The Controversy between free will and determinism

Introduction

The term Free will was introduced by the Christian philosophy in the 14th century. John Calvin is the father of free will, he ascribed that all the people have the ability to make decisions voluntarily without being compelled by anyone or any force. Determinism on the other hand proposes that the peoples behaviors are managed by external or internal factors that are above their control. This paper would therefore revolve around the extent to which our behaviors are controlled with forces over which we have no control or whether we are able to make decisions for ourselves to act or behave in a certain way.

Determinism and the idea of free will
Thew determinist approach states that all behaviors have their causes and is therefore predictable. External determinism impacts the behavior of humans; example teachers behavior in school, parental guidance and media expossions. Bandura (1961) argued that children become violent through the influence of their aggressive parents while students copy the behavior from their lectures or teachers. Freud views Internal determinism as a factor that induces behaviors from inside an individual, his view seemed to be more of biological and an interpretation as a level of an arousal in the nervous system; an example is when a person is suffering from anxiety, in stressful situations, the nervous system may be triggered to produce specific response which indicate anxiety, such as nail biting.

Free will is however linked to judgements which apply to actions which are freely chosen for instance the concept of responsibility, praise and sin. Determinists are against the free will concept following sort of its biasness as it only reward or rather blame individuals whose actions and decisions are made out of freedom. Determinism also suggests that only one course of an event is possible, which is inconsistent with the concept of free will. This has really become a threat to free will rendering determinism more superior.

Levels of determinism
Determinism is classified in two levels, Hard and soft determinism. Hard determinism holds that peoples behaviors are controlled by forces that are totally beyond our control; example, biological factors, experience and, environmental determinism. Being born in a low income earning family is an environmental factor, when an individual from the family steals, its not a choice committed out of free will but a need created by poverty, therefore, poverty becomes the cause and stealing is the consequence. Soft determinism holds that our behaviors are caused by factors beyond our control, but to some extent there is the element of free will.

Some behaviors prove more constrained than others therefore, the degree of free will varies in the particular behavior and situation. The concept of soft determinism argues that coming from a low income family is an environmental factor, but stealing is an example of free will in the context of borrowing or rather seeking help from the government. Therefore, in hard determinism, individuals behavior is predictable and inevitable while in soft determinism, individuals behavior is predicted but not inevitable due to some elements of free will.
Phrases

‘’Everything you do is predictable to those who know you well. This predictability means your life is determined by choices beyond your control-Paraphrase from Vaughn, p.268’’. This phrase clearly shows the concept of determinism in an individuals behavior. The first part of the phrase holds the environment to which an individual is located; example one comes from a poor background. The last part of the phrase indicates either external or internal factors that cause the individuals behavior (choices beyond your control). ‘’He sat a long time and he thought about his life and how little he could have foreseen and he wondered for all his will and all his intent how much of it was his doing’’-Cormac Mc Carthy (reprinted in Vaughn, p.265). This phrase clearly bring out the concept of free will, ’’……he wondered all his will….’’ The quoted part shows how the individual in the text is in thought to freely make decisions about his life.

The second phrase is correct. Everything an individual performs is can not actually be predicted by those who knows him, your neighbours can not predict why you’ve decided to either go to church or not. Deciding to join politics is an example of an individuals will and cannot be influenced by external or internal factors.
Conclusion
In conclusion, determinism has overcome the concept of free will. Free will is rendered inadequate yet to some extent free will may cause peoples behavior and action. In as much as free will causes individual behaviors, there are traces of determinism in decision making.
Reference