by antecedent events and conditions together with the laws of nature. Causal determinism proposes that there is an unbroken chain of prior occurrences stretching back to the origin of the universe. Causal determinists believe that there is nothing in the universe that has no cause or is self-caused.
Biological determinism [14]
It is the idea that all human behaviors, beliefs, and desires are fixed by human genetic nature. Biological processes could potentially harness a little quantum randomness, but the end result would still be biological causation.
Adequate determinism [14]
It is the idea, because of quantum decoherence, that quantum indeterminacy can be ignored for most macroscopic events. Random quantum events "average out" in the limit of large numbers of particles (where the laws of quantum mechanics asymptotically approach the laws of classical mechanics).
Probabilistic Determinism (Statistical Determinism) [GPT]
This form suggests that while events are determined, they are so in a probabilistic sense. This means that given a set of initial conditions, there are multiple possible outcomes, each with a certain probability. This is often discussed in the context of quantum mechanics, where particles have probabilities of being in various states until measured.
Nonlinear Determinism [GPT]
In systems described by nonlinear dynamics (e.g., chaotic systems), small differences in initial conditions can lead to vastly different outcomes, known as sensitive dependence on initial conditions or the butterfly effect. While the system's behavior is deterministic, predicting the exact future state becomes practically impossible due to the exponential growth of any small initial difference.
Soft Determinism (Compatibilism) [GPT]
Though not explicitly about multiple causal pathways in the physical sense, soft determinism is philosophically relevant as it argues that free will and determinism are compatible. It suggests that human behavior is determined by internal and external causes but still allows for moral responsibility and a form of free choice within determined constraints.
Types of Stances on the Free Will Debate
Hard Incompatibilism: The Denial of Free Will
Free will is incompatible with both determinism and indeterminism.
The necessity of causation destroys free will.
The lack of causation (randomness) destroys free will.
Rejects the compatibilist stance that the origin of one's values and desires is irrelevant to the question of free will.
If the origin of one's values and desires is not free, then the will is not free.
Compatibilism: Agentic Free Will
Free will is compatible with determinism.
Freedom can be understood as the ability of an agent to act according to one's desires and intentions, even if these are determined by prior events.
Compatibilist Free Will means your decisions are free from:
Unwanted actions (hiccups)
Unconscious actions (heart pumping)
Forced actions (slavery)
Coerced actions (gun to your head)
Social/Financial pressure (arranged marriage)
Internal Manipulation (hypnosis / brainwashing / scientist stimulating brain)
Brain Abnormalities (mental illness / brain tumor)
Addictions
This view posits that true freedom involves acting out of rational self-determination, rather than being free from causality. If the determining factor is your desires, then it is free.
The fact that one's desires and values might be "slaves" to physics and history is irrelevant to compatibilism.
Libertarianism: Metaphysical Free Will
Free will exists, despite any appearances of determinism or indeterminism.
Free will is logically incompatible with complete determinism, hence complete determinism must be false.
Requires that some actions to be undetermined by prior causes,
Certain aspects of the human mind elude deterministic laws, thus preserving the integrity of moral choice and responsibility.
Robot
A [electronic] machine controlled by a computer, which can move and do other things that people can do (assumes the context of electronics - an electronic robot) [30]
Computer
An electronic machine that computes, which is to say that it processing data through algorithms to arrive at desired results.
Algorithm
A step-by-step procedure for solving a problem or accomplishing some end [31]
Meat Robot
A biological machine controlled by a system of neurological algorithms, which can move and do other things in an agentic fashion.
References:
Pereboom, Derk, 2014. Free Will, Agency, and Meaning in Life, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/determine
https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxOnTbMPIPQLv8zJ_vv4uQ-xlNOwp2t_bE?si=MTogYtRZnGqTSoJJ
Locke, John. An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. 1689.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/free-agent
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/learner-english/robot
https://breakingthefreewillillusion.com/determinism-indeterminism-confusions/
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