ACTIVITY

• In your books, decide to what extent the following factors are under your
own control or determined by factors outside your control.
• Use a scale of 1-10 (1 = you’re entirely in control, 10 = absolutely beyond
your control).
1. The grades you’ll get for A levels
2. The university place you will be accepted for
3. The career you will pursue
4. If you will have a long-term relationship
5. Who you will have a long-term relationship with
6. If you will be a good parent
7. If you will be happy today
RECOMMENDED READING….
ISSUES AND DEBATE

FREE WILL & DETERMINISM

 SPECIFICATIONS

• Gender and culture in Psychology – universality and bias. Gender bias

including androcentrism and alpha and beta bias; cultural bias, including
ethnocentrism and cultural relativism.
• Free will and determinism: hard determinism and soft determinism;
biological, environmental and psychic determinism. The scientific
emphasis on causal explanations.
• The nature-nurture debate: the relative importance of heredity and
environment in determining behaviour; the interactionist approach.
• Holism and reductionism: levels of explanation in Psychology. Biological
reductionism and environmental (stimulus-response) reductionism.
• Idiographic and nomothetic approaches to psychological investigation.
• Ethical implications of research studies and theory, including reference to
social sensitivity.
 Paper / Unit links
Paper 3: Issues and Debates

We are learning to…

Understand, discuss and evaluate the issues and debates within
Psychology

Good: Explain the Great: Outline the Even better: Evaluate

difference between different types of determinism and free
free will, hard determinism and apply will in psychology.
determinism and soft these to topic areas.
determinism.
AO1/2/3 AO1/2/3 AO1/2/3

Key terms:
Free will, Determinism, Hard determinism, Soft determinism, Biological
determinism, Environmental determinism & Psychic determinism
 WHAT IS FREE WILL?

The idea that we can make

choices and are not
determined by biological or
external forces.

The individual is fully in control

and is completely responsible
for their actions.
WHAT IS HARD DETERMINISM?
Hard determinism suggests that free will is
impossible as our behaviour is always caused
by events beyond our control.
All behaviour should be predictable and able
to be scientifically analysed once the causes
have been identified. If we can fully explain
someone’s behaviour, then there is no room for
free will.
 WHAT IS SOFT DETERMINISM?

This middle ground says all

behaviour has causes, but
behaviour can also be
determined by our conscious
choice.

However, these choices are

often constrained (or
determined) by other external
or internal factors.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF DETERMINISM…
Environmental Determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by features of the
environment (such as systems of rewards and punishment) that
we cannot control.

Biological Determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by biological
(genetic, hormonal, & evolutionary) influences that
we cannot control.

Psychic Determinism
The belief that behaviour is caused by unconscious conflicts that we
cannot control.
 TASK…
Complete the worksheet, “Types of Determinism”
 EXAM PRACTICE…
Q1. Which two of the following statements describe a strongly deterministic
view? (2 marks)
A People are always responsible for their own actions
B People behave in a random fashion
C People’s behaviour always has a cause
D People exercise full choice over how they behave
E People have no choice about how to act

Answers: C and E
 APPROACHES

Hard Soft determinism Free will

determinism
Behaviourist Approach Social Learning Theory Humanistic Approach

Biological Approach Cognitive Approach

Psychodynamic Approach
STARTER: EXAM PRACTICE…

Q2. Joel has learned to get his own way at school by

having fights with other children. His two older brothers
were both excluded from school for injuring other
children. Recently, Joel has also been excluded from
school for attacking another child.
Explain what is meant by determinism. Refer to Joel’s
aggressive behaviour in your answer. (4 marks)
 MARK SCHEME…
Up to two marks for explaining determinism.
Possible points; credit any two of the following:
• behaviour caused by the environment e.g. family, peers, consequences of behaviour.
• behaviour caused by biological factors e.g. genes, hormones, brain structure.
• behaviour caused by unconscious forces e.g. instincts, repressed experiences, fears, motives;
displacement.
References to hard and soft determinism can also receive full credit.
Can award 1 mark for a very general explanation of determinism.
Plus 2 marks for application to Joel which must be consistent with the explanation given.
Biological – brothers were also aggressive.
Environmental – learned to get his way (desirable / positive consequences of aggression) / brothers as
role models.
Psychic – use of displacement / fighting with other children.
Both application marks can come from the same approach.
 THE CAUSAL EXPLANATION OF
BEHAVIOUR…
• Determinism suggests that ALL our behaviour has
a cause; it has been determined by something.

• If this is true, then even if we cannot see a direct

cause for someone's behaviour, we would still
say it must be determined by something.

• This makes it unfalsifiable; even if we can’t find a possible determined

cause for a behaviour, we would say it is just because the cause hasn’t
been found yet.

• In psychology, lab experiments allows researchers to create the

conditions like a test tube used by sciences like chemistry (X chemical + Y
chemical = Z reaction in a test tube) as it removes all other extraneous
variables so that they can predict human behaviour.
 WHERE HAVE YOU
SEEN THIS DEBATE
IN PSYCHOLOGY?

Think back to the topics you

have learned and identify
examples of free will or
determinism (be specific –
what type of determinism?)
• Social Influence
• Attachment
 SOCIAL
INFLUENCE

Environmental Determinism
• Key studies by Asch,
Zimbardo and Milgram show
that you are influenced
by others around you in any
situation.
• This may be soft determinism,
as there is the option
to not conform or obey, but
most people do.
 ATTACHMENT
Environmental determinism
• Research by Bowlby suggests that your
relationship with your mother determines your
ability to have relationships in later life (Internal
Working Model)

Biological determinism
• Bowlby believed attachment is evolutionary
...AND SOME
UPCOMING
TOPICS....
 MEMORY

• Loftus car crash experiment

(you did this for your
research project)
Environmental determinism –
your answer is shaped by the
question being asked, which
change your memory for the
events
 PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

Environmental determinism!
• The behavioural approach to phobia suggests that we learn
phobias through life experience – bad experiences will
cause us to develop phobias.
Biological determinism!
• The biological approach to OCD suggests that genes or
brain structure can cause you to develop OCD. However,
the diathesis-stress explanation says that environmental
stress is needed to trigger this genetic tendency – both
biological and environmental determinism combined.
Soft determinism!
• The cognitive approach to depression suggests that
your thoughts cause you to have depression. CBT
encourages us to change our own thoughts, supporting the
idea that we do have some free will.
 FORENSIC
PSYCHOLOGY
Environmental determinism!
• Psychological explanations of offending
behaviour support the idea that offending
is learned through life experience (exposure
to role models (differential
association), same-sex parent
(psychodynamic theory)).
Biological determinism!
• Eysenck's theory of the criminal personality
suggests that the ENP personality type has a
biological cause.
 HOW TO USE DETERMINISM
IN AN EXAM
• You need to understand what determinism means
– the lack of free will. Once you understand this
concept, you can argue that each theory either
is or is not deterministic and be able to explain
why.
• You also need to be able to explain the practical
applications of this – how can this be used to
change behaviour?
 1. The biological approach suggests that
OCD is caused by low levels of serotonin,
a neurochemical in the brain, which we
have no conscious control over.
TRY
THIS… Explain how this is a deterministic
explanation, and what could be the
practical applications of this? How can we
use this explanation to treat OCD?
2. The Cognitive model suggests that mental illness is
caused by cognitive distortions (eg
magnification). Someone with a phobia of dogs
magnifies the danger that dogs present. Cognitive
therapy aims to challenge the patient to change their
thought processes to think more rationally.

3. How can a patient with a phobia of dogs be trained to

think more rationally? Explain this with reference to
magnification and cognitive distortion and explain how
this is an example of free will over determinism.
 EVALUATION OVERVIEW: FREE WILL &
DETERMINISM
+ Practical value (free will)
Roberts et al (2000) looked at adolescents who had a strong belief in fatalism – their lives were
‘decided’ by events outside of their control. Found that the fatalism adolescents were at
significant risk of developing depression as individuals with an internal LOC rather than
external were more likely to be optimistic. Suggesting that if we believe we have control, it has
a positive impact on mind and behaviour.

- Research evidence (free will)

Libet et al (1983) asked participants to randomly flick their wrist and say when they felt the will
to move. Their brain activity was measured during the process. Found the unconscious brain
activity leading up to the decision to move came a second before the participant’s conscious
decided to move.
Counterpoint: The fact that people consciously become aware of decisions milliseconds after
they had begun to enact the decision means they still made the decision. Suggesting this
evidence is not appropriate as a challenge to free will.
 EVALUATION OVERVIEW: FREE WILL &
DETERMINISM
- The law (determinism)
The hard determinist stance is not consistent with the way in which our legal system operates
because in courts individuals are held accountable for their actions. This is based on the notion
that the person has exercised their free will in committing the crime. Suggesting that
determinists arguments don’t work in real world.

+/- Do we want determinism?

Determinism has placed psychology on equal footing with other more established sciences
and has led to valuable real-world applications like therapy. However, most of us see
ourselves as having the right to make our own choices rather than being ‘pushed’ by external
forces out of our control. But, if psychology wants to be placed alongside the natural
sciences, determinism may be preferred and common-sense to be best understood by the
analysis of free will.
 EXAM PRACTICE…
Q3.
Read the item and then answer the questions that follow.

Extract from a newspaper article

Coping with Life’s Pressures

Depression often runs in families, but many depressed people have serious
social problems or have experienced traumatic events in the past. However,
many people find ways to cope. What we need is the will to overcome our
problems.

With reference to the item above, explain what is meant by ‘biological determinism’, ‘environmental
determinism’ and ‘psychic determinism’.
(Total 6 marks)
 MARK SCHEME…
• 1 mark for definition of each type PLUS 1 mark for application to stem:
• biological determinism – behaviour is controlled by aspects of biology e.g.
genes, chemicals etc. – depression ‘runs in families’ implies biological
determinism.
• environmental determinism – behaviour is controlled by external influences
e.g. parents, society etc. – ‘serious social problems’ implies environmental
determinism.
• psychic determinism – behaviour is controlled by unconscious fears, desires
etc. – ‘experienced traumatic events in the past’ implies psychic
determinism.
 PLAN THE FOLLOWING ESSAY
Dancho is a talented and famous musician. He was taught to play the piano
by his father who was a concert pianist. From the age of four years Dancho
attended a specialist music school where he spent many hours each day
practising the piano.
In a recent TV interview Dancho said, ‘My earliest memories are of notes and
melodies, so music is a part of me. To hear the applause in the concert hall is
what I live for. Even if I wanted to stop playing, I could not.’
Discuss two or more types of determinism. Refer to the case of Dancho as
part of your discussion.

(16 marks)