{"product_id":"illusion-of-determinism-book-edwin-a-locke-9781543914221","title":"The Illusion of Determinism","description":"Determinism is the doctrine that everything we think, feel, believe, and do is caused by factors outside our control--that we have no choice regarding our character, our thoughts, our actions, our lives. There have been many forms of determinism but the one that is most popular today is based on neuroscience, with the enthusiastic support of many psychologists, philosophers, and physical scientists (e.g., physicists). This version argues that we are controlled by our physical brains with the brain being which are set in motion by environmental factors. The debate continues because many people disagree with determinism and assert that they have, in some form, free will. Determinists insist that such a belief represents folk psychology, an illusion held by people who are ignorant of what science has allegedly proved. Determinists typically believe that: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eConsciousness is the same thing as brain activity (as opposed to requiring a brain)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe conscious mind, though real, plays no significant role in human life\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe human mind is not significantly different from that of the lower animals such as chimpanzees\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAll causes are material (or mechanical)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGoal-directed action applies equally to people and machines\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe concept of a self or the self as a causal agent has no intelligible meaning\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eKey neuroscience experiments have proven that the intention to act appears after the brain has already decided what to do\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDeterminism is not only compatible with objective knowledge but is also the only guarantee of objective knowledge, because it is based on scientific truth\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDeterminism has to be either proved or disproved based on philosophical and\/or scientific arguments\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFree will, at best, is a necessary illusion\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003eOn the other side of the coin, various free will advocates typically believe that: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eElementary particles which make up our brain act at random, thus refuting causal necessity\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFree will and determinism are compatible\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eReligion validates free will\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003eIn this book I will show that all of the above beliefs are mistaken. I will also show that free will is, as many have claimed, self-evident, even though most people have not validated it or correctly identified what it consists of--what it is, and what it isn't.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49545546662161,"sku":"GOR013743175","price":17.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":53335951048977,"sku":"CIN1543914225G","price":7.37,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1543914225.jpg?v=1751419401","url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/products\/illusion-of-determinism-book-edwin-a-locke-9781543914221","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}