Free Will and Behavior

Concept of Free Will

• Common belief that individuals have the choice to act or not act.
• Seen as a voluntary act stemming from internal states or feelings.

Argument Against Free Will

• Free will is considered a fiction.
• Internal states and feelings are assumed to initiate actions or create willful behavior.

Causes of Behavior

• Behavior is influenced by external causes rather than internal decisions.
• Discovering these external causes challenges the notion of free will.

Historical Perspective

• Jonathan Edwards, an 18th-century American divine, argued about knowing behavior but not its causes.
• The science of behavior aims to uncover these causes.

Conclusion

• As causes of behavior are discovered, the need to attribute actions to internal will diminishes.
• Eventually, nothing needs to be attributed to free will.