Do We Have Free Will?—Part 3

So what control do we really have over our actions? Is our brain's neuronal firing activity just going along on its own, with no input from us? If so, we appear to be shaped by a lot of influences beyond our conscious control. It can even seem as if we are pawns in a game of arbitrary brain electrical activity. Neurons fire and we simply respond.

These recent findings of neuroscientists are rather upsetting to many of them. It has caused some of them to be very cautious about becoming too visible and vocal about their results. If they were to cast doubt on our ability to act freely, maybe they'd play into people's bad behavior. If some people toss out the idea of having free will, they might conclude that their choices—particularly their moral choices—are irrelevant. Why try to behave ethically, when we're not really in charge? My brain made me do it; I'm not responsible! And furthermore, my brain may have made me do it, because my parents did not give me a nurturing home life, or because their brain chemicals were screwed up and they passed them on to me. It's not my fault!

So where do we go with this issue? What is the real story? Is it free will or determinism? Am I responsible or not? I will weigh in here and propose that it is not a case of either/or, but a case of free will and determinism. It's both. Neither one really excludes the other. These recent neuroscience experiments do seem to show us that free will plays a smaller role than what we've previously believed. But where does this leave us? What do I do with the possibility that it might be both? How do I decide which is which?

Humans have historically believed that free will reigns. So let me explore what we might come to conclude if we were to go to the other extreme: that we are fully under the influence of determinism. In other words, what might the implications be if we maintain that only determinism reigns.

If we choose to believe that determinism rules—that our firing neurons completely control our choices—we then must conclude that our actions are not our responsibility. Thus we are not morally responsible for what we do. There have been documented cases of people behaving immorally when they believed that free will does not exist. What are their lives like? Research has shown that they feel less blameworthy. They are less likely to be generous or volunteer to help others. They experience more stress, are less committed to making relationships work, are more likely to feel that life has no meaning, perform less well academically, are less creative, less grateful, and are more likely to conform. That's a pretty lengthy list of undesirable and unprincipled behaviors!

The propensity of people who deny they have free will and then act immorally, as I wrote above, has many neuroscientists very wary of publishing the truth about the fact of our limited free will. They're concerned that their findings may instigate bad behavior. Some even advocate that we should go along with the illusion of free will, while others feel that this is dishonest. They struggle with the dilemma.

There is a positive side to to accepting the role (if not the domination) of determinism, however. Our criminal justice system—which is based on free will—does not recognize the fact that some offenders simply inherited unlucky genes, or that their brain chemistry might have been altered by an injury. Their crimes are not always completely their fault. This is an explosive criminal justice issue! It would make a dramatic change in our penal system, if we accepted it. It might even humanize the system. And it could make us less likely to pursue a path of vengeance, when someone commits a crime.

If society allowed a degree of determinism, it could foster a softer view of criminal justice. It could prompt society to be more likely to improve the environment of disadvantaged people, so they'd be less likely to offend. It could lead us to revolutionize our education system and help people be better able to realize their full potential. People in a bad situation might be seen as needing help, rather than punishment. And when punishment is called for, we might levy it with more kindness and compassion.

When a natural disaster strikes—such as an earthquake or a hurricane—we do not think of extracting revenge on God or nature... we just rebuild. The calamity was beyond our control, so who's to blame? Could we possibly adopt some of this attitude toward those who commit crimes? And the biggest stretch of all: could we more constructively respond to terrorism? Our first gut reaction—influenced by our tendency to believe in free will—is vengeance. The United States responded to the 9/11 terrorist acts with retaliation, and then caused far more damage around the world by doing so. It could have been different, if determinism had been allowed to influence our viewpoint.

So let me return to the age-old question of whether it's free will or determinism. I've already said that I believe it's not an either/or situation. Neuroscience is demonstrating that determinism plays a bigger role than we've historically believed. This is a very important lesson. But it does not imply that we trash our opinion that we act with free will. It's a mixture of the two. It's complex. We must open our minds to acting in various mixtures at various times.

We make choices—sometimes within our conscious control, sometimes beyond our conscious control. I think the point is to examine our choices and subsequent actions—however they come about—and evaluate them. How can we learn from them, so that we do a better job next time? How do we show ourselves—and others—compassion? Won't that help us all to become more moral?