{"id":129073,"date":"2024-08-24T15:19:40","date_gmt":"2024-08-24T19:19:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=129073"},"modified":"2024-08-29T15:28:29","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T19:28:29","slug":"robert-sapolsky-determinism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/robert-sapolsky-determinism\/","title":{"rendered":"Robert Sapolsky Says Determinism\u2014Not Free Will\u2014Is Our Reality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How well do you understand the concept of free<\/a> will? Do you believe that your choices are truly your own?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his book Determined<\/em>, Robert Sapolsky explores the theory of determinism and its implications for human behavior. He lays out arguments against free will and shares how scientific advancements support his views on determinism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading to discover how Robert Sapolsky’s determinism theory<\/a> challenges our understanding of personal choice and responsibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Robert Sapolsky on Determinism<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As explained by Robert Sapolsky, determinism <\/em>is the idea that every event, from the most important to the most trivial, is the direct result of whatever happened immediately before it. <\/strong>Those occurrences, in turn, were due to what happened immediately before them, and so on. In short, determinism theorizes an unbroken web of events that reaches all the way back to the beginning of the universe<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Determinism also means that whatever happened was the only thing that could <\/em>have happened at that moment, because it was determined by the moment beforehand. For example, think about what happens when you throw a ball: The moment you let go, the place where that ball will land has already been determined by the force of your arm, the angle of your throw, the wind, and countless other factors. The ball can\u2019t simply choose to land someplace else\u2014all it can do is travel along its predetermined path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Sapolsky\u2019s strict deterministic view of the world closely resembles a theory that Sir Isaac Newton\u2014who was a devoutly religious man as well as a scientist\u2014proposed in the late 17th century, which is known as the Clockwork Universe theory<\/a>. Newton\u2019s theory states that God, being omniscient, created the universe in such a way that it would run perfectly without the need for any further divine intervention, just like a clock runs on its own after being wound. This implies that God already knew everything that would happen from the very moment of Creation; that, in turn, implies all of those events have been fixed in place since the beginning of time.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We’ll explain two major reasons why Sapolsky believes free will doesn\u2019t exist:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. By definition, free will means making decisions without any influences\u2014otherwise, you\u2019re simply reacting rather than acting freely. However, this is impossible because you\u2019re always being influenced by your genes, experiences, and surroundings. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Whatever \u201cchoice\u201d you make is the only choice you could have possibly made, based on everything influencing you at that exact moment. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    We\u2019ll also discuss how scientific advancement supports Sapolsky\u2019s theory that people aren\u2019t in control of their own actions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Determinism and Human Behavior<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Applying the theory of determinism to human behavior would mean that anything a person thinks or does is simply a response to what happened the moment before. Moreover, it\u2019s the only response they could possibly have\u2014just like the ball from the previous example can\u2019t land someplace besides where it\u2019s going to land, the person can\u2019t do something besides what they\u2019re going to do. Innumerable different factors, both personal and environmental, come together to create that one inevitable outcome. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    To give just a few examples of personal influences: Someone\u2019s genetics, their physical and mental health, and their mood all affect their behavior. Even things that seem unimportant, like whether they\u2019ve eaten recently, play a role; you probably know from experience that being hungry makes you irritable and more likely to snap at people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Environmental influences on a person\u2019s behavior include socioeconomic status, education, culture, friend groups, and how their parents or guardians raised them. Again, seemingly trivial things can affect their thoughts and actions<\/strong>\u2014for instance, people tend to get short-tempered when it\u2019s hot out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Furthermore, each of those influences was itself influenced by whatever came before it. Therefore, determinism once again theorizes a string of causes and effects going back to the very beginning of time and insists that everything people do is part of that unchangeable string of events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Age-Old Question: Nature Versus Nurture<\/strong>

    Sapolsky discusses these influences on people\u2019s behavior in much greater detail in his previous book, Behave<\/em><\/a>. <\/em>He also addresses the issue of \u201cnature versus nurture\u201d; that is, how much do our innate tendencies affect our behavior compared to the things we experience throughout life? He concludes that, of the two, nurture has a much larger impact<\/a>.

    Sapolsky explains that certain genes can predispose us to certain behaviors\u2014for instance, it\u2019s well known that     alcoholism has a genetic component<\/a>\u2014but our experiences are what actually shape our thoughts and actions. So, if someone with genetic risk factors for alcoholism is raised to understand the risks of drinking, they might never start drinking at all.

    However, there\u2019s also a growing belief among behavior experts that \u201cnature versus nurture\u201d was the wrong approach to begin with, and we really should be discussing \u201c    nature and <\/em>nurture<\/a>.\u201d This is because nearly everything about us is the result of our genes interacting with our environment. For instance, we tend to think that height is genetic, but children with good nutrition grow taller on average<\/a> than those without adequate food. Similarly, if someone never starts drinking, then it doesn\u2019t matter how many genetic risk factors they have\u2014alcoholism can only come from the interaction between those genes and alcohol. <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Argument #1 for Determinism: Influenced Choices Aren\u2019t Free Choices<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    The crux of Sapolsky\u2019s argument that human behavior is deterministic is: Your brain determines what you do, and all of the countless influences we discussed determine what your brain does. <\/strong>Therefore, what you experience as \u201cmaking a choice\u201d is really your brain processing all of the things influencing you at that moment and calculating a response. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For instance, you might think that you chose to have steak for dinner, when in reality you were being influenced by low iron levels that made you crave red meat and a sign advertising the local butcher shop that you saw on your way home from work. Then again, perhaps money\u2019s too tight for steak, so you decided to make meatloaf instead\u2014that\u2019s another factor (your finances) further influencing the decision that you believe you made freely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    (Shortform note: Sapolsky\u2019s assertion that we can\u2019t claim to freely take action when we\u2019re being influenced by numerous other factors bears some resemblance to the legal concept of coercion<\/a>. Coercion means using violence or the threat of violence to force someone else to commit a crime. A successful coercion defense can often reduce penalties or get a defendant\u2019s case dismissed entirely, because the defendant\u2019s choices were being influenced by an outside force; their actions weren\u2019t of their own free will. While this is an extreme comparison\u2014most things that influence our behavior don\u2019t directly threaten our lives\u2014it does help to illustrate Sapolsky\u2019s idea that we aren\u2019t really making our own decisions, because other factors are always influencing those decisions.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Argument #2 for Determinism: You\u2019d Always Make the Same Choice<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    Sapolsky says another fundamental concept of determinism is that identical situations will always lead to identical outcomes.<\/strong> This logically follows from the idea that events are predetermined by the events leading up to them; if that\u2019s true, then the same causes will always lead to the same effects. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We\u2019ll apply this concept to human behavior with a thought experiment<\/a>: Imagine that you\u2019re standing in your kitchen right now, deciding what you want to eat. Now imagine that scenario playing out across an infinite number of identical realities, with an infinite number of identical versions of you. Would all of those \u201cyou\u201ds choose the same snack? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If even one copy of you chose differently from the others, that would prove the existence of free will; since the starting conditions are exactly the same, free will is the only thing that could lead to a different outcome.<\/strong> Conversely, the deterministic answer is that every one of those infinite versions of you would make the exact same decision, thereby demonstrating that free will is a myth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A Philosophical Question: Are Predetermined Choices Still Choices?<\/strong>

    Sapolsky\u2019s main point<\/a> in Determined <\/em>is that anything we believe to be a personal choice is actually the inevitable result of everything leading up to it. However, in doing so, he de-emphasizes the importance of personal factors such as our beliefs and values, when in reality they still have an enormous impact on what we end up doing. This raises a question of semantics: Given that our thoughts influence our actions, could it still be said that we\u2019re making choices about what to do, even if those choices were predetermined?

    We can find an interesting interpretation of predetermined \u201cchoices\u201d from a surprising source: the 2003 science fiction movie The Matrix Reloaded. <\/em>In one scene, Neo (the protagonist) speaks to the Oracle, a computer program that can     predict the future<\/a>. During their conversation, Neo asks the Oracle if she already knows what he\u2019s going to do next, and the Oracle replies that she does<\/a>. He then asks, if that\u2019s the case, how can he decide what to do? The Oracle\u2019s answer is that he already made that decision, he just doesn\u2019t yet understand why <\/em>he made it.

    This exchange strikes an intriguing balance between determinism and personal agency. Neo\u2019s actions are already set in stone before he\u2019s aware of making any decisions (like all of us, if Sapolsky\u2019s right). Therefore, what feels like making a decision is actually learning the reasons behind a decision that he already made long ago. However, those reasons include Neo\u2019s personality, values, and abilities\u2014what one might call his free will. Most importantly, they\u2019re still Neo\u2019s decisions and are     no less meaningful for being predetermined<\/a>.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    The Shrinking Role of \u201cFree Will\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    While discussing determinism and free will (or the lack thereof), Sapolsky points out that scientific research has repeatedly found underlying reasons for things that we used to believe were the result of personal choices<\/a>. This suggests that \u201cfree will\u201d is just a catch-all explanation to fill the gaps in our understanding of people\u2019s behavior. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Therefore, <\/strong>the more we learn, the less we attribute to this nebulous concept of free will. For example, now that we know about conditions like clinical depression and ADHD, we understand that people with those disorders have chemical imbalances that affect their behavior, and they aren\u2019t just choosing to be lazy or careless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Following that trend to its conclusion, Sapolsky believes that if we somehow became omniscient, it would become clear that free will doesn\u2019t exist.<\/strong> With no gaps in our understanding of human behavior, there would be no need for such a concept, nor would there be any way to fit it into our worldview even if we wanted to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Stigma of \u201cLaziness\u201d<\/strong>

    As Sapolsky says, the more we learn about why people do the things they do, the less we blame on their personal choices. This is important not just because it gives us a better understanding of the world, but also because it\u2019s helping us overcome the social stigma that comes with labels like \u201clazy.\u201d<\/a>

    Social psychologist Devon Price discusses this trend in terms of what he calls     the laziness myth<\/a>. In brief, Price says that our work-centric capitalist culture leads to some very harmful beliefs: It directly ties a person\u2019s productivity to their quality as a person, and it insists that people can overcome any difficulty through hard work. Looked at from the other direction, this implies that people who are struggling (such as people living in poverty, or those with disabilities) are just lazy and not working hard enough\u2014and, furthermore, that their \u201claziness\u201d means they\u2019re bad people.

    Price\u2019s work emphasizes that what looks like laziness is always the result of other factors like fatigue, psychological disorders, or systemic barriers to education and employment. By recognizing this, and understanding that people aren\u2019t struggling because of some personal moral shortcoming, he hopes that we as a society can shift our focus from     assigning blame<\/a> to finding solutions. <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    How well do you understand the concept of free will? Do you believe that your choices are truly your own? In his book Determined, Robert Sapolsky explores the theory of determinism and its implications for human behavior. He lays out arguments against free will and shares how scientific advancements support his views on determinism. Keep reading to discover how Robert Sapolsky’s determinism theory challenges our understanding of personal choice and responsibility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":129094,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,9],"tags":[1577],"class_list":["post-129073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-philosophy","category-psychology","tag-determined","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nRobert Sapolsky Says Determinism\u2014Not Free Will\u2014Is Our Reality - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The concept of determinism challenges our understanding of free will. 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